'Glastonbury has lost all meaning', Richard Hawley

Sheffield star slams 'corporate festivals' and claims he has turned down huge amount to do Glastonbury

11:25 10th June 2013

Richard Hawley has spoken out against Glastonbury and other 'corporate festivals', claiming that he turned down all offers to appear at this month's Worthy Farm Event.

Speaking to Gigwise, the Sheffield hero and former Pulp guitarist said that he was currently focusing on his upcoming shows at London's Somerset House at his homecoming gig at Graves Park.

We asked him if he was at all tempted to play Glasto this summer, to which he replied: "Nah. Good luck to everyone that does it, but I’ve done all that shit.

"I’d rather do these gigs at Graves Park and say something to the people of Sheffield and South Yorkshire than do Glastonbury, which has become meaningless to me. I got offered a lot of money to play there and I turned it down because it doesn’t have any meaning. All of the political sides of it seem to have been whitewashed and airbrushed over. The Rolling Stones are playing and that just seems weird to me if you think about what it’s supposed to be and what it’s become."

He continued: "I played it with Duane Eddy and I didn’t want to turn down any chance of playing with Duane because he’s not over here that much and I don’t get that much time with him, so that was great."

Richard Hawley would rather be on the British coast than play Glastonbury

However, not just to single out Glastonbury, Hawley also voiced his dislike for other summer events.

"It’s not just Glastonbury," he said. "I don’t like the whole corporate festival thing. I’ve done V Festival with Pulp and as a solo artist and I hated every minute of it. It’s just nasty and not what I’m about – I want something a bit more free and organic.

"I want the audiences to feel included rather than trapped. They’ve paid for the privilege to be trapped in a field and marketed to. What the fuck is that all about? I won’t be there. I’ll probably be in a place I love. I love the British coast – it’s fucking awesome."

Read our full and candid interview with Richard Hawley discussing Glasto, Pulp, his addiction to pain killers and work with Manic Street Preachers here.

Richard Hawley will be playing at Graves Park in Sheffield on 13 July, Somerset House in London on 14 July and will be appearing at Camp Bestival between 1 - 4 August.