The first event, originally called the Pilton Festival, took place in 1970. 1,500 people attended the inaugural festival, and the headline act was T Rex. In the early years, the Glastonbury Festival was not an annual event.
The 1990s saw huge crowds as unofficial festival-goers jumped fences to get in without paying. This period saw memorable performances from Oasis, Jamiroquai, and Pulp.
One of Glastonbury's most famous aspects is inviting acts from outside the pop and rock world to perform. These have included Dolly Parton, Shirley Bassey, and Neil Diamond.