Joe Wicks looks ahead to Glastonbury 2024: “We could have an unofficial Guinness World Record”
Glastonbury Festival is known for being a hedonist’s playground with revellers traditionally dancing until the early hours and surviving on little sleep. However, that doesn’t paint the full broad picture of the event, and wellness guru Joe Wicks is on hand to get attendees’ blood pumping for healthier reasons.
Wicks, who kept the population of Britain sane during the lockdown with his daily workouts, first delivered a public workout at Glastonbury in 2023. After managing to secure tickets for the festival, ‘The Body Coach’ chanced his arm by direct messaging the festival on Instagram, who put him in direction of the appropriate people, and soon enough, Wicks had been booked to deliver a workout at The Gateway on Friday at 11:00am, kicking off the festival.
After it was such a rousing success, Wicks has been invited back for a second year. On top of a workout on Thursday, June 27th, which took place at The Gateway, the social media influencer will also be orchestrating a mass exercise on The Park Stage at 10:00am on Friday, June 28th, hours before the likes of King Krule and Fontaines D.C. take to the same stage.
Speaking exclusively to Far Out, Wicks said of his first taste of Worthy Farm: “Last year was amazing. We had about 2000 people and it was 11 in the morning, so I was amazed by that, and I’m hoping it’ll be a bit bigger this year on the second day.”
While Wicks isn’t suggesting those attending the festival should abstain from their vices, he does think finding that balance is crucial, stating, “It just shows that people are more mindful and in that mindset, ‘I’m going to eat loads of food and drink a lot today, but I want to get an exercise in first.'”
After he first approached the festival last year, they initially thought he was only getting in contact for guest list, which wasn’t Wicks’ intention as he’d already secured tickets like everybody else, and upon that realisation, they granted his wish to perform at Glastonbury. Now, he wants to be part of the furniture at Worthy Farm, and make history.
“The biggest one (public workout) I’ve done ever is 3,800 people in Hyde Park at British Summertime Festival, and that was a Guinness World Record. I mean, if enough people know about it, and there’s that many people in the area, you just never know. It could be three, four, five thousand people that turn up and we could have an unofficial Guinness World Record but my dream is this year, The Park Stage, then next year, the Pyramid Stage,” Wicks says of his Glastonbury ambition.
Glastonbury is a festival which offers something unique to everyone, and a thousand different people can have a thousand different experiences at Worthy Farm. While the idea of a public workout isn’t for everyone, many will see it as the perfect way to begin their weekend. “There’s so much more to it than just the music, the partying, the booze and stuff like that. There’s great food, loads of alternative art instillations, and it’s so big, I must have only scratched ten per cent of what really is there,” he adds.
Wicks wants those who attend The Park Stage on June 28th “to feel energised and good for the rest of the day” before they go off to “enjoy their food and have a drink”, with the onus on having fun rather than pulling a hamstring.
In addition to hosting the two workouts, Wicks is also there for the music. As a friend of Dua Lipa, her headline set on the Pyramid Stage is a particular highlight as he’s “watched her career and think she’s incredible”. Meanwhile, Afrobeats star Tems, who takes to The Other Stage on June 29th, is another Wicks can’t wait to see.
Glastonbury Festival runs from June 26th until June 30th and Far Out is be on the ground at Worthy Farm to provide coverage directly from Pilton. This year’s event will be headlined by Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA.
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