Guns N’ Roses triumph with Glastonbury debut as Lana Del Rey has power cut off

By Mike Bedigan, PA Los Angeles Correspondent, and Naomi Clarke, PA at Glastonbury

Guns N’ Roses delivered a triumphant debut performance at Glastonbury on Saturday while The Other Stage headliner Lana Del Rey had her power cut off after starting late.

The US singer was forced to lead fans in an a capella performance of her final song Video Games after power to her microphone was cut.

Del Rey apologised profusely to fans, urging them to help her sing the track and then going down to meet and greet them.

She had taken to the stage 30 minutes late, leaving fans restless with chants of “we want Lana” ringing out across the field.

The delay came after reports the Born To Die singer was not impressed she was not initially billed as the main act on the stage for Saturday on the first line-up poster.

The poster had been listed in alphabetical order, with Del Rey featuring further down, but not marking her out as the headline act for The Other Stage.

During her Saturday show she voiced concerns she might be forced to finish her set early because of the late start.

“I was so f****** late that I am about to rush this set,” she said.

“If they cut power, they cut power. I’m super f****** sorry, my hair takes so long to do.”

Del Rey was beset with an apparent technical difficulty during her performance, which forced her to restart her song White Mustang and she later skipped performing Venice Bitch.

On the Pyramid Stage, Guns N’ Roses rocked through their extensive catalogue during a two-hour-plus set playing tracks including Live And Let Die, Knocking On Heaven’s Door, Sweet Child O’ Mine and November Rain.

Crowds exploded as guitarist Slash struck up the famous opening riff to their 1987 hit song Welcome To The Jungle, the 57-year-old later jumping off a stage block and shredding his strings furiously.

Switching up the lyrics, Axl Rose sang: “Do you know where you are? You’re in the jungle, Glastonbury!”

The lead singer later invited Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl onstage to help them close out the show with an explosive performance of Paradise City.

Grohl had appeared earlier on Saturday as a guest for The Pretenders, having previously performed a secret slot with Foo Fighters on Friday.

Lizzo, who performed immediately before Guns N’ Roses, delivered a high energy set packed with her usual messages of diversity, inclusion and body positivity.

The US pop star said she was “so moved” as she expressed gratitude to fans for helping her to reach the heights of the Glastonbury mainstage.

Finishing a rendition of her hit song Truth Hurts, she told crowds: “I’m just so overwhelmed.

“Last time I played this festival was 2019, and I was like ‘man, I’m doing big shit, because the first time I played this festival was 2018 – in one of those big tents. Nobody was in there.

“But me and my DJ… we kept playing, and we played our hearts out, and now I stand before you and I’m so moved.”

Expressing further gratitude to her fans, Lizzo said: “I want to say thank you Glastonbury for having me and putting me on this stage.

“I want to say thank you all for being here – your time means the world to me. It’s very important that I let you know that.”

Scottish superstar Lewis Capaldi earlier powered through an emotional set on the mainstage as he steadily lost his voice.

At the end of the show the 26-year-old revealed he plans to take some more time off, after previously cancelling all his other commitments in June ahead of the festival at Worthy Farm to allow himself time to “rest and recover”.

After performing Bruises, he admitted he was having voice issues, telling the crowd: “I’m going to be honest everybody but I’m starting to lose my voice up here, but we’re going to keep going and we’re going to go until the end.

“I just need you all to sing with me as loud as you can if that’s OK?”

He continued to apologise to the crowd, and the Eavis family who organise Glastonbury, for his voice starting to go – but the ocean of fans replied by cheering him on and chanting “Oh Lewis Capaldi”.

Rick Astley opened the Pyramid Stage on Saturday, performing a Harry Styles cover and also showing off his drumming skills as he made his debut at the music festival.

Dressed in a dusky rose coloured suit, the 57-year-old singer opened the set with his hit song from the 1980s Together Forever, and later launched into a cover of Styles’ As It Was.

Other songs featured included his song Whenever You Need Somebody from 1987 as well as new song Dippin My Feet, from his upcoming ninth studio album titled Are We There Yet?, due for release in October.

Following his performance, which he ended with his 1987 hit Never Gonna Give You Up, Astley joined indie band Blossoms on the newly-named Woodsies stage.

Elsewhere on Saturday, actress Tilda Swinton joined composer and pianist Max Richter on the Park stage to provide spoken word alongside his classical set, with Richter telling the crowd: “It’s great to be here, really great to be here. It’s my first time playing here and it’s just an honour to be opening up this stage today.”

Labour’s shadow climate secretary Ed Miliband joined a panel in a talk called One Minute To Midnight: Can Politics Deliver On Climate Action?