Crowds have been descending on the site at Worthy Farm, Pilton, Somerset since the gates opened on Sunday.

But Avon and Somerset police had already recorded 137 reported crimes by Thursday evening, including 100 thefts of property from cars and tents at the site.

A spokesman said 44 arrests have been made, including seven for robbery and 16 for theft, adding crime figures were "higher than last year's festival at this stage".

A 23-year-old man had been taken to Yeovil Hospital with stab wounds after a fracas on Wednesday evening.

'Nasty undercurrent'

The Manic Street Preachers are among the bands headlining

Festivalgoer Justin Smyth, 24, from London, was woken in the middle of the night by a man slashing his tent.

He told BBC News Online: "At 3 o'clock some guy was coming round the tents looking for a guy called John.

"I woke up, heard someone at the front of my tent and then heard my tent being slashed.

"Someone also got into one of my friends' tents and beat him up, and another friend of mine was beaten up by three guys and robbed of £100.

"The weather's beautiful and the sun's shining - but there's a really nasty undercurrent to the festival at the moment."

Fine weather

Club favourites Underworld are also performing

Around 100,000 people are set to descend on the site for the festival, which officially starts on Friday.

They are set for fine weather conditions in which to see the likes of REM, the Manic Street Preachers, Underworld, the Beautiful South, Blondie, and hundreds of other acts - in contrast to the torrential rain of the previous two events.

Musical icons appearing include soul legend Al Green, former Clash frontman Joe Strummer, skiffle star Lonnie Donegan and punk poet Patti Smith.

The BBC's Jane O'Brien: A tented city the size of Bath

Other attractions, in what is effectively a small city, include circus and theatre fields, fire-eaters and trapeze artists.

Police are out in force, and nine arrests out of the 44 made have been for drug offences.

Festival spokesman Crispin Aubrey said: "When you've got up to 100,000 people - or even 20,000 as we did on Wednesday night - on the site there will be some crime. We can only advise people to take care and be alert to it.

"The trouble is people relax on the site and forget to look after their valuables.