Neil Young reverses his Glastonbury 'boycott'

Neil Young has announced helium volition play this year's Glastonbury Festival, conscionable days aft saying helium had turned down a slot due to the fact that of the BBC's involvement.

The 79-year-old had announced that helium and his set would not play the lawsuit due to the fact that the BBC "wanted america to bash a batch of things successful a mode we were not funny in".

But in a caller station connected his website, the stone fable wrote: "Due to an mistake successful the accusation received, I had decided to not play the Glastonbury Festival, which I ever person loved.

"Happily, the festival is present backmost connected our itinerary and we look guardant to playing. Hope to spot you there!"

Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis welcomed the decision.

"What a commencement to the year!" she wrote connected Instagram.

"Neil Young is an creator who's precise adjacent to our hearts astatine Glastonbury. He does things his ain mode and that's wherefore we emotion him.

"We can't hold to invited him backmost present to header the Pyramid successful June."

It is not known whether the alteration of bosom means Young's 2025 Glastonbury acceptable volition beryllium televised.

The BBC has been Glastonbury's exclusive broadcast spouse since 1997, and broadcasts much than 50 hours of sum each year.

However, the past clip Young played the festival successful 2009, helium lone allowed the BBC to amusement a abbreviated information of his two-hour header set.

The corp said astatine the time it had spent a "couple of months" negotiating with Young's absorption implicit televising the performance.

In the end, his squad lone agreed to fto 5 songs beryllium broadcast, a determination that was made arsenic Young was playing connected the Pyramid Stage.

"They judge successful the unrecorded lawsuit and retaining its enigma and that of their artist," explained Mark Cooper, the then-executive shaper of the BBC's Glastonbury coverage.

"You astir apt won't find excessively galore Neil Young performances disposable freely connected TV oregon online," helium added. "He mostly prefers the assemblage to find his albums."

In his archetypal station connected Tuesday, the prima lashed retired astatine what helium described arsenic the BBC's "corporate control" of Glastonbury, and said the festival "is not the mode I retrieve it being".

Artists are not forced to manus implicit broadcast rights erstwhile they play the event, and often contracts are signed astatine the past minute.

BBC News has contacted Glastonbury and BBC Music for comment.