Glastonbury 2025: Kneecap use set to attack Keir Starmer for “arming Israel”
Irish rap trio Kneecap took to Glastonbury Festival‘s West Holts stage at 4pm on Saturday for a bold set that took direct aim at Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Before the band even took to the stage, they were sure to begin with a spectacle. The set opened with a montage of news clips of politicians calling for the group to be banned from Glastonbury. The montage included Sharon Osbourne, who has previously called for their US visas to be revoked, a move that led to their US sponsors dropping the band almost instantly. They also included a clip of Noel Gallagher lauding their performance at Glastonbury last year.
Following the news that the BBC would not broadcast their set from Glastonbury live, Kneecap wrote on social media: “The propaganda wing of the regime has just contacted us…. They WILL put our set from Glastonbury today on the iPlayer later this evening for your viewing pleasure.”
Now, their own take on “propaganda” is front and centre.
“Glastonbury, are we ready?” the band roared. “We better be ready to go fucking metal!” Soon after, a chime of “Glastonbury, I’m a free man!” rang out from Mo Chara to the crowd, so huge the stage was shut down over thirty minutes before the trio were even set to perform. He refers to the unconditional bail he was awarded after a hearing at the Magistrates Court, where hundreds of protesters and dozens of police saw a demonstration over the right to defend Palestine.
Chara was wrapped in a keffiyeh, wearing white, black and green. Over a dozen of Palestine flags fluttered over the colossal audience. The crowd were ready and willing to follow their lead; not three songs in, a huge mosh pit erupted at the centre of the field.
Following the display of high energy from the crowd and band alike, Kneecap soon took the opportunity to thank the Eavis family for welcoming them to the festival despite facing calls from the Prime Minister Keir Starmer to remove the band, claiming that it was “not appropriate”.
The crowd at Glastonbury then delivered a series of chants, including “fuck Keir Starmer”, “Free Mo Chara”, and “Free Palestine”. Mo Chara also spoke to the crowd about the history of Irish people facing a “miscarriage of justice” in the United Kingdom.
In response, Kneecap praised young people for being entirely switched on to the dystopian political landscape they have been decrying for years. “Young Americans agree with us. Young people around the world knows what’s going on,” they said, talking of their Coachella set that began the initial investigations into the band.
In their biggest hit of the set, Kneecap then turned directly to the UK Prime Minister. “Palestinian Action isn’t arming Israel. That’s Keir Starmer”. Palestinian Action is an activist group that has recently damaged two military aircraft. Starmer is planning to proscribe the group, thereby branding them a terrorist organisation.
A few songs later, the trio added to this sentiment, reiterating that it’s the people in power that they are attacking: “Fucking love the English people. It’s the English government we don’t like. We’re not far away from a Celtic republic. Fuck Keir starmer.” They then barrelled straight into a rendition of one of their earliest, and most divisive, singles, ‘Get Your Brits Out’.
According to Far Out’s Lucy Harbron, who is at West Holts, Kneecap explained to the Glastonbury faithful that they don’t want their fans to riot outside the court when Mo Chara next appears before magistrates on August 20th. Instead, they want support—support for Palestine rather than for themselves.
This is a developing story. Check out Far Out’s live blog for any updates on the ground.
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