Not so the Glastonbury Free Press. Stationed slap-bang in the middle of the UK’s biggest performing arts festival, the press doesn’t just print a two-edition freesheet – but puts on a show, too.

What was produced?

For the past 11 years, Glastonbury Free Press has printed and distributed its four-page freesheet. Spread over two editions, printed for Thursday and Sunday, the paper offers exclusive interviews with festival organisers, celebrities, and tip-offs for must-see acts.

Each edition runs to 29,000 copies of 700x450mm, printed on Stora Enso paper bought through Denmaur.

What did the job entail?

Before the festival, the team gets ready, printing blanks in red ink with their 1953 Heidelberg OHZ-S 720mm cylinder press.

Just before the festival, the printer is moved down to its tent on site by tractor, levelled, and recommissioned.

Then the festival kicks off: copy, written at the festival, about the festival, comes in, sent off to the platemakers by around 1pm.

Two of the team then rush off to Bristol by car – a two-hour drive – to pick up the plates from Phoenix Printing Plates.

Printing starts between 4pm and 6pm, depending on the unpredictable traffic out of the festival, with each sheet run through the machine twice, and the front page effectively ‘held’ for breaking stories.

“We run it like a news daily. It has to go out regardless: if we’re having an issue, we need to correct it so the paper’s ready by eight o’clock in the morning,” explained Adrian Manning, who heads up the production team.

Folding is carried out on a rebuilt 1990 Stahl T52-4X, bought in 2019.

What challenges were overcome?

Printing on a working farm – and then in a festival with 250,000 people – is no simple thing. Conditions are tough, with the weather bringing either humid, damp conditions, or huge amounts of dust.

The old Heidelberg powers through; the five-ton machine handles the conditions easily, along with being moved twice a year between barn and field.

“We try and treat it like a classic car. It doesn’t get used often, but when it does, it needs to work,” said Manning.

“It’s built with quality materials; if you get the right engineers, and look after it, it will go forever. That’s the beautiful thing about quality engineering.”

Then there’s the show: it wouldn’t be Glastonbury Free Press without putting on a performance, Manning said.

“We like people to see it working. Rather than doing it overnight, like a normal newspaper, we try and run the press as long as possible so the general public can see it.”

What was the feedback?

Unlike many newspaper printers, Manning gets the satisfaction of instant feedback: a queue of people outside the tent, waiting to grab their copy and admire the machine in action.

“It’s such a pleasure to do it, because you get such wonderful feedback: there’s never been a negative word about it,” Manning said.