The mud is drying and there are still some sore heads recovering from the weekend’s exertions.  The great clean up at Glastonbury has begun but although no one from Glow attended this year, we don’t feel like we missed out too much. Not because we didn’t feel there was enough to see, but purely because of the amount that we could see, from the comfort of our own homes.

There is of course the atmosphere that you don’t get swept up in while in your lounge, but I felt quite smug watching Saturday night’s headlining act slumped on my sofa.  I could go to a clean bathroom when I wanted, I didn’t have to queue at my own fridge when I went for a beer and when it was all over, I could get into a nice warm bed, not trudge across 3 fields to a cold wet sleeping bag.

The technology that we have at our fingertips now is immense.  In some respects, we had an advantage over the people that were actually there.  With the red button technology that there is now on the TV, instead of waiting for the artists to come out on stage, we could flick from one stage to the next, choosing which artist or band we wanted to see and when.  If we particularly liked a performance, we could use the iplayer and go back and watch it again and again.

There were Glastonbury apps to tell us what was going on and where, websites with video clips or highlights, and of course, the really old fashioned television and radio channels.

However, it’s not just the people not at the festival that enjoyed the benefits of the advance of technology.  The apps are their guide book to the weekend, and now social media platforms are also a vital source of information for them.  Twitter is vastly used to spread the word about what is going on and the possibility of the whereabouts of that much anticipated ‘secret gig’.  There are no announcements made, just purely word of mouth, or of course the key pad.  Even now, social media is being used to start the excitement about the bands that have already been booked for next year!

There are also mobile tents.  Not canvas homes on wheels but large marquees, mainly set up by mobile providers where they advertise and sell etc, but they also provide an area for people to charge their various devices.  This has since become a very social area, where people meet to share their experiences and perhaps blog or post live updates from the festival.

Glastonbury attendees of old will argue that there is a certain authenticity to Glastonbury.  ‘Back in the day’ there were no mobile phones or other devices to connect them with the outside world.  They had a very privileged and personal relationship with the festival, it was just the bands and them and maybe that’s how they preferred it.

However, although we don’t get the atmosphere and the mud and the buzz that was clearly being created, how wonderful it was to be able to experience just a taste of that action, all through the power of technology.  It’s how the world is moving and it’s not going to stop whether we like it or not.