Reading Festival, day ticket, on my own at 53 because I love Florence. Mad?

[GlomOfNit]

How mad would it be for me to go, on my own (probably), to Reading Festival just for the Sunday, so I could see my obsession Florence +TM live, for the first time, having failed to get tickets for any of the tour dates that have just finished?

I'll be 53. I have an occasionally gammy leg and sciatica. I'm a bit overweight and not great at standing for hours and hours. I'm really short. You're not allowed to take pretty much ANYTHING into the Arena area it seems - you get one 'A4-sized bag' (lol-ing at describing bags as units of stationery, perhaps airlines should start that) but their strictures are so, well, strict that I wouldn't be able to carry much in it! I'll probably be on my own, as my passion for F+TM appears to be, in my peer group anyway, my very own.

What sort of chance do I have of getting up close to the front? Will it just be heartbreaking to be so close but STILL not be able to see anything much? If they're headlining on the Sunday night am I going to be spending the ensuing several hours waiting to leave the site? I know Reading Fest isn't like Glastonbury with shedloads of other stuff going on, but will there be anything other than music acts I haven't heard of happening before my main event? Or should I take a book?

Points in my favour: I live literally up the road. Assuming the usual Reading-Oxford buses are running, I could walk back into town and hop on a late one and be back in the very quiet place where I live within an hour. or I could bribe DH with post-festival sex to come and pick me up just over the river

Actually that's the only point in my favour. Flo is playing literally down the road and there are still Sunday tickets and I could put on a floppy dress and a flower tiara and actually go and see her. Couldn't I? or is this just a stupid pipe dream from a sad old moo? WWYD?

(I just remembered - I think I've actually been to Reading before, back in the dim mists of time in 1999 when DH and I both lived there and we went just to see Catatonia :-D I think tickets must have been a fair bit cheaper back then. But I'm NOT a festival-goer. I go to a local eco-hippy festival with tiny attendance numbers and that's just lovely, and that's all I ever do.)

The rough behaviour people describe tends to be in the campsites on the last night, so not likely to affect you. I’d totally go. It’s a great place to people watch if it’s dry and you can find a spot to sit down. Though I feel ancient as I only know one other band playing on the Sunday!

You have to go. Promise me you will. Wear a maxi dress with support leggings underneath to help with the standing, and very chunky soled trainers that give you an extra couple of inches in height but are comfortable to walk in all day. You will not notice standing for the whole gig, especially if you dance a bit.

My tip, as a short person, is bring ear plugs and stand right at the front, slightly to one side, near the speakers.

I have been doing things I want to do alone, rather than not doing them, for years. Never regretted a single one.

Can you really not grasp how irrelevant this might be to the OP’s situation?

I'm 45 and shudder at the very thought of going to a music festival! Is it televised like Glastonbury? If so just watch that.

If you will struggle with standing for a long time, don’t book a regular ticket. But if there are accessibility tickets, go, and have fun!

Btw it’s probably better to risk regretting going than to not go and absolutely know you will regret that. Life is short. Go see the absolute queen 💕 she is incredible live.

Not the same really 😊

It’s the loos that put me off - I went to the last day of a weekend festival and the loos were overflowing. 🤮 So disgusting, I vowed the only way I’d go to one again would be if I were in a camper van on site with its own chemical toilet

Just do it! As you say you live close by so can go home whenever you want.

even if you can’t get to the front (and I don’t know if that’s a great idea if you can’t stand for long periods of time) they have huge screens so you’ll be able to see pretty well wherever you end up.

its not ‘rough’ (well, except for the toilets) as someone else suggested but full of teenagers letting off steam after finishing exams. I’m sure the crowd for Florence will be pretty mixed though.

go give it a try! You’ll probably have a great time!

I was there too for the Foo Fighters. It was an amazing set.

I think you should do it. You’ll still get the experience even if you don’t want to wait at the front for hours. I have stood near the back of many main stages and you can still see them- even if they’re further away.

I think YOLO personally.

I've been to the Reading Festival and this plan is completely mad. The problem with Reading is that it's a giant free for all. If you want to be at the front (and you really don't), you need to be there before the first act of the day and you will be stuck there for hours. Not only that, but it's a mosh pit and you don't want any bag of any kind, because it will be ripped from your body as the crowd starts to move. I did it when I was a teen and it was rough, but back then the blokes would protect the small women and teen girls as much as they could, but you still got crushed and soaked to the skin with other people's sweat. But if you're not down at the front, you won't see a bloody thing, especially if you're short.

If a band I really wanted to see were playing near me,I’d go and just leave early if it was all too much. The ones I’ve regretted were the ones I didn’t see. I’m 58 and by no means a hard core festival or gig goer, but I’d go.

Have you seen the line up @cheezncrackers ? It’s a far cry from the heavier bands of the early 2000s.

I haven't. I went in the early 90s. It was full of metal heads and it was rough!

OK, THANK YOU everyone for your enabling messages of support and encouragement. I'm in possession of a Sunday, non-camping ticket and I think I'm going to have to get into endurance training (not to mention bladder training) but I'm going. 😍

Can't do that. I'd be sitting on my sofa a mere 12 miles or so away, weeping copiously, while BBC2 screened highlights that evening.

I think by Sunday night the crowd may have thinned/passed out. I would do it. Also, join some Florence Facebook groups. I am sure there will be a crowd of people going and planning a meet up so tag along with them.

This, I am happy to pay VIP because of this apparently last year there was an hour wait for the toilets were I am going. I am not going to do that. Also I like going to gigs where you can see the person on stage not being at the back of thousands of people as I won't be waiting hours at the front.

I’m so pleased you are going! So excited for you! Comfy shoes and a waist bag for your stuff 👍 search festival pockets they are a game changer honestly.

come back and tell us how it went 😁

You can buy a little fold up chair that packs small so that would avoid standing. You probably would get shoved about a lot though by people around. The crowd at Reading is not as friendly as Glastonbury sadly.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1JZfLec6Su/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Festival sets tend to be shorter than a usual concert, and tickets way more expensive. Would you go to a concert abroad instead? They are in Dublin and Limerick at the end of June.

Edit, just seen your update. Have a wonderful time! You might find a new band you love as much too!

They're VERY strict about what you can take into the Arena area and chairs are on the forbidden list 😮so are blankets of any type, apparently. I plan to take a very foldable sarong in case I need something to cover from the sun/rain/pass out on.

The Arena rules were what were making me pause, TBH. You're not allowed your own water bottle because you might put booze in it, and you're not allowed to bring in your own personal-consumption booze (doesn't bother me, my main issue will be regulating my bladder!). So you're only allowed ONE 500ml sealed water or soft drinks bottle which is mad.

I think I'll wait to see what the line-up times are (according to forums they'll get released closer to the time) and then plan to go in a few hours before the set, and leave immediately afterwards. I'm only considering this because of my proximity - once out of the site, I can just walk to Caversham Bridge and across and then hopefully DH will be waiting with the car! Even if I have to walk a bit to a side road. The area round Reading is always crazy with congestion over the Festival.

That was the year I went, I stood for 5 hours to be at the front for Louis Tomlinson, had an amazing time.
If I go this year it'll be for Richard Ashcroft.

Do it!

Do they have upgraded VIP tickets? You'll get better toilets and potentially some seats.
You won't be the oldest person, there will be other people accompanying their children who you can chat to.

You could probably find last year's stage times for the headliners, but I'd imagine 8.30 finish by 10.15?

I went to Reading 25 years ago and they didn't like you taking your own booze into the arena back then.
They probably have water points which you can refill your 500ml bottle...they don't want 16 yr olds with heat stroke.

If it's really horrible, you can always go home.