Glastonbury producer apologises for ‘unacceptable’ livestream technical issues that led to two-hour delays

The organisers of Glastonbury’s livestream event have apologised after technical issues saw many ticketholders unable to access the five-hour global event.

Driift said it was ‘mortified’ that people were ‘locked out’ of the feed and unable to use their access codes.

A statement said: ‘For last night’s failings, we would like to apologise to Glastonbury Festival, to all the amazing artists who gave their time to perform and to all the backstage crew and partners who worked so hard with us over many months to make this historic show a reality.

‘Most importantly, we apologise unreservedly to all of you who had your plans upset. We would also like to make clear that Driift is making no financial gain from this livestream event and we hoped it would generate much-needed revenue for the festival and its charity partners.’

The event, Live At Worthy Farm, was due to start at 7pm but many reported on social media they were unable to access the stream due to an ‘invalid codes’ error message.

It was these issues that led to the event being made free for everyone trying to access it.

Following a near-two hour delay for some, the show’s co-promoters and producers, Driift Live, tweeted a viewing link saying: ‘We apologise to those who have not yet been able to access the stream. Here is a new link with no code to access the stream. We are truly sorry for the inconvenience.’

Glastonbury festival organiser Emily Eavis shared the new link on Twitter as she apologised for the stream issues.

She tweeted: ‘I am so sorry about the problems with the stream tonight. If you weren’t able to get on, I’m told that the new link… is working.

‘We will obviously make sure we show the whole film again from tomorrow too and give you the chance to catch up on any bits you missed. I really hope you can enjoy the rest of it tonight. And, again, I’m just so sorry to anyone who’s had issues.’

Mercury Prize-winning band Wolf Alice were the first to perform at the event, which had seen people pay £20 for a ticket prior to the free stream.

Last year’s Mercury Prize winner Michael Kiwanuka performed songs Hero and Cold Little Heart during his set, while George Ezra opened his set with his popular song Blame It On Me.

Coldplay delivered an energetic performance from in front of the Pyramid Stage.

As Chris Martin launched into their hit song The Scientist, he said: ‘Wherever you’re watching from, we send you our love and we wish you were here.’

The singer also referenced the weather, which in true Glastonbury fashion saw rain come down as they performed, with Martin saying: ‘This is very weird but very fun, and we brought our own special rain effects, (it) looks completely genuine and I just want to make you all feel better if you’re watching that.

‘If there’s a day you didn’t want to stand in a field it’s probably today but… we’re happy to be here, so happy. We want to thank the Eavises and everyone that has got this together because it’s been a big deal and it’s the first time we’ve played to thousands and thousands of cows so I hope we’re doing OK.’

They also played hits like Viva La Vida, Clocks and Fix You, which he said was ‘for all the doctors and nurses, everyone who worked so hard’.

The event also includes performances from other well-known sites around the farm after the full festival was cancelled for a second consecutive year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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