Sunday at Glastonbury 2025: the strange finale of a frantic year
As the Glastonbury Festival winds to a close, the Sunday can always prove to be a tricky time to perform. Having trudged through 30,000 steps every day since Wednesday, weighed down by warm cans and the extra pounds of adrenaline, a weariness can set in even for the most enthused attendee.
Augment that with the sapping rays of a sun that never seemed to drop below mid-20s, and even diehard fans can find themselves wondering whether they should head home to catch The Antiques Roadshow.
Thankfully, Far Out’s faithful reporters stuck it out, and they were rewarded by a string of energy-gifting acts. From Olivia Rodrigo, who endeared herself to the masses as ‘Livvy Rod: The New Queen of Pop-Punk’, to Nadine Shah’s fierce political bravery, Turnstile made their presence as a new force known, and Goat out-weirding even the most ardent hippies, there was still much to discuss as things wound down.
Granted, there wasn’t quite as much to discuss as the mayhem that had unfurled on the Saturday, where police investigations, public outcry and Helen from Leeds all hit the headlines, but that almost came as a welcome relief. It allowed for the strange, surreal side of Glasto to emerge, mainly in the form of Robert Smith swanning on the stage as though there had been a booking mix-up for a few duetted takes on The Cure classics.
So, rounding up one final time, here’s our rundown of what we saw on the Sunday of Glastonbury 2025.
The Selecter
Nothing gets people moving like ska music on a Sunday morning, so it is no surprise that The Selecter’s opening slot at the Pyramid stage was a triumph. With Pauline Black leading the group through an incredible set, stopping at various highlights from throughout the band’s extensive 45-year career, the crowd shook off their three-day hangovers and got their feet moving.
Blending defiant messages of unity and political resistance with infectiously euphoric tunes, the band expertly captured the spirit of this year’s festival, and the group sing-along for ‘On My Radio’ and ‘Too Much Pressure’ were impossible not to join in with.
Nadine Shah
In one of the most powerful performances of the entire weekend, Nadine Shah gave a typically incredible performance. Her vocal abilities have never been in any doubt, and her stagecraft was deserving of a much larger audience. What stuck out most about her set, however, was the emotional tribute she delivered to the people of Palestine.
Prior to her final track, the vocalist read an emotional, defiant, and utterly vital speech in support of Palestine Action. Shah was visibly emotional at the end of the performance, as were many in the crowd at the Other Stage.
Particularly in the wake of news that Glastonbury have condemned the pro-Palestine chanting of Bob Vylan, which took place on Saturday, these moments of defiance by Shah felt much more important and poignant than anything else happening at that moment.
Cymande
If their stellar Renascence album wasn’t enough to convince you, British funk progenitors Cymande reaffirmed their mastery of the groove with an infectious set at West Holts. Taking audiences through the band’s extensive repertoire, going all the way back to their 1970s origins, the band managed to get things moving on a sleepy Sunday afternoon.
In the rapidly increasing heat of the afternoon, sharing the joy of brass-driven old-school funk music with thousands of others at Worthy Farm felt otherworldly. They’ve certainly still got it.
Black Uhuru
Although the ‘legend’ slot is exclusive to the Pyramid Stage, reggae legends Black Uhuru gave Rod a challenge to live up to over at West Holts. As the sun beat down on the stage, the Jamaican outfit offered the perfect accompaniment in the form of seemingly endless dub and reggae masterpieces.
No strangers to Glasto, the band first played the festival back in 1982. Two years later, they made festival history, with vocalist Puma Jones becoming the first black female vocalist to perform on the Pyramid stage. Although Jones is tragically no longer with us, and the band haven’t visited Worthy Farm since 1989, their West Holts stage marked a triumphant return for the reggae masters.
PP Arnold
As the sounds of Reform Rod echoed through Worthy Farm, I trekked across to the acoustic stage to witness another artist who would be well deserving of a Pyramid slot: PP Arnold. Emerging during the mid-1960s, Arnold was an essential part of the British soul scene, recording for Immediate Records alongside the likes of The Small Faces.
In a sparsely populated yet incredibly warm acoustic tent, the performer reaffirmed her awe-inspiring vocal talents, taking a whistle-stop tour through her expansive career. In addition, reminding the soul heads in the audience to “Keep the faith”, she also paid homage to the recently deceased Sly Stone and Brian Wilson, performing a cover of ‘God Only Knows’.
After pleading with the stage manager to do one more song, she declared, “I gotta do this before Rod. This is /my/ song.” Sending the crowd back into the sunshine with a beautiful rendition of ‘The First Cut Is the Deepest’.
Goat
Back at West Holts once again, Swedish experimental fusion outfit Goat put on a truly captivating performance. Drenched in all the coolness of old-school psychedelia, and with all the commanding groove of Afrobeat and voodoo rhythms, the band sound unlike anything else at Glastonbury this year.
After gainfully attempting to stand in the middle of the crowd, the heat quickly got the better of me, and I found myself off at the side, laying flat on the grass and gazing up at the perfect blue sky as the ethereal power of Goat washed over me – not bad for a lazy Sunday afternoon.
The Prodigy
What better way to top off an incredible weekend of music than with the bombastic sounds of The Prodigy? Keeping the party going right until the very end, the legendary techno-punks delivered a storming set at the Other stage, dedicated to the memory of Keith Flint. Of course, they blew everything else out of the water, causing euphoric carnage across Worthy Farm.
From my vantage point towards the front of the crowd, I could see all the carnage that Maxim could muster – flares everywhere you looked, people being dragged over barriers, spontaneous mosh pits, it was beautiful chaos. Glastonbury might be over, but when I return to normality tomorrow and people ask me where I’ve been, I will proudly declare, “I was the barrier for Prodigy, having it large.”
Westside Cowboy
Each year, the Glastonbury Emerging Talent competition sifts through thousands and thousands to place its bet on only one act as future stars. This year, it was Westside Cowboy – a band that, at the time of winning, only had one song out.
But what they did have was word of mouth. I’ve never seen the group, but I’d heard about them a lot. Anyone who saw them seemed to fall in love with both songs and their energy. They won over a cult of fans, they won over Glastonbury, and as I caught their big prize set at Woodsies, they won me over too. From folkish moments to big indie-rock moments, the band passed the vocals from member to member, but each time, it was Aoife Anson O’Connell’s voice that was goosebump-inducing.
Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart always just looks like your nan on a glam night out. It’s a decades-long running joke. The man has never really had anything close to coolness. Not compared to a Mick Jagger or any of his peers back then. He has always had an aura of novelty, but carried the promise of fun.
There is still no coolness on stage during his Legends slot, only cringeworthy graphics on the screen, a washed-up Vegas energy to his band and a painstakingly distasteful moment where he dedicated a song to Ukraine and then was singing ‘Love Train’ over a montage of bombs and photos of dead bodies. Sure, it’s always good to see an old icon and sure, it was great to see Ronnie Wood shred, but was it good in the grand scheme of musicality or stage presence? No, it was not.
Wolf Alice
As with every year, Glastonbury is a reminder of how the UK’s rock and indie scene remain the best out there. From The 1975’s headline to The Maccabees’ return, from the spanning crowd at Wunderhorse to new fan-winning sets from new acts, homegrown talent was on full display.
But I’d say no one showcased it better than Wolf Alice, who filled up the Other Stage arena for a front-to-back power run. Including hits from all eras, new tracks ‘Bloom Baby Bloom’ and upcoming release ‘The Sofa’ fit in beautifully as proof that their quality only keeps improving. Their cover of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ and a moment to shred through a selection of iconic riffs made for a fun set addition. But nothing at all could beat the truly euphoric moment of hearing ‘Don’t Delete The Kisses’ as the sun set and colourful flares filled the air.
Olivia Rodrigo
The Sunday of Glastonbury is sometimes hard. People are exhausted from day after day of fun. People are sunburnt and tired of cider. People are sometimes low energy if they’re not sold on the artist – a fact that was starkly shown last year at SZA’s finale flop.
Olivia Rodrigo didn’t have that problem at all. As she merged popstar infectiousness and spectacle with rockstar musicality and attitude, it was the best of both worlds that surely entertained everyone. Even if the songs aren’t exactly poetry and even if it’s not typically your thing, it’s hard to not get drawn into a set like that where each second brings something new and exciting, whether it be a new chorus to scream or even a surprise appearance from Robert Smith to confuse the teenagers.
