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As you approach Glastonbury, first of all you will see Glastonbury Tor with its ruined 15th century Perpendicular church tower on the top. If you climb to the top of the Tor, you get spectacular panoramic views across the Somerset Levels. Because of this, it was probably an important place especially as it would have stood above the regular winter floods on the Levels.

The Tor, now owned by the National Trust, is closely associated with the story of King Arthur. Although many people now believe that his main stronghold was at Cadbury or maybe Queen Camel, it is also believed that the Tor was an Arthurian strongpoint in the battle with invading Angles and Saxons.

Arthurian legend tells us that the Tor was the Isle of Avalon and that the dying King Arthur was brought here by boat (perfectly possible with the Levels flooded). He now waits beneath the Tor for the time of the country's greatest need when he will come to it aid as England's "once and future king".

Another legend says that the Tor is the home of Gwyn ap Nudd, king of the fairies. Yet another suggests that the terraces visible on the Tor are part of a pre-historic maze or labyrinth.

One of the town's most famous legends tells the story of Joseph of Arimathea landing in Somerset with the Holy Grail and coming inland to Glastonbury. He stuck his staff in the ground whilst resting and the staff took root and flowered, a sign that his travels should end and a church be built here.

Ruins of Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset

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The famous Glastonbury Abbey was probably Celtic with later Saxon additions. It was attacked by Vikings but St Dunstan, who became abbot in 943AD, repaired it and also presided over its rise to become a wealthy and influential establishment. At about this time the abbey expanded, and was still further enlarged after the Norman Conquest (1066). This expansion continued until the Dissolution of the Monasteries which left the building in ruins.

The remains of the abbey give an idea of its size and grandeur. The Abbot's Kitchen is a notable feature with the famous flowering thorn tree near by which is reputed to be from a cutting of the one planted by Joseph of Arimathea.

The graveyard of the abbey is reputedly where King Arthur and Queen Guinevere are buried. Unfortunately, there is no evidence for this but it's a nice legend.

*Picture below from Wikipedia under GNU Free Documentation license.

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Glastonbury is also a centre of New Age culture and has attracted people to settle there to live an 'alternative' lifestyle with an emphasis on the spiritual aspects of life.

The many legends associating the town with King Arthur, Camelot and the Holy Grail obviously influence this aura as does speculation that Glastonbury Tor was once an important pre-Christian religious centre.

The Chalice Well is a spring which has never been known to dry up and this also feeds the legends and mysticism of Glastonbury. Joseph of Arimathea, it is said, hid the Holy Grail here. People also believe that the water has healing properties.

Then there is Gog and Magog, two oak trees near the bottom of the Tor. These are said to be 2000 years old and once formed part of a Druid ceremonial avenue of oak trees leading to the Tor.

Although the town's buildings are typical of a Somerset market town, many of the shops are not as they sell all kinds of New Age related goods and local noticeboards carry advertisements for tarot readings, astrology, spiritual healing and many other services not usually found in a small country town.

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Written by John Cowper Powys and originally published in 1932, it is this author's most famous work.

It tells the story of the inhabitants of Glastonbury but it's no soap opera or family saga. Powys was heavily influenced by Welsh myths and the occult making Glastonbury an ideal setting for his novel. It tells the story of the mystic John Geard who becomes mayor of Glastonbury and then tries to turn the town into the centre of a Grail-worshipping religion while others there want to make a left-wing commune in Glastonbury.

Infused with mysticism, this is far from an easy read and is also a long book. Admirers say that it is an amazing and mesmeric novel, as relevant today as when it was written in the 1930s.

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The magical Glastonbury Tor has been a lifelong obsession for Dianne Ffitch. But as the atmosphere of the place becomes soured by bitterness, violence and death, Dianne is convinced she is being warned of impending disaster. Could there be an anti-Grail in existence - the Dark Chalice?

Written by Phil Rickman with many occult novels to his credit. On his website he says he was trying for an updated version of A Glastonbury Romance with a battle between Christianity and paganism fighting it out in the town.

The Glastonbury Festival with the famous Pyramid Stage.
From Wikipedia released to public domain.

Maybe the legendary annual Glastonbury Festival has also has some impact on the New Age culture of the town although the music festival's name is misleading. It takes place in the village of Pilton, about a mile south of the town.

Don't even think of coming to the festival if you don't have a ticket because there is a new impenetrable wall around the perimeter and much tighter and tougher security.

The Festival is renowned for its music and its mud. There have been several years when the whole site has turned into a quagmire due to heavy rain and there have been pictures on television of people completely covered in mud.

The Festival was started by local farmer Michael Eavis and the first one was held two days after the death of Jimi Hendrix in September 1970. The following year it was transferred to the time of the Summer Solstice in June and has been held then ever since.

Performers at the Festival have included some of the most famous musicians of the period including Bob Dylan, The Pogues, Van Morrison, Marc Bolan, Elvis Costello and Radiohead.

The Festival and Charity
Michael Eavis and the other organisers are enthusiastic about supporting charities.

The main charities represented at the Glastonbury Festival are Oxfam, WaterAid and Greenpeace.

Oxfam
Oxfam is sending 1700 stewards to the Festival to help visitors get in, get out, find their tents and much else. They also have their shop where you can buy useful things like wellies - you might need them if it rains, and blankets. You can also buy many other things too. Over the last 15 years, Oxfam has raised over £2 million.

WaterAid
The toilet facilities are one of the most important facilities at the Festival. WaterAid want people to come to their stand there to sign their End Water Poverty petition which will be presented to the G8 to demand global action to provide sanitation and water.

They also provide VIP latrines and She Pees, popular at previous Festivals and manned by WaterAid volunteers.

Greenpeace
The Greenpeace meadow at the Glastonbury Festival is a surprise to be unveiled when it opens. Greenpeace say "...as always it will be thrilling, fruity and ready to challenge your ideas about what we're doing to our planet."

They emphasize the Glastonbury motto, 'Love the farm and leave no trace' pointing out that this should always be the motto for all of us if we want to care for our planet.

A Green Festival
The organisers of the Glastonbury Festival work hard to minimise the environmental impact of the event. They implement a whole host of measures to achieve this. All 15,000 bins on the siteare clearly labelled so that as much as possible can be recycled. They say that they recycle about 50% of all the rubbish on the site. They use biodiesel, recycled oil, solar and wind energy for power and traders are encouraged to use paper rather than plastic bags and low energy light bulbs.

The organisers give out a set of tent pegs to everybody who is going to camp on the site. These are wood not metal and, if they are left behind, they rot in the ground after a few weeks so not injuring the farm's cattle.

They also have 'Green Police' to encourage festival goers to respect the environment. Amongst their duties, they are on the look-out for anyone not using the public toilets. Their motto is "Don't pee just anywhere, the ground really can't take it."

The Green Police wear comic outfits to soften their message.

The dates for the Festival next year are

26th, 27th and 28th June 2009.

More good news - there is no limit on the number of tickets you buy as long as they are matched with a valid registration number. Find out about registration.

You can register from September 1st and buy or reserve tickets from October 5th.

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Dateline: 2nd July 2008
People started arriving for the Festival two days early, on the Wednesday evening with more arriving on Thursday. On Friday Michael Eavis opened the Glastonbury Festival waving a wellie (wellington boot) saying "We don't need welly boots this year. No welly boots and no umbrellas!" Apart from a few light showers, there was no repeat of last year's deluge, when it rained so much and so hard that Worthy Farm's fields looked like a sea of mud.

There was concern on Thursday when thick smoke appeared above the Festival but it was a big fire at a car scrapyard about a mile from Worthy Farm. Unfortunately, the emergency vehicles, police, fire brigade and ambulances, and the closure of the A37, caused huge traffic jams, made worse by heavier traffic than usual with festival goers on their way.

The choice of a hip hop headliner this year, Jay-Z, caused a lot of controversy but his performance was a triumph and greeted by a large audience with enthusiasm. His record company are now reporting that since the weekend, sales of his album have increased five-fold.

Amy Winehouse was a great success in front of an 80,000 strong audience. She got off the stage and sang to the fans behind the barriers. Unfortunately, somebody in the audience took the opportunity to touch her - reports vary from a 'grope' to hair pulling. Whatever the provacation, Amy Winehouse was seen singing while attempting to hit somebody in the crowd.

On Sunday, the crowd enjoyed two golden oldies, Leonard Cohen and Neil Diamond both of whom performed their best known songs to great applause and cheers.

There was some gleeful reporting before the Festival that this was the first time the tickets had to fail to sell out but Michael Eavis was able to report that tickets had indeed sold out and the Festival, contrary to reports, would not face a loss.

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