Michael Eavis, the founder of Glastonbury, has spoken about the possibility that Glastonbury Festival might put “massive testing arrangements” in place for the next festival. The 2020 festival, which was supposed to take place in June in what would have been the 50th anniversary of the festival. It was cancelled because of the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic.

At a Q&A event at Wells Cathedral School on October 21, as part of the Wells Festival of Literature, Michael Evais spoke about the strict precautions festivals will have to take in order to go ahead in 2021. He said; “The testing is going so well now, there could be massive testing arrangements.” He then questioned; “Do we want to test 200,000 people three times – when they leave their home, when they’re halfway here, and when they get to the [festival] gate – so that we’re clear of COVID?”

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Repost @emily_eavis: 50 years ago today, my dad first opened the Worthy Farm gates and this happened. Ever evolving, the festival has lived through five decades, it has been a wild ride – controversial, unpredictable, and so much fun to be a part of. It has survived all kinds of moments and phases and now, it stands on hold through a pandemic. Since this day in 1970, there have been millions of people through Glastonbury’s gates. Each with a unique experience and story. Thanks for being part of it.

A post shared by Glastonbury Festival (@glastofest) on Sep 19, 2020 at 4:30am PDT

This comes after comments made by Reading & Leeds organiser Melvin Benn, who said that they may not need a vaccination “because we can work through the problem with a really good testing regime.” He went on to explain further, saying; “It will probably be the government’s version of the Full Capacity Plan, which is even bigger than what mine was. There will be some sort of test. By the time August 2021 comes around, it will take 10 minutes. You can see the kids outside doing it – who can neck a pint quickest, who can do a test quickest?”

Back in June, Glastonbury festival organiser, Emily Eavis talked about how expansive plans for next years’ festival are already underway. She spoke on BBC 6 Music Show, about how wild it will be to be combining the two festivals into one, saying; “Logistically, it’s a little bit complicated, because we’d already planned quite a few acts for 2021. It was one of those unusual years where you’re quite far ahead on the line-up. So we’re trying to work out how much we can fit in to next year.”

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The Pyramid in 1982. #Glastonbury

A post shared by Glastonbury Festival (@glastofest) on Jun 25, 2020 at 12:05pm PDT

The 2020 line-up was supposed to include headliners Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and Paul McCartney. Emily couldn’t confirm whether the same headliners will return in 2021, but spoke of her hope that McCartney will return, saying; “We had Paul McCartney for this year. It’s unbearable to think that’s not happening, because it would have been the ultimate way to see in our 50th year.”

While it isn’t confirmed, the aim is that Glastonbury 2021 will go ahead in June. Everyone who had tickets to the 2020 festival are thankfully guaranteed a ticket for the 2021 show.