Rod Stewart to play Glastonbury legends slot

LONDON — British rock star Rod Stewart is set to play the coveted legends slot at Glastonbury next year, over two decades after he headlined the iconic music festival, the organisers said on Tuesday.

Stewart, 79, said on Tuesday he was "thrilled" to be playing at the world-famous festival in rural southwest England, alongside some 3,000 performers and 200,000 expected attendees.

The singer-songwriter behind hits including "Maggie May" and "Stay With Me" announced the gig shortly after revealing that he was stopping "large-scale world tours" but not retiring.

"After all these years, I'm proud and ready and more than able to take the stage again to pleasure and titillate my friends at Glastonbury in June," said Stewart, who last performed in 2002 alongside Coldplay and Stereophonics.

He will grace the Sunday afternoon legends slot at the Pyramid stage, previously played by Lionel Richie, Dolly Parton and Kylie Minogue, and country singer Shania Twain this year.

The gravel-voiced rocker is the first confirmed performer for the 2025 line-up for Glastonbury, a staple of British summer music festivals since it was first held in 1970 at Worthy Farm in the village of Pilton.

Tickets sold out within 35 minutes earlier this month, with standard ticket for next year's event was priced at £373.50 ($471.50). In 2002, when Stewart last performed, tickets were £97.

Glam rockers T.Rex were the first Glastonbury headliners. Since then, it has attracted cult status and big names from David Bowie and Paul McCartney to Stormzy and Elton John, who in 2023 played his final UK gig.

This year's line-up included Coldplay, Dua Lipa and SZA.