What No Glasto? The Search For Lost Music Venues

Glastonbury is on a fallow year, so we take a trip down memory lane through the festivals and venues that shaped our musical lives. We also visit the V&A's new exhibition on lost music venues, which turns out to be more bittersweet than expected.Key Takeaways25% of late night venues in the UK closed between 2020 and 2025, largely in the wake of COVIDThe V&A's Lost Music Venues exhibition (on until summer 2027, second floor) celebrates 50 significant UK venues that are gone foreverSeveral iconic London venues including the Astoria, LA2 and the Borderline were lost to the Elizabeth line developmentFestival lineups from the late 90s and early 2000s were genuinely extraordinary compared to todayThe Somerset area around Frome, Bruton and Pilton is seeing a revival of smaller, intimate gig venuesThe best way to do a festival? Five-star hotel or a rock star motorhome. Camping is optional.Timestamps00:00 - Introduction: Glastonbury's fallow year explained02:32 - The V&A Lost Music Venues exhibition03:30 - The Astoria, Borderline and venues lost to the Elizabeth line04:00 - Brixton Academy, Simon Parkes and being filmed in a Frankie Goes to Hollywood video08:00 - Sydney in the 80s: intimate venues and celebrity encounters10:30 - Hammersmith Palais and Knebworth 1986 (Queen, Big Country, Status Quo)13:00 - Glastonbury 1987: sneaking in through farmers' fields, a police roadblock and a friend who later became a vicar19:00 - V Festival 1997: an insane two-day lineup and a snoring tent companion21:00 - Rock en Seine, Paris: the bougie festival experience done right25:30 - V Festival 2002 stag do: Fatboy Slim and Zoe Ball's Glastonbury motorhome29:30 - Reading Festival 2002: one song into the Foo Fighters and a tactical retreat33:00 - The Somerset venue revival and upcoming Jo Whiley gig in Frome