Jo Whiley has said she will not stop attending Glastonbury festival no matter how old she is.
The BBC presenter, 58, who is the lead presenter for festival coverage at Worthy Farm, revealed she refuses to succumb to age-related shame from her children.
Whiley, who shares four children (India, Jude, Cassius and Coco) with her husband, music executive Steve Morton, made it clear that her appetite for Glastonbury remains as strong as ever.
Speaking to The timesWhiley said: “It's great to be on stage, not apologizing for how old I am and seeing lots of women of the same age in the audience.”
The BBC Radio 2 presenter added that she had “no intention of disappearing” because “people think I should feel ashamed”.
“I’m not ashamed at all,” she said. “I still feel like I’m 27. Our essence hasn’t changed at all.”
Whiley added that the older musicians had inspired her to keep returning to Worthy Farm year after year.
“You see people like Chrissie Hynde [72]Patti Smith [77] Still working, very, very visible. They are the role models that I admire and follow,” she said.
“Why should these girls disappear from rock? They are still creative, they still love making music and performing. I will love Bauhaus and The Cure until I die and my appetite for new music is as strong as ever.”
Glastonbury 2024 is headlined by Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA, and controversy hit Lipa's set on Friday night when sound issues led to the star being accused of miming.
While Dua Lipa performed songs like “Training Season,” “New Rules,” and “Levitating,” many viewers watching from their couches at home accused the singer of imitating her voice, a claim that has been roundly denounced.
“I might be wrong, but Dua Lipa looks like she's doing an impression at #Glastonbury, she just looks and sounds too polished to be live,” one viewer complained on X/Twitter, with another adding: “Dua Lipa, or she's doing an impression o I got the sound mix really wrong. It just sounds strange.”
Viewers urged the BBC to “fix the sound” and said switching from BBC on Sky to Freeview fixed the problem, with one person writing: “Streaming may not help Dua Lipa impersonation allegations. BBC on Sky seems to have lip sync problems. “I just went back to Freeview and it disappeared.”
Others suggested that people's assumption that the singer was miming could also have been caused by the fact that she was singing live over a track that included pre-recorded backing vocals.
One person stated: “No, Dua Lipa doesn't mime. Most of the lead vocal parts are clearly live. She does great and everyone on stage seems to be having a great time.”
