The most dramatic moment of this year’s Glastonbury Festival came at the end of Lana del Rey’s set on the evening of Saturday 24 June. The all-American pop songwriter had arrived on to the Other Stage more than half an hour late. During this time a group in front of me began to boo, lots more left the crowd altogether, and a woman behind me vomited on to the floor – twice. But fans can be forgiving. When she did arrive, Del Rey’s melancholic alt-pop, performed with a backdrop of balletic dancers, quickly impressed the crowd that had stuck around. “I forgive her!” said a girl from the group in front of me. She knew every lyric.
“I was so f***ing late that I am about to rush this set to death. If they cut power, they cut power, I’m super f***ing sorry. My hair takes so long to do,” Del Rey said a while later, explaining her tardiness. It was an obnoxious admission from an artist playing a festival with dozens of performances happening at any one time. Del Rey was hardly the only attraction of the multi-day affair held on Worthy Farm, Somerset. As her set’s end time approached, Del Rey was engaged in inaudible but visibly tense conversations with her band and a team offstage. At midnight, more than 15 minutes after her set was due to end, the microphones and screens were cut off. As the crowd booed again, Del Rey attempted to continue unplugged before being guided off the stage.
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