A-list stars turn out for ‘awesome’ Coldplay show

If so, Coldplay might be it.

People are climbing up scaffolding, security guards are standing on emergency vehicles, actual Tom Cruise is watching from a viewing platform, accompanied by Gillian Anderson and Simon Pegg.

Michael J Fox even joins them to play guitar on Fix You.

At other stages around Worthy Farm, A-list artists floundered, with some fields barely at one-third capacity.

Everyone, it seems, is straining for a glimpse of rock’s most generous-spirited band.

And Coldplay don’t disappoint.

The band played for two hours, racing through hits like Fix You and Yellow

Tom Cruise enjoyed the set from a viewing platform to the side of the stage

Like Dua Lipa on Friday night, they understand the brief: You can’t turn up to Glastonbury and play the same old festival set. It has to feel special.

They start with Yellow. Yes, Yellow. A song any other band would save for the encore.

And for the next hour, the hits don’t stop: Higher Power, Paradise, The Scientist, Hymn For The Weekend, Viva La Vida. The setlist is stacked.

But it’s more than that. Chris Martin makes it his mission to reach every member of the audience individually.

That’s why they give out the wristbands that turn the whole field into a giant LED screen. That’s why there are fireworks every five minutes. That’s why so many of their songs have a bit that goes “woaaaaah” – even the most casual fan can sing along.

During The Scientist, Martin thanks the people who’ve waited by the front barriers all day.

“It’s amazing that none of you had to pee,” he laughs.

But he also acknowledges “everybody in the middle of the field” and the latecomers “at the back, five time zones away, in their wellington boots”.

“Thank you for all your flags and the singing and everything. This is our favourite thing to do on earth, so thank you for letting us do it.”

The production is such an assault on the senses - with all its lasers and giant balloons and confetti cannons - that experiencing it leaves you feeling slightly dizzy.

But it’s exactly that largesse that sets Coldplay apart.

Cynics might dismiss it as pandering to the lowest common denominator. I prefer to think of it as generosity. An act of community.

It also helps that they have an impenetrable arsenal of hits.

Clocks, with its swirling piano hook, is a strangely paranoid stadium anthem (“am I part of the cure, or am I part of the disease”), while Sky Full Of Stars is a pure sugar-rush of pop perfection.

The urgent, propulsive Viva La Vida might tell the story of a deposed despot reminiscing about his glory days, but everyone knows it for the five note “oh-ah-woah-oh-oh” hook, that rings around the Pyramid Stage long after Coldplay have left.

The set was an all-around assault on the senses

But perhaps the most intriguing section came towards the middle of the set, when Coldplay briefly indulged in some new material and deep cuts.

It featured the live debut of the song We Pray, featuring Nigerian star Burna Boy and British rapper Little Simz; and a vibrant rendition Arabesque, from 2019’s underappreciated Everyday Life album, which included a blistering saxophone solo from African icon Femi Kuti.

The latter, in particular, offered a glimpse of how Coldplay could operate outside the confines of stadium rock.

But before long, they were back in crowd-pleasing mode, racing through the dance anthems Something Just Like This and My Universe, a collaboration with K-pop supergroup BTS.

For the encore, they emerged on a B-stage, where Martin reminisced about their first ever visit to Glastonbury, 25 years ago this month.

They played the new band tent, they were late, and they were “just the worst” (his words, not mine).

To celebrate, they played Sparks, a rarely heard acoustic ballad from their debut album, Parachutes.

Then, the best moment of the night.

Coldplay

Coldplay are the only band to have headlined Glastonbury five times

Turning the cameras on the audience, Martin started improvising odes to individual fans.

“Five handsome men in their tracksuits / They’ve made it to the front of the front section,” he sang to one group.

“They didn’t come today / Dressed as Coldplay.

“They came dressed as One Direction.”

After a few more ditties, the cameras suddenly cut to Glastonbury co-founder Sir Michael Eavis, prompting a roar of approval from the audience.

Again, Martin began to sing.

And just when it seemed like that would be the crowning glory, actor Michael J Fox appeared on screen.

The actor, who recently released a documentary about living with Parkinson’s, was in a wheelchair, but the audience went wild.

Martin explained that the star’s 1985 film Back To The Future was "the main reason why we're in a band". And Fox joined him onstage to play Fix You on a peach guitar.

Every Glastonbury needs a defining moment – and this felt like the one for 2024.

This was Coldplay’s fifth time headlining Glastonbury, after previous stints at the top of the bill in 2002, 2005, 2011 and 2016.

Chris Martin previously told the BBC he was wary about returning to the festival after people complained about him making guest appearances during other people’s sets – including Stormzy and Kylie Minogue.

"I saw a tweet afterwards which said, 'You can always rely on him to come on in a tracksuit and ruin everything'," he recalled.

Tonight, that felt like distant history.

Tom Cruise’s one-word review? “Awesome.”

-bbc