Securing the Glastonbury spirit

The festival represents freedom and rebellion

By Ian Youngs BBC News Online, at Glastonbury Festival

A lot has changed at the Glastonbury Festival this year.

The biggest difference is the serious security, with guards who can no longer be bribed a fiver to help you bunk over the fence.

But a lot remains the same, and even before the bands started, this year's festival effortlessly slid back into its rightful position as the number one festival in the UK, and possibly the world.

The security is so tight because organiser Michael Eavis has been told that the event will never happen again if he has an invasion of gatecrashers, as seems to happen every year.

Security was increased to keep out gatecrashers

And boy, does he want it to happen again.

He has built a 3.6 metre (12 foot) steel fence that stretches for five miles around the site, with 1,000 people patrolling the perimeter.

The fence has a 50cm (20 inch) overhang to stop gatecrashers throwing grappling hooks or ropes, and there are solid steel portcullises across the river and all of the water inlets, presumably to stop ticketless fans in canoes.

Some see these measures as an insult to the idea of Glastonbury as a haven for freedom and acceptance.

'Thieving scallies'

For many, fence-jumping used to be an accepted part of Glastonbury culture.

It added a bit of rebellion and a feeling of benevolence. Even if you could not afford a ticket, the festival would turn a blind eye as long as you were passionate enough to have a go.

But the huge event seems to have absorbed the changes, and has begun with the same friendly atmosphere as ever.

You could already smell the toilets from 50 metres away

And many fans are saying that the strict security will make the festival better than ever.

Gone are the days of scallies and thieves jumping the fence with the intention of mugging fans and robbing tents.

The crowds will be that little bit smaller and more manageable, and those that are there will be that little bit more laid-back.

That is the theory, anyway.

And it is not just the security that has been organised better this year.

The atmosphere appears to be as friendly as ever

There are twice as many payphones as last time, more mobile phone masts are overlooking the site, NatWest say their cash machines here will be the busiest in the country over the weekend, and Orange have even put up giant text message screens so people can send messages in the hope that friends will see them.

Some things never change, though.

By Thursday, you could already smell the toilets from 50 metres away.

That will rise to 100 metres on Friday, 200 metres on Saturday and a mile on Sunday. Or at least that's how it will feel.

Big Brother

If festival-goers do not fancy the portable loos, they can try the African-style pit latrines, which are being provided by Water Aid and are slightly less disgusting than the other toilets.

The Green Fields are also still there and alive with the hippy spirit.

You can get a massage, listen to poetry, buy some incense - and even bumper stickers with slogans like "Pagans make better lovers" or "I found Jesus - he was behind the sofa the whole time".

Water Aid toilets: "Less disgusting"

There are 800 acres of space, and the surrounding green hills make this feel much more relaxed than festivals held in city leisure centres or artificial arenas.

Here, you get hardened crusties camping next to big city A-level students and, for a few days a year, the alternative ideologies seem to have the upper hand.

There are no bosses, no schools, no politicians. It does not feel like Big Brother is watching your every move. There are different rules.

We can put up with tighter security, if it means this unique human cauldron lives to fight another day.