Arctic Monkeys WILL play Glastonbury tonight despite Alex Turner’s laryngitis, Emily Eavis confirms

The Sheffield band’s slot at the festival was thrown into doubt after they cancelled a concert in Dublin on Tuesday
Arctic Monkeys are expected to headline Friday night at Glastonbury 2023
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Sami Quadri23 June 2023

Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis has confirmed the Arctic Monkeys will headline the Pyramid Stage on Friday night after their set was thrown into question earlier this week.

The rock band announced on Monday that frontman Alex Turner had acute laryngitis which forced them to cancel their Dublin show on Wednesday.

Asked by Zoe Ball on BBC Radio 2 if the band were still set to play, Eavis said: “They’re on”, which was welcomed with uproarious applause.

“It was a little bit close there for a minute and we were thinking about whether we should have a serious back-up plan in place, but, no, thankfully there on, so that's great.”

The Sheffield band’s slot at the festival was thrown into doubt after they cancelled their Dublin gig.

They apologised to Irish fans, saying: “Alex is suffering from acute laryngitis and, following medical advice, has been ordered to rest.”

Fans feared the band would have to pull out from Glastonbury, as the inflammatory condition can take at least a week to recover from.

However, Emily Eavis had said she was confident they will pull through.

Ms Eavis told reporters: “He’s recovering, I’m sure we’re going to be all right.”

“We’ve got a couple of back-up plans if not,” she added.

“We’ve always got back-up plans for everything.”

On Thursday, Turner’s girlfriend Louise Verneuil posted a snap of herself in a car, with the caption “Go Glasto” - seeming to hint that the Do I Wanna Know? hitmakers will be there.

Ms Eavis did not reveal what her “plan B” was, although Foo Fighters were hotly tipped as a possible replacement, while Harry Styles, Coldplay and Blur were all rumoured options.

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Other headline acts this weekend are Guns N’ Roses and Sir Elton John, who will have “four collaborators” for the Sunday night Pyramid Stage set, according to his husband David Furnish.

The music legend’s Glasto debut will also be his last ever UK tour date as his worldwide Farewell Yellow Brick Road odyssey of shows nears an end.

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