Emma Hope
Attend a special evening hosted by Mike Atherton

Planning what to wear to Glastonbury is a bit like getting ready to go to Girl Guide camp. Or your first big concert: in my case, David Bowie at Wembley Stadium. You need practical footwear and your favourite clothes.
Worthy Farm is a 1,000 acre site and wherever you are you generally have the worrying feeling that you are missing out on something incredible somewhere else. So you need really good shoes to take you all over. Or boots. Or if it’s raining, waders.
Trainers are good. As are my festival boots (obligatory plug), which I was inspired to design a few years ago after spending a weekend pounding across hot, dusty fields. They are unlined, mid-calf, suede zip boots with an orthopaedic insole to stop your legs aching. They look great with bare legs and a short skirt when it’s hot, and at night, with rolled up cord jeans to keep your legs warm under a silk dress and a denim jacket. (The denim jacket is good because it’s got pockets for your phone and camera and money, and you can tie it round your waist when it’s too hot.)
The forecast this year is for rain, so I recommend bringing three types of footwear, if you can.
When the mud is like chocolate soup, you will need knee-high, Hunter-style wellingtons and thick socks to stop your feet getting blisters. This mud might look unpleasant, but it is actually fine, because you can walk quite fast through it, like wading across a river. The only problem is that you might fall down a hole.
When the mud starts to dry out, walking gets more difficult, like crossing sticky concrete. This is great for your leg muscles, but you will need lace-up Timberland-style or rubber ankle boots, with a good tread on them. Laces means they will probably stay on. Like a horse crossing boggy ground, you need to “tread lightly over difficult country.”
When the sun has dried everything out, you can put on your trainers - but not too soon. I remember at last year's Glastonbury, coming back from a mud-marooned stage and discovering that my beautiful new beige nabuk sneakers weren't going to make it.
If you don't want too much to carry, stick to sturdy walking boots and a little rucksack with some waterproof trousers and jacket in it. Then it doesn’t really matter if it goes all wrong and the duckboard pathways resemble the Somme. Because whatever the weather, Glastonbury is the best show on earth, grass or mud - and you don't want to miss any of it.
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