Glastonbury Festival: In pictures

PUBLISHED: 11:10 25 June 2019 | UPDATED: 11:10 25 June 2019

Photos: Jason Bryant

Jason Bryant has photographed every Glastonbury Festival since 1997. He started while working for Mid Somerset Newspapers, but is now a freelance photographer regularly getting his images in national newspapers.

He completed his art foundation at Strode College in 1995, and also likes to paint - but he's been taking photos since the age of 10 and is never without a camera - currently his Canon EOS1DX.

"I always say that photographers are over-rated, but some of the pictures we take are not," he insists.

Recalling early memories of the festival he says: "I stewarded with Shepton Mallet Football Club in the early 1990s in the Cabaret Tent. This consisted selling lots of K Cider made in Shepton Mallet which was bought in the local factory shop and sold at a good mark up… I never knew where those profits went!

"As a teenager I used to watch bands from in front of stage like everybody else and see the photographers walk in and think I would like to do that one day. My ambition to be a Tornado pilot in the RAF didn't work out so I did it a bit earlier than I hoped."

Shepton Mallet born, the 45-year-old lives with his partner Helen and her 21-year-old daughter Mia - who has never missed a festival, he says.

"Mia and I watched Lady Gaga from side of the stage in 2009 and when Lady Gaga came off stage she said to the 11 year old: 'I love your Wellies'."

He shoots most bands from the pit in front of the stage, and is allowed backstage. "But to be fair all of the cool people are in front of the stage," he says.

He's a big fan of dance music and he'll always try and catch Fatboy Slim. He says Robbie Williams singing Let Me Entertain You in 1998 "had the shivers going down my back".

And no festival is complete without snapping Kate Moss - he is a massive fan.

Another key memory is "the great flood in 2005". "It was amazing. The Thursday night before was so hot, the next day following thunderstorms I was taking pictures of police search and rescue divers going through 600 tents under 4ft of water looking for bodies."

For Jason, Glastonbury is like, "a lovable shaggy dog who I adore".

"I am like a flea on its back and I suspect at some point I will get scratched off. But when that happens it will be fine. I will just need to go to the South of France that weekend instead!"

Glastonbury Festival runs from June 26-30. Jason (pictured with Lily Allen) says: "To all the people who can't get tickets… There are two ways for certain to get in: buy a house in Pilton, (the villagers always get free tickets), or start a band!"