The final day at Glastonbury saw some relief from the hot weather, as a cool breeze blew across the Somerset sky and there was even the slightest sprinkling of rain. Across the site, excitement was building for the big slots by Cat Stevens, Blondie and – of course – Elton John.
Carhenge has been one of the most eye-catching additions to this year’s festival, and the Guardian’s Jonny Weeks encountered some performance artists while he was there on Sunday morning.
Early in the afternoon, Sophie Ellis-Bextor lit up the Pyramid stage with a vibrant golden leotard and a performance featuring a host of her kitchen disco favourites.
It was impossible to get away from the Elton-ness of the day. Fans across the festival site were dressed as the Rocket Man in many of his iconic outfits. Rich Pelley got in on the act for the Guardian too, spending much of the festival as Elton.
Lil Nas X brought by far the year’s most ludicrous and epic show on the Pyramid stage, featuring giant serpents, minotaurs and a guest spot from Jack Harlow.
In a rave-themed set on a stage plastered with smiley faces, Becky Hill played a selection of classic house touchstones alongside her own pop bangers.
Candi Staton was in high spirits as she took to the stage at West Holts for the sundowner set. The disco queen served up a poignant reminder of life’s preciousness, highlighting her recovery from cancer before closing with her life-affirming hit You Got the Love.
US alt-pop singer Caroline Polachek brought her typically stunning vocal prowess to Glastonbury for a second year running.
And then it was time for Elton John for the Sunday night Pyramid headline slot, the undoubted must-see moment of the weekend. And indeed everyone did try to see it, with the Pyramid stage packed to capacity. A flurry of fireworks set the tone at the start of the set …
It was all killer no filler as John rattled through every last one of his biggest hits, joined by a succession of special guests – rising artists Rina Sawayama, Stephen Sanchez and Jacob Lusk of the band Gabriels – and upping the star wattage with a duet alongside Killers frontman Brandon Flowers.
There were plenty of moments of real poignancy, not least when John paid tribute to “my friend” George Michael, on what would have been the late performer’s 60th birthday.
Elton closed, as expected, with a rousing Rocket Man as fireworks exploded around him. “I will never forget you – you are in my head, my heart and my soul,” he told a rapturous Pyramid audience.