Woody Cook plays Glastonbury his own way.

0:00Miguel Hello and welcome to GlastoCast, the unofficial Glastonbury Festival podcast. I am Miguel, and as always, I am joined by Jessi. Today we have a very special guest sharing their Glastonbury stories, from adventures on the dance floor to life behind the decks and going to some pretty extraordinary lengths to get to Worthy Farm.

0:21Jessi Hi, Miguel.

0:26Miguel I saw you gave our listeners a chance to guess who our guest will be over on Instagram. How did that go? Were we being mysterious enough or did everyone work it out?

0:33Jessi Yeah, I posted that thinking I was being really, uh, sort of aloof and like really not obvious, but I would say 80% of people who were— we got about 15 replies and I would say 80% of people were correct. So yeah, we are really excited that today we are joined by Woody Cook, um, who is someone I've wanted to chat to for a long time. Just to give a bit of an intro before we say hi, um, Woody is a multi- multi-genre DJ. Uh, I've seen him do sets of very different things, but covering anything from UK garage, drum and bass, jungle, house, you name it really. Um, and he's performed at many festivals including Glastonbury, of course, which we're going to get lots of stories from. He's got a long history with the festival from a young age, so I'm really— that's one thing, you know, to hear about growing up with the festival, mainly because his parents are what you might call Glastonbury royalty and royalty in general. So none other than radio presenter and icon Zoe Ball and legendary DJ producer Norman Cook, AKA Fatboy Slim, who does many, many sets at the festival every year, as we know. We're so excited to hear from someone who's grown up with the festival in such an epic way. And it's, you know, from our quick chats while we were setting up this, uh, episode, it sounds like he's got a love for Worthy Farm that rivals even mine and Miguel's, probably more so. And yeah, he's now playing multiple sets every year, uh, on an artist wristband. So hi Woody, so amazing to meet you.

1:56Woody Cook Hey, how you doing, guys? It's so lovely to be here. Yeah, I, uh, I was just, as you were saying, I was thinking, crap, I ended up doing 10 sets last year. Um, I was like, should I do this many every year? Am I missing out on stuff? You know, every time I was like, okay, you know, a couple years ago I was like, I'm gonna go see 3 acts, and I clashed with all 3 of them. And so it's like, ah, you know, am I in the chase of as many sets and getting out there? Am I also like missing out on all some of the fun stuff? But I don't know, I feel like that whatever you're doing at Glastonbury, you're always missing one act you want to go see. You always wander into an act you've never heard of and have an even better time, you know what I mean?

2:32Jessi Yeah, we talk about that. We talk about the sort of FOMO even though you're like on site. But 10 sets, that is madness. Is that over the full 5 days or was that crunched into the 3 days?

2:41Woody Cook I think there was— I kind of cheated by having, uh, one on Tuesday which was, uh, opening the Shangri-La Crew Bar, the new one. But that was mental because basically we'd just done this charity walk from the Dover to Glastonbury, in for 5 charities. So Oxfam, Greenpeace, WaterAid, the Wildlife Trust, and the Music Trust— Music Venue Trust. And yeah, we raised £15,000 for charity walking there. And the amazing end of it was that we get— we got to open effectively a new stage, which was, uh, the new Shangri-La Crew Bar.

3:12Miguel And it went off.

3:13Woody Cook It got to the point where, um, they were thinking of having to shut it because of crowd concerns. And it was like, as a DJ, I know that, you know, you know that no one wants to get hurt, no one wants Anything like that. However, when your set is going on so well that they're worried about there's too many people, it's kind of like the biggest compliment you can have as a DJ, as long as everyone's staying safe and everything like that. And you obviously don't want anyone to get in trouble. But yeah, just rather than there's no one there, it's like there might be too many people there. So that was like the mega start after, you know, walking for 23 days. Suddenly it's like, Oh my God, there's a lot of people.

3:50Jessi That is impressive, and you'll really want to hear about this, but it sounds like an amazing thing you did. Yeah, 10 sets, you arrive, you do a set. That, that's, yeah, that's madness. My, my main question is, I know you, I know your dad does lots of sets per year. Do you think, has he ever done 10? Have you beaten him with the 10 sets?

4:06Woody Cook I don't know. Um, I've definitely, you know, he's probably, some of his sets have been 2 hours and stuff. So if we're talking in terms of 10 hours of DJing, he's probably done that. But yeah, I don't know. It's funny, a few years ago— no, in fact, my first set ever was on the Greenpeace tree. I was very excited. And then the next year he played it and I go, uh, and he's like, well, I couldn't have you having a one-up on me. I was like, as if! I've played like my first ever set and he's like, right, how do I get on the tree?

4:37Jessi Yeah, love that. Perfect. So I guess, yeah, we wanted to sort of talk about— I guess the thing that we ask everyone is kind of how do you Glastonbury, which I guess for you do is quite a broad question, but do you want to just give us a bit of an overview of kind of how, how are you Glastonbury, uh, as an artist now? And then we'll go, we'll, we'll go back in time and talk about your previous years as well.

4:59Woody Cook I almost— I might start from the beginning in that, um, in Glastonbury 2000, my mum went pregnant with me. Um, so I started, I started in the womb, um, the ley lines programming my very code as I was built. And yeah, my mum getting frustrated because someone offered her a drink and then she just points at her belly and goes, as if, like, you're taking the piss now. Yeah, I want a drink. Everyone wants a drink. But you know me, I'm kind of cooking something up here. Mind the pun. But yeah, basically. So it starts then and then I went in, I think it was the year Michael Jackson died. I went, so I was, I think it was 2007, 2008. So when I was about 7, it was too loud, but I loved Mutoid Waste because I was a big fan of that turntable. Terminator and just this apocalypse. And I'm like, Dad, how'd they do that? And he's like, it's only here for 5 days. I'm like, no, it's not. That's a city. That's always there. He goes, no, it's here for 5 days. I'm like, what's the point of that? Like, what? I'd go here all year. And he goes, that's why they only do it for 5 days, because no one would leave. And then I didn't go again until I just finished my A-levels, I think, when I was 18, because basically my parents were like, right, children, parenting, no. Glastonbury, raining. And then from there, From then on, it was a whole different beast because I came back at 18 having done like Reading Festival and a few others, building up, done a load of others. I get there and I'm like, wow, this just blows everything out the water. And so for my Glastonbury now, you know, I'll skip the bits, we'll go to like the present. When I go, it's like there's a group of me and my mates, and every year there's like a few months of working out how I can get the most tickets possible, you know, work out Who I need to talk to. I'll go and do DJ sets for people earlier in the year in order that they can later book me and can get me a ticket at the festival. And it's just a, you know, it's a big old, it's like the great escape, you know? It's like us planning this sort of thing. How do we get as many of my mates in as possible? And yeah, and it's like, because there's like a big group of us and we all love having a good time. And obviously there's always stragglers. What I love is when my mates go, oh my God, yeah, my third cousin lives near Glastonbury and has a spare ticket, I'm like, yes, get in, you know, like one less person. Um, but yeah, basically that's getting in. And then once we're there, we, uh, usually in teepees in the park. I love being up near the Ribbon Tower. It's a really good spot because you can go along the railway line in either direction. You get really easily to like the Stone Circle at night and the Southeast Corner, you know, at the— basically at the end of the day. And for the rest of the day, you can cut off the railway tracks and basically everywhere. And yeah, if, if you're there at the festival, Places you could possibly sight me other than just randomly everywhere, I would say it's the Stone Dragon. I love going there, you know, just off of the Stone Circle. Definitely the Stone Circle for sunrise. I'm usually there. Sometimes Maceo's, often a specific hidden bar that's themed around the animal of a gorilla that you need a certain card to get into. that may or may not exist. I don't know. I don't know what the thing is about Gorilla. I know they don't put that line out. But, and then, yeah, I guess the Southeast Corner and yeah, or just like moshing at the Other Stage or the Park Stage. But yeah, I don't know. Besides that, it's like, I also, I'm a firm believer of trying to get there on Wednesday. Sometimes we can get in there on Tuesday because I'm like, I need this as long as I can in the special place.

8:39Jessi Mm-hmm.

8:39Woody Cook And some of my best friends I've ever made, I've made just before the festival started. On the Monday and the Tuesday. But yeah, I just, for me, it's like, it's, I spend half my year planning for it. Um, and it's the one festival where I always have just really good karma. Everything seems to go right. I think it's because when you put so much love and energy into something, when you get there, it's almost like the universe wants you to succeed. And all the ley lines and the magic, it's just, uh, it's my home from home. Sorry, I'm ranting now.

9:06Miguel I'm surprised there was a big gap from when you started going When you went as a child, let's say, to your teenage years. So it seems like you made your own Glastonbury from the get-go then. You didn't have the time of following your parents. So you went— I was hoping stories from the Kidzfield.

9:22Woody Cook Oh no, no. So we had a lot culturally, like it was, we used to have this thing called Glaston Barely and Glaston Nearly, which is where basically all my parents' mates who were going to go to Glastonbury would come down to my dad's house and have a bonfire on the beach. And we'd like, Watch some like iPlayer rerun stuff, and everyone sort of kind of get drunk on the beach and have a big bonfire and, you know, cook stuff on the fire. And they'd all be either excited about Glastonbury or it'd be certain people who hadn't gone that year and they would be watching, you know, on the iPlayer. And that was Glaston Nearly, I think, one year. And then they built a big sign and it was like, this way to Pyramid Stage, this way to that. And they had it in our like living room, you know, so they would like Yeah, I was always like, I grew up, it was the culture, even though they basically were like, yeah, I think when I was younger, I didn't like super loud noises. I just, it's quite intense. You know, my sister has been going at like, she went at 13 and then she went at 14 and maybe at 16. And yeah, there are points where it's just a lot because it's a serious amount of walking and loud noises and, you know, like crowds and stuff. It's quite, You know, and, and, and amazing nutters. You know, you've got some of the most bizarre people ever. Probably quite confusing for a 14-year-old to decipher. Um, like, you know, one of the only stories I do remember is this guy coming up to us and saying, have you dropped your marbles? And me not getting the metaphor and just being like, he's weird. My mum burst out laughing.

10:57Jessi I was gonna say that, like, do you have any memories from when— at the time you were only 7? Do you like Because 2000— I think, I think 2000— I think the year you're talking about was my first year, but I was a bit older than you. I was 18 when I went. But do you have any memories from that year? Like any bands that you watched that you were like, this is epic? I can totally understand, like, I can't understand people who bring kids because I think it would be a lot. But yeah, as a kid, do you remember, was there some bits that you're like, I really remember this bit?

11:23Woody Cook I only really wanted to go to either Mutoid Waste Or the Kidzfield. So it was like, I would want to be, you know, building bows and arrows and making swords or running around. I remember this truck goes past and there's this guy covered in metal and leather with a flamethrower, and he just sets fire to the air above me. And there's all this, like, these venues playing sort of like death metal. And I'm not really into death metal, but the— There's a guy with a flamethrower and there's like a a building with a burning helicopter in it. And I'm like, what the hell is going on? This is amazing. And I was like, I just want to go there. But my parents obviously didn't like really any of the music playing there, and neither did I. I just wanted to walk around. But for them, I'm just trying to like, you know, I'm just— they want to go in somewhere to a venue or something like that. I think actually really, really, um, unfortunately, I think the only act we did go see was Rolf Harris. Which is like, it was the only thing that wasn't really loud. So my mum's like, oh God, yeah, the only act you, you actually would go see was Rolf Harris, which has not aged very well.

12:31Jessi We, we've talked about that before because I went and saw Rolf Harris. I remember having an amazing time at the time, being like, this is brilliant. And like, even, you know, even at age 18 going like, this is hysterical, and absolutely loving it. And then a few years later being like, oh, it's—

12:44Woody Cook I was probably stood like not far from you, you know what I mean? And, um, It's like, who'd you go and see in the UK?

12:49Jessi Rolf Harris. Uh-oh.

12:50Woody Cook But yeah, no, and I just, I remember like when I did come back, I was properly hooked on festivals. I was going to like a bunch, basically as many as I could. And this was before I was actually DJing. I was trying to go to like 7 or 8 a year, saving up and buying some, you know, asking my parents and mates if they could get me tickets to others and just chaining them up in a row. And yeah, I just remember me and my mate Elias, he's in the army now. We were just like, oh mate, this is it. You know, we just, we were the 2 people who like needed the least amount of sleep. And I think at school he didn't like me very much. And then one day he saw me basically almost polishing off a bottle of vodka at 6 AM and he was like, oh, okay. No, I don't know. I like this guy. Maybe I had the wrong impression.

13:43Jessi Kindred spirit. Yeah.

13:45Woody Cook And the 2 of us were a dynamic and dangerous duo. And so yeah, the first Glastonbury I properly did, it was just just me and him. And he lost his phone immediately. And so anytime I lost him, I just wouldn't see him for like half a day. And we would just go on our own solo missions. But it was really magical. And I kind of like, you know, changed the way I thought as a person coming back from it. And we were like, we're gonna go every year. And other than years where he was like at Sandhurst and stuff, he's been coming every year he can, which has been great. And, but then been bringing everyone out. I just remember such a, such an insane year. I had to pick a clash between Stormzy, Tame Impala, and Fatboy Slim. Um, and my dad was actually fuming that I went to see Tame Impala.

14:31Miguel Sure.

14:32Woody Cook I did see him twice already that weekend, but he was fuming. I was like, come on, Dad, it's like, it's Tame Impala. They haven't played since, you know what I mean? And yeah, there's Stormzy up there with a Banksy stab vest on, and like, just, it just really like— this moment I was going through interstage and there's these giant fireballs and Stormzy's yelling Vossy Bop, and like there's an ambulance going past me. I'm like, this is pandemonium. It's that full Saturday night at Glastonbury effect where you can feel the ground shaking beneath you. There's like hordes of people, you know, like there's an entire sort of stampede of people in all directions going to like some of the coolest acts. And there's a giant spider looking at you. Actually, you know, that year it was a giant crane. Yeah, the Arcadia crane that was there for one year. And yeah, just running into people, it's just, it's just, it's one of a kind really.

15:23Jessi Nice. That leads me into, because I was going to ask, like, maybe Interstage is obviously the place where you're going to bump into the most coolest famous people, but have you had any sort of out in the punter area, like out at the stage where you bumped into someone and been like, whoa, like mega famous person?

15:38Woody Cook For me, there's a not super mega famous, like not, you know, Harry Styles famous, but one of my— I loved H.I.F.O.C.U.S. growing up, which is this rap group collective thing of underground UK rappers. And the kind of figurehead guy who built all of that is a guy called Dirty Dyke, um, and he's from Brighton, and I've always been a massive fan of him. And to see him just at the Stone Circle, just standing there, and we started chatting absolute nonsense, and he was just like he was in the songs in real life, just like an extension of that but better. And I was like, oh, because you know they say don't meet your heroes, but he was actually wittier and funnier in real life. And I was like, oh, that's, that's awesome. But then like It's just insane. It'll be like, I was just walking down. So there's the, there's the teepees next to the Ribbon Tower. And one year I was in there and I'm just walking down. I'm like, oh, hi, Greta Thunberg. And she's like, hi, nice to meet you. And I'm like, how are you? And she's like, good, good, good. I was like, oh, you know, and I talked about how my, my dad had sampled her saying right here, right now, and put it in a set. And I was chatting to her, chatting away, and my mate comes over and goes, hey, uh, Greta. What's your favorite animal? And I'm like, oh no. And then her mates go, Greta, we should go. I'm like, oh, you scared off Greta Thunberg. And then she turns around and goes, oh, that is a good question. I think maybe a giraffe. And we're like, go on. And then my mate, my friend's like, I like an aardvark or something. I was like, okay, okay, we're gonna go this way. We're gonna go away from Greta Thunberg.

17:08Miguel We're scaring Greta.

17:09Woody Cook Yeah. And, uh, that was, that was amazing. And we were like, oh mate, she's had to sail here and everything. We can't get that. Yeah, it's just, it's funny because you just— oh, actually, I had a real moment where I didn't think I was— like, I thought I was asleep. Where, um, I don't usually stay up till 9 if I've got a set the next day, but I was at Stone Circle. My friend goes, aren't you DJing in 3 hours? Um, I'm like, no, no, no, no. I was DJing a sort of kind of on-site— I can't remember— for O2. It was like a sort of thing. Not a massive thing, but it's at midday. And I'm like, no, no, no, no, it's at midday. And he goes, it's 9. I'm like, oh no. Okay. Run home. I go to sleep for 3 hours and then I end up on a golf buggy and I can't remember if we went offsite or not. And I'm queen waving to everyone. You know, it's a real surreal experience going across on a golf buggy. I get there and I'm doing the set and mid-song this guy comes up and goes, oh my God, this track is amazing. And for context, like no one's dancing. Everyone's too hungover. I think the average age of the crowd was probably leaning closer to 50 than 40. And there were lots of people in the scene, proper bigwigs and such, but they were all enjoying themselves, but clearly hair of the dog coming back to life. But one person who's really enjoying it, like, goddamn, that really looks like Kit Harington, King of the North. Really looks like Jon Snow. I'm like, no, I need to go back to sleep. And I'm like, carry on DJing, don't worry about it. And my mate goes, mate, Jon Snow from Game of Thrones is dancing at the front of your set. I'm like, that was him! I was about to get his phone number. And I tried, I tried to meet up with him again and then we couldn't find him in the end. But yeah, he just came up and asked for a tune. I was like, are you joking? Pinch me. This can't be real. And that is the like, yeah, that's the magic. And then at Gorilla Bar, I think one year I DJ'd and I didn't realize it was— you had Fred Again saw the set and he came up and said, oh, I really love the set. And I didn't know it was him. I was like, oh, thanks. Nice to meet you and everything. And his mates are looking at me like, you know, and I'm like, what? I'm like, nice to meet you guys. I walk off, no clue it was Fred Again. And they were trying to kind of like hint that it was him. But I was like, I didn't know what he looked like. You know, I knew his music.

19:34Jessi Yeah.

19:35Woody Cook And then Liam Gallagher had been in the crowd as well, and Matt Smith, who I'm a massive Doctor Who fan, and they'd all been just going off and I had no clue. And my mate was like, do you know who was watching your set? I'm like, no, no clue. And then a couple years later, I had Billy Piper and someone else as well. It's just insane how many people you get just randomly watching my crowd. And I ended up playing Billy Piper's birthday party and I'm just like, this is amazing. I'm like the biggest Doctor Who nerd my entire life, and now they're raving to my music. Like, what? It's just, yeah. And so I'm not really a name-droppy guy, but what I love about Glastonbury is that these people are just there, you know. I feel like if I'm at a gig, they might be in the backstage bit to, you know, to the side of the stage. Whereas in Glasto, you know, I'm just like, Oh, that's Ed from the Chemical Brothers over there. Or, you know, is that that person? And it's the only place on earth it probably is. Because, you know, when you're walking around, you're like, what's the chances that that's actually that person from TV? At Glasto, it's probably them. You know what I mean? It's like, they're probably there. And yeah, it's just a beautiful epicenter of some pretty cool people.

20:47Jessi I love that. It's just like organically, these megastars are just bopping along to your songs.

20:52Woody Cook Love that. Yeah. And, you know, usually you'd see them, they'll be at work or they'll be at something. No, here they are.

20:56Jessi They're cutting loose.

20:58Miguel But other than meeting, uh, all these people, is there any moment you witnessed at Glastonbury that made you think that this cannot be happening anywhere else?

21:06Woody Cook I've got 2. Um, one is the underground piano bar, and I'd always wanted to go in and I'd never got in. Um, so I could never find the entrance. And then one year I kind of worked out where it was. And, um, I kept— someone had told me to go up to the gate and ask for this person and rah-rah-rah. There's a lot of weird Kind of like, uh, vaguely— it's kind of like dealing with a leprechaun where there's lots of deception and weird riddles and things. And then eventually I realized I had to climb under a Harris fence because I saw other people doing it. I was like, what is this? Can't be allowed. That's, that's not allowed. Turns out you literally had to climb under it. And then there was this queue and I couldn't work out, were they queuing? Were they not queuing? Like, was this real? And then in the end, I had— I, I I didn't know if they were real or not, and I had to keep going. And this woman grabs me and goes, there's nothing there. The piano bar's not open this year. I'm like, no, but why are you here then? She goes, there's nothing there. Are you listening to me? And at one point she actually pushes me off my feet when I try and go past. She goes, there's nothing there. And I go, is this Glasto magic? This can't be real, please. And then she smiles a little bit and I go, it's Glasto magic. So I leg it past and there it is. There's this really quiet, peaceful, half-buried venue with like no microphones, no nothing, just people like playing folk songs. songs and doing slam poetry, and there's a jail cell with a scouser in it who keeps heckling, and they keep hitting the bars on the jail cell and going, shit. It's just so surreal. So I'm like, it's the only venue on Earth I know where you have to break in and then ignore the queue because they're not really queuing, and then everyone's telling you there's nothing there. It's like a gaslight. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The crowd control is done by making it just absurdly difficult to get in. And I love— that would never happen anywhere else. And You know, even now I could tell you guys exactly how to get in there, and I swear you'd still struggle because finding the entrance, and then each time it'll be different. You know, another time I think I went and there was a queue, and then they actually were like, you are skipping the queue. But then I don't know if it was real. And it's like, you just have to be. And my mate got in because he just walked up and he had a suitcase handcuffed to his wrist and he was wearing a suit and he just goes, I'm late. And they go, oh, in you go. Suitcase, handcuffed to him. They were like, oh yeah, you can go. So I just like, I think you just need enough charisma and banter. And, um, and then, uh, on the other side of it, I, I was once on my mate's shoulders, definitely not trying to light a smoke grenade because you can't have smoke grenades on site. And I don't know where I would get one. I, I think it was a vape. It was a large vape, if anyone's asking.

23:51Jessi Yeah, yeah, that sounds legit to me.

23:53Woody Cook Yeah, obviously I wouldn't know if, if it were a smoke grenade. I I thought it was a vape. Anyway, I'm on my mate's, standing on my mate's shoulders, and suddenly an airbed hits my legs. And, uh, my mate's like 6'4, so I'm already like seriously above the crowd. And this airbed hits my leg and everyone starts pointing on it like, get on. I'm like, okay. So I climb on this airbed and the next thing I know, I'm being crowd surfed on like a double mattress airbed across the crowd.

24:21Jessi Wow.

24:21Woody Cook And I'm literally like, I've seen the videos. I didn't realize I was like My hands were in prayer almost, because I was like, oh my God, what is going on? It looks like I'm praying. Like, what? I think I was just so overwhelmed. It was such an intense experience. And it was during my dad's gig. And he like points at me and I like get sailed to the front. It was a really like moment. And it ended up on the BBC coverage as well.

24:45Jessi Wow.

24:46Woody Cook And yeah, it was like, oh my goodness. It felt, it didn't, it felt spiritual. Like this, this airbed went from the back of the crowd. Straight to me, like in a bit, like someone hit it and the wind blew it at me. And I was like, what? It was like a moment that was meant to happen. And yeah, that was like pinch me, I'm dreaming moment. Pure endorphins, you know what I mean? I thought it was super rock and roll and all my family are like that. And then my dad was like, or his crew were like, don't talk to him, he's fuming. I go, what? Like, oh, they had this like laser show they were gonna do and you were on the height of the lasers so they couldn't They had to turn the lasers off for 10 minutes. I was like, oh my God, the lasers would have blinded you. I'm like, oh, how was I meant to know that? You know, I've, I've stood on shoulders at so many gigs and then just the one where I'm crowd surfing, there happens to be an expensive laser show I didn't know about. But that's what kids are like though, you know, don't take your kids to work. They'll somehow fuck it up.

25:45Jessi That's probably why for years they were like, you can stay at home and we'll go.

25:49Woody Cook Yeah, yeah, you're not allowed back now.

25:52Miguel All right. Yeah, Woody, thanks for sharing fantastic stories. But then of course, at one point your relationship with the festival changes again because you start coming into the, well, the lineup or DJing yourself. Is this something that happened naturally that you wanted to do, like to become a DJ? Or tell us more about that. So how did you start with that?

26:13Woody Cook So I was making music since I was about 14, not very well. I was trying to make rap tracks with my mates and I really loved producing. But then during COVID all the clubs shut and I went on holiday to Ibiza. It was like, it was when there was like a traffic light system. You could go, you know, there was only outside venues and no one was allowed to stand up. And so my friend was meant to come with me and bring DJ decks and we were going to DJ by the pool where we were staying. And he couldn't come because his mum worked for the NHS, was really worried about COVID So I bought my own decks. And I kind of sat there and taught myself how to DJ. And then when I went to uni, my first year, no one could go outside really. And I was in an accommodation of 450 people. Shout out to Goldney Hall in Bristol. And basically I had a captive audience because we were all just hanging out room to room and we were effectively, you know, our isolation bubble was 400 people. You know, most people were like driving their sort of parents insane or their partner, you know what I mean?

27:17Jessi Yeah.

27:17Woody Cook Whereas we had this kind of like giant, you know, giant, giant accommodation. And there was only 2 DJs, which happened to be me and my flatmate. And so every night we were just playing all night long. And like my only person I shared a wall with was a gamer. And so he was gaming till 6 in the morning anyway. So we could just, you know, stay up all night and my mate would make drinks. So I basically had a bar and a DJ thing in my room. For about a year. And so that's what got me into DJing. And then just as that all ended, I got offered a set at Lakota in Bristol, doing a set in the gardens. And from then on, I just really jumped into it because I'd always loved— I was doing film and theater at uni because I wanted to build sets and like basically build interactive experiences at raves and things like that. And then this was how I could tell that story. And then from there, I can't remember. Eventually, I think I did a load of stuff. With Oxfam and Greenpeace until I was, you know, in the lineup to get the gig. And from then I had a couple gigs that first year. I think I had 3 sets. I can't remember what the others were. But yeah, from the second I played that gig, I was like, wow, this is, this is, this is really special. And then from then, it's really funny because people would be like, oh, I know how you got that gig. I know how you got that gig. And I'm like, oh mate, these gigs come from— I've got bruises on my knees. You know, I have done everything, you know, every Every set that I've got is from messaging someone to message someone, playing a gig so that someone else would see it so that we could then talk to someone they know to get a gig at Glasto. Even at the moment, I'm messaging a bunch of people trying to sort out the next load of sets, but it's just so much fun. And I've played like, oh, some really cool places from, you know, the Rabbit Hole, rest in peace, the Gorilla Bar, Arcadia, I've played the bug, not, not Arcadia the bug, not the firefly or the spider, you know, the one that's a giant ladybug thing on wheels.

29:15Jessi Yes, that drives around. Yeah.

29:16Miguel Yeah.

29:17Woody Cook And it drove while I was playing. That was mental. And then I've gone up— oh mate, what's the kind of dubby-ish one in the woods up the hill? Strummerville. I played Strummerville and Carhenge. And yeah, it's just, it's been amazing going through and finding all these Amazing venues. Oh, I like Blind Tiger down in the southeast corner. Yeah, just exploring the map one, one, one gig at a time. And it's amazing that I've really got a lot of real repeat viewers now, people who come from one set to the other, because most of my gigging is like, you know, I'm playing on lineups. I'm not selling like a bajillion tickets. However, there's this family of people who come to different festivals I do all over the country. And so many of them were like, they saw one of my sets at Glastonbury and They've come back 4 years in a row, and it's just amazing to like experience these people who just were walking past. They didn't know anything about it. They see this guy jumping around like an idiot on stage, climbing, climbing the sides of the stage, playing weird music, you know, climbing into the crowd. And yeah, just, I feel like the Pied Piper, and I'm slowly bringing in all these crazy ravers. Um, and into— yeah, and it's just I've got such a Glasto family now. And then, yeah, when I'm out and about, people are like, come on, let me buy you a pint. Or like, oh, do you want the end of my chips? I'm like, oh man, it's so lovely. They're like, yeah, you were really lovely to me 3 years ago. And, you know, we took a selfie and my friend gave you a hat. And it's just like, oh, it's just such a big bundle of love.

30:50Miguel Nice, nice.

30:50Woody Cook I love them.

30:51Miguel Tell me, tell me, how did your skills and your set evolve from that time of playing to your, your COVID bubble to now playing sets at Glastonbury?

30:59Woody Cook One of the best things I ever learned was when I started DJing, I was just trying to DJ just, you know, house and a bit of drum and bass. It would be one genre. And I remember one of my lessons from COVID it was that because we were all inside, it wasn't too ravey. People were like, do you have something else? So I ended up just downloading loads of stuff off Spotify. And I had all this kind of like trippy psychedelic-y stuff. And I had all this kind of like more caetronada, more loungy stuff. And I realized for a while I was playing a bit more like strictly house, or I'd be strictly drum and bass. And then I realized one day my mate went, play something you've never played before. And I mixed things from like, I was playing like N.E.R.D. into the Avalanches, you know, back into dance music. And I went, wow. That, that's way better. And, you know, BPN, like the songs don't always have to be the same genre.

31:56Jessi It's a myth.

31:56Woody Cook It's a lie. You can go from completely different songs as long as the energy is the same and they feel the same. And so that kind of changed as time went and I got a lot more active. I wasn't just standing behind the decks, you know, I'll climb on the decks, I'll climb up the rigging, I'll hang from the ceiling. I'll grab 2 hands of the people in the front row and I'll stand on the front row fence. over the crowd, which works unless they've got really slippery hands. If someone's too sweaty, the hands slide out. So I almost stacked it once, but I've been pretty good, touch wood.

32:29Jessi But yeah, you're— I bet you're the sort of stage security's worst nightmare then.

32:34Woody Cook Oh, 100%. I actually apologize to them a lot of the time before and afterwards, just in case. I'd like to say I haven't— again, touch wood— I haven't really ever fallen over or fallen off anything. And I kind of know my limits. Like, I don't think I can crowd surf because I'm 93 kg. I'm just going to crush someone.

32:52Jessi You know what I mean?

32:53Woody Cook I'll jump and like, suddenly, you know, some person in the front row will just break their wrist trying to hold me. So there's definitely limits to it all.

33:01Jessi But yeah, I just need to get another blow-up mattress. That's what you need. Just bring one with you every time.

33:06Woody Cook I need a lilo, a raft.

33:08Miguel I was going to say, it still sounds safer than a laser show that can blind you.

33:12Woody Cook Oh yeah, exactly. Exactly. I mean, well, safer for me, maybe not the crowd. Yeah, no, I think someone summed it up once. They left a review on a radio show I did and they went, oh, the radio show's disjointed, mildly better than his live sets where he seems to be having more fun than the crowd. And I just, I typed, come again next week for more of the same because that's my MO. I'm having more fun than the crowd. And, but some people go, no, no, no, they're having fun. I'm like, no, they are having fun, but my job Is to have so much fun and be so, you know, out there, energetic, silly, whatever. It pulls that out of the crowd because I think, you know, certain sets you have a hype man or, you know, dancers, and I'm kind of pulling from those aspects. Like, I love Leroy from The Prodigy, and he was just like this insane dancer on stage, and I'm like, how can I pull that into my sets? Because you're a performer, not just DJ, I'm not a jukebox. And an AI can't replace someone who's taken his shirt off and is hanging from the rafters. You know, it's like, so I think that's a big part. And I've had people go, oh, you made me like music that I maybe wouldn't have listened to because, you know, the way you played it in and the way you were loving it and jumping, it really allowed me to get into it. And I think that that's kind of how I've developed as a DJ and kind of what makes me stand out. I think the most important thing with the DJ was 2 things. Unique selling point, USP. What makes you different on a lineup so they want to book you? What makes you memorable? You know, if everyone is just playing in a dark room, you know, without lighting, without visuals or whatever, what makes your set unique? How would someone walk in a room who is blind and listen and know it's your set, you know? And then number 2, it's like, it's about the music. It's Anyone could learn to mix one song into another. You know, it's like riding a bike. However, it's about the music. So sometimes it's, you play 2 songs for you and 1 for the crowd, you know? Or sometimes if it's not going well, you play 2 the crowd want and 1 for you. And it's about, yeah, building that thing to the point where you're having that communication with the crowd. And I think that all the best DJs you find, even the ones that are really unique and they might not be playing as much, for the crowd as, you know, maybe a wedding DJ might. They are speaking in this language, which is bringing music people want to hear and trying to be unique and be themselves while doing it.

35:44Jessi You've, um, you just reminded me of like the amount of times— so I go to a lot of raves, right? I'm 37. Um, I'm, I'm still doing it. Go to a lot of raves, go to a lot of festivals. And the amount of times I've stood next to my friend and one of us has said to the other, they don't look like they're having any fun. Do you know what I mean? And, and it, and it, it does sort of affect how you feel. You sort of go, Well, I'm enjoying the tunes and me and my mates are having a good time, but the DJ looks like he's bored as fuck. And it really does make you think, I'm not into this person anymore. So I'm loving this.

36:12Woody Cook I always say, like, it's like Subway. If you don't like the sandwich, you fucking made the sandwich. You chose the ingredients. And it's when I— okay, I'll ask a question. So Jess, if you're putting music on in the car, who enjoys it most?

36:27Jessi Oh yeah, me, obviously.

36:29Woody Cook Exactly.

36:30Jessi And I say that to people. I'm like, we're listening to my tunes, I'm driving, get over it.

36:33Woody Cook Yeah, I'm the exact same. I'm like, hey, I'm driving us for 3 hours. The one thing that keeps us all alive is that I pick the music.

36:39Jessi That's so funny.

36:39Woody Cook And, um, yeah, and so it's the same with singing a song in the shower, you know, you're singing your heart out. And I just go, look, if the DJ isn't having fun, they're the only person in the room who can just change the song to a song they do like. And I, I just like, yeah, that's bizarre to me. And look, I can completely get it if you want to be that too cool-for-school DJ and you're at some cool like Berlin club and you're not allowed to smile and you have to be all black, that's so cool. That's your style, your vibe, where you are. But I just think too many DJs are leaning into that without gaining anything from it. You know what I mean? If you're just a really stoic DJ who's always looking into the distance and that's part of your thing and part of the music, that's so fine. But I just think a lot of DJs would benefit from looking like they're having fun. And I guess it is hard because You've got to balance, like, it's, it's like doing maths and working out at the same time because you're trying to like work out what's the next song they want. But also there's people skills because you're looking at the crowd. And then if you're in your head, like if you're tired or anxious, that can really throw it off. So there's a lot going through your brain. But I mean, the best thing you can do as a DJ is get the game face. Nobody knows you screwed up. Like maybe like 2 DJs might, but 99% of the crowd don't remember, especially if it's in the beginning, like in the middle of your set. People really remember the beginning and the end. And I'd rather in a set make 3 micro mistakes, but take really big swings and land most of them. I'd rather I had these high highs of like Born Slippy level euphoria because I tried a tune I didn't know if they'd like. Because if worse comes to worst, I could change the tune in a minute and a half. No one's going to have left. Whereas I would rather do that than be elevator music. You know, I'd much rather have 5% of the crowd leave because they— I'm too erratic, but then the other 95% like, what is this? This is amazing. You know, I'd rather be like that than elevator music. I'd never want it to be forgettable because I think there's so much out there and there's so many DJs and things like that. It's like the only way to cut through the noise is to take these risks. You know, sometimes in a set, I'll literally just leave it on silence on an echo. Like 4 seconds and people, you know, it'll go dong dong dong dong and everyone looks up like, uh-oh, did it end? And you press play on the next one and everyone goes, what? And it's just that little push and pull. Just for a second, everyone's like, wait a minute. Because like when you've got this perfect flowing set, you can forget that you're there and you can forget the rave's there. You know, I love DJs like Cherelle. Just for a sec, we'll be like, how are we all doing out there? And you're like, yeah. And she goes, oh, so this next tune's by this DJ I really love. And you're like, oh, sick. And she pulls it in and you're in the present moment. Suddenly they've snapped you out of it. Or like, you know, certain people, you know, have a bit from a movie. I've got this amazing version of Misirlou from Pulp Fiction where it starts with Samuel L. Jackson going, sorry, did I break your concentration? And then it goes into the bit where they rob the restaurant in Pulp Fiction.

39:44Jessi Any of you?

39:46Woody Cook Pricks, move, and I'll execute every fucking last one of you. And that bit, everyone's like— and it's in drum and bass as well. And that bit is great because everyone— I'll be playing house or something and I'll pull it in and everyone looks at me a bit weird, confused. And I'm like pretending to machine gun the crowd. And then wham, the guitars come in. And nobody doesn't like that tune. It's just so anthemic, that that, you know, surf rock magic. And, um, yeah, suddenly it's like you've broken the mold, you've broken, you know, people have snapped back into the moment.

40:24Jessi Yeah, you're just really reminding me of, you know, like, um, Dazed do those Instagram videos of like DJs will put anything before the drop and then it's like, yeah, Hot Fuzz edition or whatever.

40:33Woody Cook But you're right. That's my mate, um, Rosh.

40:37Jessi Oh nice.

40:38Woody Cook Well, that's it.

40:39Jessi Yeah, your point about the push and pull is exactly it. Like, you know, some— sometimes you'll be at a set that's an hour and a half, 2 hours long, and you will find yourself sort of losing, like, losing concentration, losing your locked-inness to the music. And you might like be saying to your mate like, oh, so what are we doing next then? Or like, oh, um, you just sort of come out of it, do you know what I mean? You need those moments to like grab you back in. So I love it. Great.

41:03Woody Cook Yeah, recently I've started talking a bit more in sets and just, just little, like, little bits, not like a whole rant. But, um, I think my favorite one I did, I was mixing a drum and bass version of Tetris, which is pretty heavy, and I started scratching in a drum and bass version of Barbie Girl, but it was going like, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a Barbie girl, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a Barbie, I'm a Barbie, I'm a Barbie girl, I'm a— I did that for like a minute and it was really good, but then I literally, I got the next song ready, I pulled out, I pulled the mic and I went, I'm actually really sorry for that last one. And then put the next tune on and everyone just cheered because it was really good. But I felt like, I can't believe I'm scratching Barbie Girl in. So I apologized and everyone cheered and the next song came in and people were like, no, that was really cool. I'm like, it was cool. But at the same time, it was also like, I'm scratching Barbie. It's a bit, it's a bit naff. I feel like artistically I had to apologize. It was just, that's the moment where it's like, I'm not taking myself seriously at all. And I think, but obviously it's not a gimmick. It's not like a, you know, it's not naff, but I just think, you know, when you apologize and things like that, you let the crowd in.

42:16Jessi It humanizes you.

42:17Woody Cook Yeah. It's like, oh, I don't, I don't like this, like, cult of personality and this. It's just, I'm an idiot and I just happen to get paid for something I love. And it's like, there's no separation between me and the crowd. I love it when people get up on stage and stuff. Security don't. But, you know, it's like, It reminds everyone that we're all just human beings having a laugh.

42:37Miguel Maybe on that, have you had a set, doesn't have to be at Glastonbury, that was maybe a challenging set that you were trying to break the mold, as you said, and it wasn't working and you were able to adapt, or you just kept going and did for your own enjoyment?

42:51Woody Cook There's definitely, there's obviously there's sets where there's not a lot of people there. And there were moments, there was a set where I was running a stage and someone didn't turn up. And it was 12, you know, midday. And I just played a load of stuff that I had been producing. And there's only about 10 people there. And loads of people came up and went, what is that? And I suddenly realized I should be playing what I've been producing because people really like it. I'd just been too nervous. And on the other end of the spectrum, I had a 2-hour set. And I'd been basically DJing for these people who were playing instruments. And I was DJing songs they had and they would sing and play guitar and stuff over the top for an hour and a half. So I'm already exhausted. And then I come in and it's a commercial thing and there's like 250 people and they basically all leave. And I thought they'd gone, gone. And so for like 40 minutes I'm like, oh, why am I even here? Like I've been DJing for hours. And then I'm like, you know what? I'm just gonna keep going. And it was grueling. At one point there's 2 people out of 250. And then when I look up suddenly at the end of the set, There's 85 people. And I'm like, yes. And what happened is a lot of them had to go. It was London. They had to get the last train, but a lot of them were just smoking outside. And then I was like, I really wanna give up. Everything was like, why am I doing this? I'm like, oh, you know, screwed it up or whatever. And then my mate just looks at me and he's like, look, you know, this is your job. You just gotta keep going. And I kept going even though it was grueling, doing it to one person. If it's one person, it's fine. But when there's been 250 people, And now it's one person and you can see all the empty seats and empty wine glasses. It's awful. However, I kept going and at the end of it, suddenly it's going off and they booked me for next year and said it was brilliant. And so that's it. As a DJ, it's like, if there is like gonna be no one there because maybe it didn't sell out or whatever, just remember you are playing off a big sound system. Who cares? Play for the 2 people and have a laugh. And at the other end of it, if you think they're all gone, you never know. You can always pull 'em back in.

44:46Jessi Yeah.

44:46Woody Cook So just take it one set at a time. It's one song at a time, and you never know, by the end you might have this magic moment where you look up and it's filled up, and it's because you stopped getting in your head and thinking about it.

44:57Jessi Yeah, I love that. Basically just have fun, play what you love, and then it must be such a cool thing to be like, to start to maybe not an empty room, to like, as you say, a smaller stage, people are just walking past and you start, and then it just slowly started, and everyone's going off because everyone just pulls in. That must be such a like great feeling.

45:14Woody Cook There's nothing better than when you, you've been battling against Some people who aren't very interested, there's about 10 of them, and then you look up suddenly and it's full. And I don't know, sometimes it's like you just look down for a bit and then it's filled up slowly. Other times some other set has ended and people have run over. But yeah, I think— And nobody realizes that that set is just as important as the headline set because, you know, the set before the headline, you know, a lot of people are still at the bar. If you can get them in, the night will be, you know, the bar will sell more drinks because people are running in and out the crowd getting hammered. You know, the next Acts will have more people. You know, it's harder to lose that crowd. And when you're at Glastonbury and you're competing with like 117 other stages, you know, it really is up to you because, you know, if you're at a night out and people haven't got a ticket for the night out, there's only so many people you can pull in. But at Glastonbury, there's like, what, 200,000 people that you might be able to pull in if you just keep going. And so I think that's it. And that's why I love Arcadia the Bug because it's you know, it's out in the middle. It's often like near the Ribbon Tower or near Arcadia, but it's in that big open field a lot of the time, and people are just trying to go to another set. And I think the amount of people who said they missed the set they wanted to see but were much happier watching the set they did see, which is me jumping around like an idiot, um, it's just so lovely. And it was one of those ones I'd seen it a couple years before and gone, I'd love to do that. And then next thing I know, I'm up there going, ah, interesting.

46:41Jessi We, we talk about that a lot. We say at Glastonbury, like, one biggest bits of advice to people when they listen to the podcast is choose like 4 things, maybe 3 things that you absolutely have to say, have to see each day. And even that is, is a maximum. And the rest of the time, just walk and then you'll hear something and go, that sounds amazing. I'm going in there. And that's when you find the best people. Just to sort of pull it back a bit. Um, I know you sort of mentioned, you know, your sort of story and DJing and things. And so was your, was your first set at Greenpeace and sort of how did that come about? Did you have to email and ask for it or was it You know, you said that, you know, each year you're kind of trying to get extra tickets for your mates and, you know, trying to book sets here and whatever. Your first one, how did that come about and how did it feel to finally get on stage when you got there?

47:25Woody Cook So, um, what basically the— I'd gone to Glasto not as a DJ, and then suddenly after COVID I'm coming back. I can't remember if it was immediately after Glasto I was DJing, It might have been, or it could have been the year after, but I think— oh, sorry. No, after COVID. Sorry. I went, yeah. So the COVID gap, I went not as a DJ. And when I come back, suddenly I think I'm DJing. And it's such a whirlwind, you know, because it had been my golden, you know, my bucket list to DJ at Glastonbury.

47:58Miguel Yeah.

47:59Woody Cook And we ended up doing a lot of work with, yeah, with Greenpeace and and Oxfam, uh, doing a few— I did like a fashion show, I think, for Oxfam in Brighton. And we were just doing a lot of things to set it up because a lot of DJs are like, oh, why didn't I get booked? Why isn't my name knocked down on the list? Right. At the end of the day, the amount— I don't know, the amount of DJs who get booked, they're the ones with music out there, you know, the, the Badgers, the people of the world that like sell out things. Everyone wants your Fish Octagon, whoever. But most DJs, it's like, you're not gonna get that stab in the dark. If you got booked, it's because they've seen you before or You've put yourself out there and done the work.

48:39Jessi Yeah. Yeah.

48:41Woody Cook Sometimes I've done 2 or 3 gigs to get that gig at Glastonbury. I think it was along those lines of I just did a load of these charity gigs and I, you know, I always love to do anything helping out as well. You know, I, you know, I love doing things for charity and to give back because I just feel like, you know, as a DJ, a lot of the time I'm getting paid a really good amount that could, you know, footballers and DJs get paid too much. They should pay some of that. To, you know, people who sweep the streets and doctors. And so I always think, um, if I can give back in any way— I know, I know it sounds really hollow, but like, I love— that's what Glasto's about, you know. Um, it's trying to, you know, I've never been paid for any of my sets there, uh, but I do it for the love. Um, and I think I did these few things for charity, and then eventually they were like, look, you can, you can come on the set. And I was terrified. And I really, really thought I'd messed it up. I spent the whole set in my head going, what have I done? What have I done? What have I done? I've let my bloodline down. I've let down my family. And I come out of the tree, because you're like an Ewok. You're really high up. You can see everyone, but not really any of the base of the tree. I come out and there's my whole family there. I've got my mum, my cousins, my neighbors, my other cousins on the other side, all of my mates. And they all hug me and I'm just, I'm like crying. I'm like, this is so emotional. Because like my mum's crying, my uncle's crying, and he didn't, my uncle didn't cry for like 20 years. And, you know, he can cry again now. And I'm like, oh my God, he's crying. My mate's crying and one of them never cries. He's crying. I'm like, oh my God. I think I had ended it by playing at the River Groove Armada with Chemical Brothers, um, No Geography. And they're both very emotional, you know, if you want to come along, I'll take you along, I'll take you along with me. And then they're really emotional. And then Up the River was my parents' wedding song. And so that was a double gut punch aimed at my mum to see if I could get the waterworks and have this euphoric moment. And I accidentally made half my family just cry with joy. And I come down and I'm like, oh my God, this is Serious. And that was a moment, and I had gone like, I failed, I failed, I failed everyone. And then I literally have the set to this day, and 3 months, every time I heard it, I hated it. And then 3 months later, I listened, I was like, actually, that's really good. But I was, you know, you're so in your head that it had like painted that memory as bad. And it took months before I could look back and go, it's actually really good, because the anxiety was so high. But, um, Yeah, it was. And that was, it was a moment, and I kind of never looked back. And every year it would be the first set I was really anxious about and really struggled. But once you've kind of done the first one, the rest are okay, I guess. You get the nerves out the way.

51:37Jessi What's your— is there— do you have a favorite stage that you've played at Glastonbury? Is there one that you're like, oh, I really hope I get that one?

51:43Woody Cook Yeah, I think for me it's gotta be Gorilla Bar and, and, um, uh, uh, the Arcadia Bug, because the Arcadia Bug's like— it's— I feel like I'm a gladiator on this raised stage above the field. pumping tunes out. And it's funny because certain people like walk past like, what on God's earth is he playing? What is that? And other people like run over like, who is this guy? People going up to me, oh my God, I didn't even find out till afterwards your dad was so-and-so. And like, oh, you're so, you know, lovely to meet you. And, um, and then that's nice as well. Like, rather than, you know, they're like, I like you for your music. I'm like, you don't have to say, by the way, now I found out who your dad is, it all makes sense. I'm like, We could, we can. I don't know who your father is, you know, we can just— I don't know who your parents are. Not yet. Um, you need to ask me out for dinner first.

52:31Miguel Okay.

52:32Woody Cook But you know, it's just, that's on that side of it, to just see random people come in. And it's always been good weather when I've done it. But then the Gorilla Bar, it's just, it's just a bit loose, you know. I love the fact that I can go in in a purple suit and slowly unbutton it and dance, you know, like a stripper. While pumping tunes out. And you never know, you've got like, you know, Doctor Who's in the crowd and, you know, someone from Game of Thrones and whoever. And, you know, like rock and roll legends. And, you know, you can't— I can't even see who's there. All I see is these beaming faces of the cool creatives that run the music industry. And for me, that's, that's just amazing.

53:14Miguel It's like a—

53:15Woody Cook I ended up going to New York to produce for 3 months. Because of a set in Gorilla Bar, and I've ended up with so much opportunity off the back of it. And so for me, that's the one I go back every time to do the best set I can. And it's not just because of the links, it's because I feel like I owe the bar now. I had so much good stuff come off the back of it. I have to always play Gorilla now because I'm like, I've come back and I'm— I'll literally be making songs just for that. You know, certain sets in life are if there's a certain vibe of a venue, I'll make an edit just for that room, and I might never play it again. And I remember literally making a version of Sticky by Tyler, the Creator— it's getting sticky, sticky, sticky— into this dance music banger, just like a kind of Bali funk tune, just for that set. And I remember making it at the campsite 30 minutes before I had to go, and then playing it, and everyone's going, woo! And it's not very well mastered, but everyone's going off. And I was like, that's a magic feeling that I was chefing this up in a camping chair, you know, um, drinking espresso martinis, and now I'm like trying to climb on top of the booth, pushing up this tent, you know, um, and seeing everyone dance to it.

54:25Jessi I'm just gonna fill in for anyone who's listening to this and might be like, Gorilla Bar, I've never heard of it. So you probably won't have. It's in the kind of backstage area of Shangri-La. It's kind of a hush-hush, if you know, you know. Most people have heard of Maceo's, which is one of the main crew bars. So it is a crew-only bar.

54:42Woody Cook Um, well, it's actually, it's like a, I, I think I'd describe it, it is a guerrilla warfare bar. It's a secret place, you know, off the beaten track, and you basically, you need a card to get in there.

54:55Jessi Yeah, and it's even more exclusive. You need us. I've seen these cards. I had possession of one for one year and I had to give it back to its owner.

55:02Woody Cook Well, you know, if I, if, if he bumped into you, I'll give, I'll give you a card. Um, but yeah, it's, uh, it's, it's really, it's a really cool spot. But yeah, and even sometimes then when you have the card, you might not get in because there might be like a crowd or whatever. And but yeah, for me it's like, I just, you know, let's— I'm not gonna say at Glastonbury I've done any blagging, but all season I've been going to various venues and I've got, I've like, I just cut off, I had 21 wristbands on my arm from, you know, Boomtown, um, Mucky Weekender. Everywhere in between. And what I love at Glastonbury and things like this is getting to these gates and they're trying not to let you in. You say the right thing, you say this, you've got— I've got this wristband, I know this person, and then suddenly you're in. And I love that about festival season, like Boomtown and stuff. Like, I kind of have the right wristband but not quite, and getting into these areas. And then once I'm in, I know loads of people in there. And I think that's one of the magics of festivals is, uh, You know, like, there's even parts of Glastonbury, like Interstage, you know, you walk in a big group of people, you nod, and you're in. And then, like, yeah, you go through the thing. And, um, I'm not— by the way, none of this is, uh, encouraging anyone to, uh, break any rules or go into any area you're not meant to be in. What I am saying though is sometimes you're meant to have had a wristband or something like that, and, uh, the world comes to those who blag.

56:27Jessi I was gonna say, I'm known by my friends for blagging. So, uh, I, I do some—

56:32Woody Cook like, I, I do—

56:32Jessi I have a festival blog And for quite a lot of festivals, I have quite a high-up wristband, let's say, or I can normally get into most things. But Glastonbury, the, the highest up I've ever had is a crew. But the amount of times— well, actually, I can count on one hand, it's probably been 4 or 5 times that I've made my way to interstage exactly by, you know, walking behind someone. I've not got the punter wristband, which is the main thing they're looking for, is like, are you, are you, are you a normal punter? So because I've got a crew one, and because like you, I maybe don't have 21, but I have about you know, 6 or 7, let's say, and I just throw my arm in the air and walk with confidence. And I'm like, right, great.

57:06Woody Cook I mean, you need as well as, uh, sometimes at Glasto there's all those like individual stage wristbands.

57:12Jessi Yeah.

57:12Woody Cook And like you get a bunch of them and some of them, what it might literally just be, um, you're allowed to drink this random bar and it, it might not mean anything, but the more of them you have, the more convincing it is.

57:24Miguel So Woody, uh, just last year you, you did a walk from Dover to Pilton and I think it took over 3 weeks, 192 miles. It's about raising money and doing performances along the way. So tell us more. Why did you walk towards Pilton and why did Eavis sound like a good idea?

57:42Woody Cook Well, you know, I think it was one of those things where, you know, Glastonbury is such a celebration of like culture in general. And I'm really good friends with a guy called George who runs Save Our Scene. He's been doing so much for trying to save sort of music venues. And we thought, how do we, you know, get involved and try and give something back? And we wanted to do something as well that would be a splash, that would end up on people's feeds, you know, and people love like a challenge. So we thought, why don't we walk there? And we hadn't seen anyone do it before. We thought from Dover, we thought, you know, I think it was the same year Banksy did a whole thing about sort of immigrants arriving on a raft and crowdsurfed it. I think they crowdsurfed the rafters of immigrants, which is an amazing image. And so we thought, you know, Dover, that's kind of where people enter the country and a good place to start the quest. And we go through Brighton, where I'm from. And yeah, it was just like this idea to create this thing where we could give back, but also have this kind of, you know, not biblical quest, but like a kind of Lord of the Rings style quest where, yeah, we travel We traveled Middle Sussex and then up to—

58:55Jessi Pilgrimage.

58:55Miguel Lovely pilgrimage.

58:56Woody Cook Yeah, Pilgrimage.

58:57Jessi Yeah.

58:57Woody Cook Where we traveled Middle Earth through, yeah, through Sussex, through Surrey, up to, uh, up to lovely, uh, Glastonbury. Um, and yeah, it was, yeah, it was a real pilgrimage to, to the, to the holy place of Glastonbury, uh, following the ley lines. Um, but yeah, no, no, it was, it was honestly amazing getting to wake up every day with the sun. Pack up tents. One guy would drive the cars to the next spot and set up the tents. Everyone else would walk. And it was just this beautiful— I've never felt so rested and all been so sober in June because I didn't have a drop of alcohol the whole walk. I shredded the pounds. I basically survived on ham and salad and vitamin drinks. And yeah, I turned up feeling really healthy, really tanned, really— it could have rained the whole time. You know what England's like. We were really lucky. The beginning was a bit like windy and gray, not too much rain. And then the end was like a blooming heat wave. Um, and that was honestly— we were praying for sun. And then suddenly when it's 24 degrees and you're trying to walk for 5 hours, you're like, oh my God, I'm dying. But yeah, and just the amount of support we got and people seeing the walk and offering us a place to stay. Like, we camped out every night but about 3, and that was because people had offered us like a house and there wasn't really a good spot to camp in the area. And then, yeah, just along the way, people going, oh, do you want food here? Do you want this? People donating. It was really lovely. And yeah, basically, you know, we used the sort of the Glastonbury charities of, you know, Greenpeace and Oxfam and WaterAid. And then we added the Wildlife Trust and we added obviously the Music Venue Trust, which I was talking about. Because it was about, yeah, England, about protecting the environment. But then across to the music scene, you know, the Music Venue Trust is amazing. And yet it's working to stop all these clubs from going under because we've lost like, I think it's like a third or a quarter of all clubs have shut in the last 10 years. And it's like, it's scary. We need these places, these grassroots venues. Like, where else will people start off their musical careers?

1:01:04Jessi Yeah, I was gonna say that it's the smallest clubs that are affected the most. Even the bigger ones are getting affected, but it's the small ones. And that's where The magic happens, as you say. I really like also that, um, you sort of started in Dover and kind of made that connection to, yeah, to migrants, especially with everything that's going on at the moment. I didn't even get started.

1:01:22Miguel All right, great. Awesome, Woody. I think we want to try something new, uh, which we're calling your Glastonbury map. And I think you may have enough knowledge to share your tips. So it's just a set of quickfire questions.

1:01:34Jessi First one would be like best place to spend Wednesday afternoon.

1:01:38Woody Cook Wednesday afternoon.

1:01:39Jessi Hmm.

1:01:40Woody Cook Oh, so you just got in. Oh, a good one, um, Wednesday evening, but sometimes packed, is, uh, the viewpoint, you know, by the Glasto sign. It's like, I don't know if it's called like the Sunset Hill, but it's got an amazing view as it gets dark. And if you've never been before, you've got to walk up the hill. Do not look back. You have to walk to the top of the hill without turning around and then look back and the lights, everything is just amazing.

1:02:01Miguel And then the opposite end, where do you go when you want to disappear from everyone?

1:02:05Woody Cook Oh, um, so there's one called the Stone Dragon, and if you go to the Stone Circle, um, and then you sort of like, if you look down the hill, you turn to your right and you hug the tree line near a big oak tree next to the Stone Circle and walk down the hill, in tucked away, there is a giant dragon made of stone, and it's really calming, and it's a fountain, um, and not a lot of people know about it. It's beautiful.

1:02:28Jessi Okay, so where would you go if you want like chaos? If you're like, right, I want a mad night or afternoon, where's like, where's your best chaos location?

1:02:36Woody Cook I mean, there's so much chaos. I mean, the southeast corner in general, from, um, but even like Block9, it's just, you know, it feels like you're in a Mad Max film. Um, and then, you know, Icon's not there anymore, but the whole area at the back is just complete chaos. Yeah, somewhere like Maceo's, they never sleep. There'll be someone in there all day, every day for 5 days. So depending on what time it is, just somewhere in the southeast corner. You'll in fact just listen for the weirdest music and follow it.

1:03:08Miguel And maybe after the chaos, so best place to be for the sunrise?

1:03:11Woody Cook Sunrise for me, without a doubt, Stone Circle. It's a magic spiritual experience. People drumming, chanting, getting hammered. Everyone wants to be your friend. You can stand on the stones, obviously don't break your ankles, and it's just amazing. It's the heart chakra and the third eye chakra of Earth. So it's a spiritual site, um, recognized by the Druids. So yeah, best place to be.

1:03:37Jessi Uh, maybe food. What's like one food truck that you always go back to every year?

1:03:42Woody Cook Oh, I, I quite like— near the Pyramid Stage there's a halloumi face, um, and it's really tasty. So yeah, it is the Glastonbury price thing. However, yeah, it's just to the left of the Pyramid Stage and I find Especially when I'm at the Pyramid, it's the fastest way I can get those calories and feel great. There's also, if you're going along the— ah, 2 questions, I'm super rapid-fire. There's a smoothie van if you're going along the railway track, whatever it's called, you know, the long bit. You go off to the left near the Greenpeace tree, there's a smoothie van. And if you are feeling hungover, you get one of those. I think they're only like 6 quid and they're amazing. Just, there's 4 flavors. Everyone needs vitamins to survive. Your body's made of vitamins. Get yourself there.

1:04:24Jessi What, what was— what would you say is your like favorite bar to go to? And do you have like a favorite drink that you usually get from the bars?

1:04:33Woody Cook Uh, I, I quite like Stonebridge because it's quite near where I start off, and that's, that's a lovely bar there, and everyone's really nice. And I personally, I'm going for a Dark and Stormy, so, uh, a rum and ginger beer. Because also I feel like you can drink that for a few days without getting— I feel like after a while I start getting indigestion and heartburn if I have too many cocktails, which I do love, but the Dark and Stormy will get you through 5 days.

1:04:59Miguel Your best advice for a first-timer?

1:05:02Jessi Okay.

1:05:03Woody Cook Bring loads of vitamins and really good walking shoes. Pick some things you want to see and realize you're not going to see any of them. And if you're ever overwhelmed, just go with the flow, follow the crowd, go somewhere, You're going to the right place. You know, there is no wrong place. There's so much to see, you can't see it all. So just follow the wind and always go where someone offers. If someone goes, oh, you should check this out, always do it.

1:05:27Miguel So do you have a favorite set or a set that surprised you at Glastonbury?

1:05:32Woody Cook Yeah, it was last year. I went to see Mark Robilliet, and he's this amazing guy from America who's known for like running around in a dressing gown, and he makes the beats on the fly. And this, like, Irish lady grabbed us and goes, if you do anything— it's like Monday morning at like 4 in the morning— go see Mark Ribéry. I'm like, no way! I didn't even know he was here. And we get there, and he gets us to pick the bass sound, and the whole crowd picks the bass sound, and he plays it, and he's like, oh, you Brits like a sub bass. And I go, yeah, how about this? We're all dancing. And then he samples some guy. This guy's got a Palestine flag. And he gets him on stage and gets the whole crowd to sing Free Palestine, and he makes it into a beat. And it's like this moment, like, what? And he's like, screw genocide, screw war, screw any colonizing force. Love is the only colonizing force. I was like, oh, it was this moment, just really magical. Um, and it was the same, same year that we had all the kind of kneecap stuff going on, and it was a real moment of protest. And that's what it's about, you know.

1:06:37Jessi All right, so one last question then, and we'll— this doesn't have to be quickfire, we can take a bit longer with this one. But so, and this is a big question because I don't know how I'd answer it, but if you could relive— we've got 1 hour here, but I'm going to make it a bit longer. I'm gonna say if you could relive one kind of 3-hour or 6-hour chunk of any Glastonbury that you've been to, which would you choose and why?

1:07:00Woody Cook I'm gonna do it in 2 bits. One, just for the scheduling, there was a 3-hour back-to-back where it was, um, Lorde, Karma into Billie Eilish into Dave on the same stage and on the other stage. I'm like, that's an entire festival's lineup in just 3 hours on a Saturday. Like, what? And during that, I left to go with my mum back to, uh, she had an Airstream. And on the way back, we passed Billy Ray Cyrus and he brought out Miley Cyrus. Uh, I know Miley Cyrus brought out Billy Ray. And they did Old Town Road with Lil Nas X. So I saw Old Town Road and then I went back to put Billie Eilish into Dave. And then Dave brought out Alex and it became Alex and Glasto. And I was like, wow, this is just mental. Like the scheduling, like Billie Eilish is like Pyramid now. And to have— and even Lil Khana's got way bigger and Dave since then. And it's like, it was just amazing that they had some of the biggest acts. Just salvaged in a row. But, uh, yeah, that's what I would say. If that— if you were just anyone and you could try time travel, go see that. But for me, it was hanging out with all my mates, then going from the— to the Park Stage to see my dad, and then crowd surfing in a thing, and then leaving and having to run to go play Gorilla Bar, and then going with all my mates to the Stone Circle. You're seeing patterns here of where I end up. Um, And it was just, yeah. And then there's a photo of me and my mates on the hill as the sun rises. And it was just pure, like, I love you, man. Like the sun, like, wait, look, look at where we are. And yeah, I think I, if, you know, if they say your life flashes before your, you know, your eyes when you die, I hope I stay there for a while, you know, before I, before I go to heaven. Well, maybe that is heaven. Maybe heaven is there. Maybe like when I die, I'll end reliving that. I'd love that, you know what I mean?

1:08:52Jessi Oh God, I mean, I've talked about this with my friends, probably sat at the Stone Circle just going like, is there anywhere better than this? No, if I die, this is what heaven looks like. I've had these conversations.

1:09:03Woody Cook Yeah, 100%. It's like, just, just, yeah, just everyone's in this joyous thing, you know?

1:09:08Jessi Yeah, that was brilliant, Woody. Like, I, I feel like, well, A, I'm gonna say, can me and Miguel find you next year for a beer? Because I feel like this conversation needs to carry on, although there are very minimal hours at Glastonbury, but, you know, maybe beforehand Maybe if we're on set, on site beforehand on the Monday or Tuesday, we can catch you then. I am going to hold you to this Gorilla Bar card.

1:09:30Woody Cook Give us a message and we can be like, okay, this day we'll meet up at this, like maybe before a set we'll go somewhere first. Or like if there's an act we both want to see, we'll be like, far left, far left. Or like the Stone Circle. And yeah, let's, let's go. Let's grab a pint.

1:09:47Miguel I love the optimism. We are talking like we're definitely going to get a ticket or we will be there somehow. But I think that's the way. I think that's the way.

1:09:54Woody Cook No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, we don't think about that. No, no, no, no, no, no, because if we don't, we're manifesting it.

1:09:58Jessi And look, if not, me and Miguel both worked, um, 2025 year, like we volunteered. So I'm more than— I'll volunteer again. I will be at Glastonbury even if it gets to like 2 weeks before and I'm begging someone to take me. And like, I'll work on a food truck, I'll scrub toilets, whatever. I'll find my way there. It just depends, uh, you know, it just doesn't know what, uh, circumstances I'll be in when I get there. That's right.

1:10:22Miguel All right, thanks so much, guys. That's, that's the way. That's the spirit. Cheers. Bye, guys.

1:10:27Jessi Thanks for checking in.