A Glastonbury superfan has said he was “delighted” to see rock band Coldplay on the line-up for the 2024 edition of the festival after he took “a risk” designing a hat inspired by the group.
Alex McGuire, 47, will mark his 17th year at the Worthy Farm festival in Somerset this summer after going for the first time in 2003.
For the last five years, he has been creating hats to wear at the festival which he designs around the headline acts – last year’s being a Sir Elton John-themed cap featuring colourful rockets and lights.
This year, he said he took “a risk” by creating a Coldplay-inspired hat, featuring a 3D-printed replica of the Pyramid Stage, Lego characters resembling the four band members, a miniature piano, LED lights and the possibility of a small smoke machine.
It was announced on Thursday that British rock band Coldplay will headline the festival, which runs from June 26 to 30, along with British singer Dua Lipa, country pop superstar Shania Twain and American singer Sza.
After starting preparations for his Coldplay-themed hat in September, months before seeing the band on the line up, Mr McGuire, from Taunton, Somerset, told the PA news agency: “I was delighted, the hat is worth quite a few hours worth of work.
“My friend has 3D-printed a replica of the Pyramid Stage and it’s taken him a while to do that.
“I had people tell me early on it might be Coldplay and I’ve taken a risk with that to get it themed ready for Coldplay.”
Mr McGuire, a shop assistant at Asda, added that the themed hats take “a couple of hundred hours” to create.
“I start thinking about them in September, getting the bits together, and now I’ll add bits to it slowly as it gets closer to the festival and as more ideas come into my head,” he said.
“In terms of the actual work doing the hat, it’s probably a couple of hundred hours, but I do bits here and there and getting all the bits together is more work.”
He added that this year’s hat will “hopefully” feature a small smoke machine in the form of a remote-controlled vape device, along with battery-powered LED lights which can be solar-charged, and wristbands from his previous years at the festival along the top of the cap.
“It will be my 17th festival this coming year – I love the place, I love what Emily (Eavis) does and I love the whole camaraderie around the festival,” he said.
“There’s always such a variety of music, meeting friends.
“The music is probably secondary to me, it’s about how happy people are generally and the spirit of the place.”
As well as seeing rock band Viva La Vida, Mr McGuire said he is also looking forward to Dua Lipa and Shania Twain’s headline shows at the festival.
“I’m a fan, I like their tunes and Chris Martin is just an absolute legend as far as the farm is concerned, he is part of Glastonbury,” he said.
“Dua Lipa will be a great headline set, I imagine, with lots of energy, and I’ll see Shania Twain – it’s great all round.”
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