How to Get Into Glastonbury for Free

Glastonbury is one of the UK’s top festivals, but it seems so hard to get hold of a ticket and if you do manage to get a ticket you always seem to be paying ridiculous prices. Tickets sold out this year in 4 hours, that’s 150,000 tickets, and some festival goers paid up to £195 if not more. But there is a solution! Don’t despair as Oxfam amongst other charities, supply 14 top UK festivals with 5,000 stewards. Some of the festivals include Glastonbury, Download, Bestival, Reading and Leeds and more. You get a free ticket, free accommodation, free food (don’t you love the word free?) and a rewarding experience along with having something that employers will love on your CV. 

A steward works three 8 hour shifts over the course of the festival and would get to go to whole event. Great! All staff can hear the music at all times and are allowed to enjoy the festival at their own leisure when they are not working. So, the festival staff become festival goers too. The stewards get their own private camping with warm showers and clean toilets and while working hard and playing hard, you will make great friends. One steward said that “stewarding is a hugely enjoyable and rewarding experience. It's a fantastic way to gain a new set of skills, as well as raising money for a great cause, meeting a new and diverse bunch of people and catching some amazing live music.

All applicants must be 18 or over on the first day of the festival and be eligible to volunteer in the UK. Volunteers need to apply online early where a reference and a deposit will be asked for. The deposit will be lost if the steward fails to turn up for their shift. The volunteer doesn’t need any experience as all stewards get trained up on the first day at a three hour training session at registration. This is where the steward would find out their roles, shift times and receive a handbook which must be handy at all times when working.

To be an Oxfam Steward, the volunteer must stick to the rules set out by the charity as they will be representing that charity. A steward must be polite, friendly, and approachable, have good humour, be comfortable speaking to the public and have an excellent level of spoken English. Stewards must also be punctual, honest, reliable and flexible and be ready for a great time!

A steward’s roles may involve; monitoring an area, providing information and advice, planning for every eventuality, responding quickly and reporting any safety and security issues to your supervisor. All stewards are allocated a supervisor for each shift and a security firm ensures safety for all. Other roles can include; checking tickets, monitoring crowds at stages, staffing festival gates and so on. A Steward must be alert and attentive as they are the eyes and ears of the festival. Be prepared for all weather, so take warm clothes and sensible footwear and hot water bottle if you want to.

Have you got the qualities to be steward? Are you desperate to go to one of the great UK festivals? Then stewarding is the way forward. Fun in the sun and raves in the rain!  Summer will never be the same again. Volunteers can find out more information about stewarding and the roles on Oxfam’s stewarding website good luck and have a great time! Get ready for a summer of fun!

How to Get into the Best Gigs and See the Top Stars for Free!

“Music lovers are being encouraged to give four hours of time and effort” - BBC News

Orange RockCorps is open to anyone in the UK. 13,000 people have already volunteered and have celebrated by attending a fantastic gig to see the top stars such as Lady Gaga, Primal Scream, Eliza Doolittle, N-Dubz, Plan B, Mark Ronson, Vampire Weekend, Tinie Tempah, Snoop Dogg, Nelly and many others.  Everyone involved is supportive of the work that the young volunteers do “I think it’s really good that young people are getting together to do something” (VV Brown).

Volunteering can be done wherever, whenever and it only takes three steps. Give four hours to your community; share the experience online; and finally, once the volunteering has been validated a Gift Card for Ticketmaster is given to the volunteer and they can gain access to any gig they choose. RockCorps uses the power of music to encourage young people to volunteer in their local community. RockCorps also accept any volunteering that the person has done for any valid charity, park or organisation so there is a wealth of opportunities to help out and get a great gig ticket.

They produce great member only gigs. The tickets cannot be bought so the only way to get a ticket is to give four hours to help out with the other collective volunteers in the community. Other great artists that have been involved in the past are Razorlight, Chase & Status, Pendulum, and David Guetta. Four hours for a chance to see great artists and to qualify for the free gig. How much would a ticket cost for Lady Gaga? Well guess what? She loves RockCorps and is every bit involved. She states in a video at one of the gigs that “what makes this organisation so special is that it makes volunteer work a bit fashionable. And I like that idea” (Lady Gaga). The volunteer could get involved with an on-going event or create a new one for the collective by contacting local businesses. 

The website states that “You can’t buy a ticket. You can’t win a ticket. You have to earn a ticket”. Once the volunteer has their four hours and joined up online they can get there free ticket and then be part of the Collective Orange RockCorps volunteers. Alex Zane stated at one of the RockCorps gigs that “RockCorps firmly believe that if you give, you get given” and that statement could not be more true.

When I’m a member, how do you find a RockCorps collective volunteering project? The volunteer can register on the Orange RockCorps website in the top right of the screen and follow the links on the screen to find a collective community project right for you.  There have been many volunteers who have loved the experience and statements like “It’s great, everybody’s just having a great time; everyone’s happy. Everyone is here for the same reason” (Volunteer). The Creative Director at Rock Corps stated that “we want to eventually go all over the world because our philosophy is that; through music and through one kid at a time we can change the world” (Chris Robinson - RockCorps). So why not be involved in this great philosophy; you help and you get rewarded.

All projects at RockCorps are staffed adequately to ensure the safety of all the volunteers. There will be staff trained in first aid and anyone with a disability is welcome.

There is one more thing that I haven’t mentioned. The ‘Do Some Good’ Blackberry app. All that is needed is small actions on the app and when there have been 60 actions you are eligible to join the collective volunteers and earn rewards. So anyone can volunteer from your mobile, anywhere, anytime. Find out more in the FAQ’s section of the website.

There was one volunteer who described the experience well; “Just an amazing concert. Four hours for such an amazing concert!” (Volunteer). So why not do what this volunteer did? Go and get the four hours and join Orange RockCorps online at http://www.orangerockcorps.co.uk/. 

Film Review Cyrus (2010) 15

John C. Reilly stars as John in this film alongside his new love Molly’s overweight son Cyrus played by Jonah Hill. John has been divorced for 7 years and his ex-wife Jamie (Catherine Keener)  helps him to find a new life and love interest of his own as she is about to get remarried. John goes to a 30-somethings ‘media-types’ party with his ex-wife and her new fiancé. John and Jamie are still friends so she helps him. John meets Molly played by Marisa Tomei at the party. They fall in love and start a relationship, but a spanner is thrown in the works when John finds out she has a 21 year old son. The whole film is an “I slept with your mum” joke and Cyrus does everything he can to stop John being with him mum with many Freudian undertones. He does not appreciate no longer being the man of the house and this is evident throughout the film with his dark and manipulative approach to his mother’s relationship. John does not appreciate this and an all-out war is broken out between them. It is funny to watch and worth seeing.

Film Review Step brothers (2008) 15

Will Ferrell (Brennan) and John C. Reilly (Dale) put on a fantastic performance as two forty-something men who still live with their parents. They have no ambition and still act like adolescents who have no interest in becoming an independent adult. But, unfortunately the time has come where both their parents fall in love and end up creating a step family, much to the dislike of both the adolescent men. They absolutely loath each other and find every way to argue and pick fault. The newly formed family has been moved into Dale’s father’s house so he sets the rules. The main rule is don’t touch the drum kit, which has hilarious scenes later on in the film when Brennan decides to rub his privates over the drum kit to taunt Dale. They soon find a common ground though; a common enemy. Brennan much accomplished younger brother Derek (played by Adam Scott). He made Brennans life hell growing up and still is. When Dales father takes a liking to Derek it’s obvious that Dale will not. So with Brennan and Dale’s common hatred, they are brought closer together and eventually have to try and save their parents relationship. With lots of laughs and unpredictable humour Step Brothers is just one of those films that many can relate to.

Film Review Anchor-man- The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) 12A

70’s news spoof Anchor-man which was co-written by Will Ferrell himself has always been a hit with quotes like “I don't know how to put this but I'm kind of a big deal”. The hilariously crude comments, improvisation and that funny looking moustache will have you vibrating with laughter off the chair. It is full of uncomfortable yet enjoyable humour (should you laugh? Of course you should). Ron Burgundy is a local icon and a hero who owns the title of anchor-man.  He falls for a new female news reporter who has been brought in to spice things up but the rest of the news team see it as a major problem as all newsreaders are men. This film shows the terrible sexist humour of men and the immature comments that could spew from their mouths in the 70’s. The inappropriate remarks are not only that but also funny and coming from a woman that must mean it’s worth watching. Ferrell’s performance is both brilliant and unpredictable. You never know where he is going with a joke but it is always the right way. Good ole Christina Applegate who plays the new female news reporter Veronica Corningstone gets her digs back in at the majorly sexist comments that are thrown at her. This film is legendary and must be seen, so go out and grab a copy. Roll on the sequel.

Film Review Scott pilgrim vs. the world (2010) 12A

Based on the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World shows a geek in Toronto fighting for the heart of a girl. Scott (Michael Cera) is the bass player in a local band and he loves his online world whether it is video games or illegal downloads. Scott is no normal geek, who usually repels girls but seems to have a history of relationships with hot chicks. When Scott meets the girl of his dreams he is told that to be with her and win her heart he must defeat her seven evil ex-boyfriends (who all seem to have super powers- here comes the geekiness). These scenes of Scott facing the evil exes are not out of your everyday reality but are choreographed and stylised to be like a video game, unreal and impossible in reality. The film follows a videogame narrative with gaming levels and with the unusual set of scenes the film takes you into an alternative universe managed by the geekiest yet for some reason hot teenager. The film can relate to anyone who is struggling within their own love life and can be a delightful escape from the norm of teenage existence.

Film Review Dodge Ball: A True Underdog Story (2004) 12A

There have been many movies made about sport but the one degrading sport that has everyone quivering is of course the dreaded Dodge ball. Banned in many schools now for being too aggressive the underdog story gives us a funny interpretation of the sport. Dodge ball  shows gym owner Peter La Fleur (Vince Vaughn) and the underdogs fighting to save his gym from being taken over by a bigger corporate gym, Globo Gym, which is run by White Goodman (Ben Stiller). La Fleur enters a Dodge ball tournament in order to raise the $50,000 he need to save his gym from being bought out and ends up head to head with his rival White Goodman’s  team. The plot is pretty much shot by numbers, following a similar plot to that of Mighty Ducks. With plenty of ridiculously laugh out loud humour Dodge ball will have you falling off your seat.

Blades of glory (2007) 12A

Blades of glory has got to be one of the funniest films I have seen. It is a sports comedy that shows Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder); who are rivals in figure skating, become the first all-male pirouetting duo. The dance routines are hilarious with the two actors pictured in many funny positioning’s. After the two skaters continuously fight at the world championships they are both disqualified from the solo competitions. To make ends meet they perform at ice shows and work at sports stores selling skating equipment until they are propositioned to work together as a duo when a loop hole is found. They have to put their differences aside and work together to win the championships. The arguments are hilarious and the bromance grows as the two fight to perform at the championships.