A while ago, we got thinking. We record hundreds of hours of audio at every Glastonbury Festival, and most of it goes out on air during the festival itself. After that though, it just sits on our hard discs, unheard and unloved. So, last year, we started putting some ‘Listen Again‘ content on this website, to let people listen to us all year round.

Still though, we could do more. We get loads of news about what’s going on about each year’s Glastonbury Festival in the months before it happens, so why not combine our audio from previous festivals with up to date news about what’s happening at the next one?

Well, that’s exactly what we’re doing.

Every month between now and next June, we’re going to be putting out our own podcast, looking back at previous Glastonburys, and talking about what’s going to be happening at Glastonbury 2013.

There’s a lot of new stuff at this year’s festival to get excited about, and as soon as we can tell you about it, we will.

So, below is our first podcast. For those of you who entered our crew competition, the two winners are announced in there. We’ve also got news about how you can get involved with the Shangri-La area this year, and a new chance for each and every one of you to be heard on air across the Glastonbury Festival site at Worthy FM this June.

There are also interviews with Lady Gaga, Fatboy Slim and Nick Clegg, as well as live music from the Levellers and Stornoway.

You can subscribe to our podcasts on iTunes if you want, just search for us in the iTunes store. Otherwise, we’ll be posting them on here every month between now and next June.

This is our first podcast, so it would be great to hear from you about what you like about it, what you don’t like, and what you’d like to hear more of. Leave us a comment below, or on the Worthy FM Facebook page, or tweet us @worthyfm, or just email hello@worthyfm.com.

Use the player below to listen to the podcast now, or click ‘download’ then listen to it later…

Could you be in this photo next June?

The competition to win a place on the Worthy FM crew for Glastonbury Festival 2013 ended last Sunday, and we just wanted to give you an update on what happens from here.

First of all though, genuine thanks to each and every one of you for all your lovely entries. You’re definitely an inventive bunch out there, and the standard was once again really high. We won’t be able to give you all individual feedback due to the sheer number of entries we’ve received, but it definitely sounds like many of you have promising futures in radio.

All of your audio submissions are being listened to right now, and your 50 word statements are being read, but the judging process with this many entries will take some time. We want to give each of you careful consideration after all. So our plan is to have the decision made over the next couple of weeks, with the announcement of the two winners being made on the 1st of February.

So, good luck one and all, we’ll let you know the result at the end of the month!

The competition to join the Worthy FM crew at Glastonbury Festival 2013 has been open about a week now, and some people have been getting in touch with us to ask questions about it.

To give everyone an equal chance in the competition, and to help you submit the best entry you possibly can, we’re going to publish the questions and their answers below.

Q. When you write ‘you need to record and produce 30 seconds of audio that demonstrates your presenting style’ do you mean we should create a new specialised piece of audio for the competition, or would you prefer a montage of catalogued moments?

A. Either a montage of existing links or a specially created piece is acceptable, whichever you feel best represents your style. Whilst quality is important, as long as your entry is clearly audible, you won’t be penalised for limited access to recording equipment.

Q. If I win, will I be camping on-site?

A. Yes, all Worthy FM crew camp next to the station in a secure area up by Worthy Farm. If you’re part of the crew, you have to camp with us, so you can’t go and camp out in the festival instead.

Q. How can I get to the site on the Sunday before the festival opens?

A. Competition winners will be expected to make their own way to Bristol, where they will meet up with the rest of the crew, then travel to the festival site via car pooling or mini bus.

Q. Can I do a different job for you on site?

A. No, sorry, we’re only looking for volunteers to help us with radio broadcasting, and the only way to join our crew is through the competition.

Q. Can you get my band / act into the festival to perform on your station?

A. No, we only have places for our own crew. However, if you’re performing on site next year anyway and would like to come up to the station to promote what you’re up to, then do get in touch with us.

Q. Is there an age limit for entering the competition?

A. No. If you’re aged 16 or over, you’re good to enter by yourself. However, if you’re under 16, you will need to have a parent or guardian on site with you whilst you’re volunteering for us.

Above: Sienna Miller at Glastonbury Festival last year. Photo courtesy of wikifashion.com

Do you want to be heard on the radio? Do want to become “The Face of Glastonbury 2011”? Then do your best…I want to see the wackiest…most out there…extreme clothing/fashion you got !!

I’m Ollie, and I shall be brining you the ‘Kidz Show’ for two hours every day single day during the festival…alongside this I shall also be presenting you with my own (amazing-if I do say so myself) hourly show every other day (check out our schedule for more info).

Now, as part of my show, I shall be looking into what the magazines and papers love to rant about… this year’s Glasto fashion! I will be exploring the trends, the excessively expensive and the purely extraordinary in this year’s festival fashion icons. So keep a close eye for that Worthy FM logo and that little mic, because I’m coming for you and will be hunting down the best of the best!

Alongside this there will be more fun-leading on from the Kidz Show. Great music! Everything ranging from the classics from this year’s headlines, to some of the new and under the radar acts on some of the smaller stages. Also loads more gossip, interviews and exclusives!

Remember to check the schedule information to find out when I, and the rest of the Worthy team will be bringing you there finding here, at Glastonbury 2011!

Our competition winner Michelle dishes the dirt on what it’s like to work at Worthy FM for the first time…

Day 1 at The Big Brother House… Well not really, but its been day 1 and 2 at the Worthy FM compound.

It took a good couple of hours to get into the site due to queues and complications, but once we were in it was time to pitch tents. My tent would appear to be the 2nd smallest out of the crew, only Ollie Owens beats me with his tiny pop up tent. However, it is still standing…for now! Some of us headed down for a walk around in the evening, and we found a fantastic little bar in a tiny caravan, tucked away in a corner of the site down by The Unfairground. There was a lovely atmosphere, the standard thing you would expect from Glastonbury and even a little campfire! The guiding light of Worthy FM led us back to home for the next week.

Day 2 has given me a guided tour from Daddy Teacha. It is my 2nd time at Glastonbury, but my first with Worthy FM, so it is very special to see the whole site without 180,000 people in yet. That said, whilst wondering around there is a hive of activity as people are busy in each resepective field putting the final touches to stalls, stages and pieces of art. Tractors and diggers are rolling round site and the stewards are in place. The final touches are being put in place for you all turning up on Wednesday, and already it is looking fantastic. I also managed to grab a couple of interviews with a painter in the Kidz Field, and in the Green Fiels with a gardener owner. We also got the chance to step out on The West Holts stage which was spectacular, in just a few days the likes of Cee Lo Gree and Chase and Status will be stepping out in the exact same spot.

Not sure what to expect next, but am thoroughly looking forward to everyone pitching up and the best atmosphere, according to me, in the world for the next few days.

Today was also my first show, 6-7pm with Phil Gibbons, and from today I am 2-4pm in the afternoons through til Thursday. I am ready and raring to go, and excited to broadcast live from Glastonbury Festival! See you Wednesday!

One of the benefits of Worthy FM sometimes becomes a problem for us you know. People work with us and gain tons of experience in the sort of radio you won’t find anywhere else, so as a result do better in their careers. This year, three of our regulars have become so employable that they’re now having to work elsewhere during the festival. Boo.

So, we’re gutted not to be graced with the company of the lovely Eleni, Jo and Lyndsey this year, who will all be off doing awesome stuff elsewhere. But, thanks to the number of great applications we had to our volunteers competition, we’re delighted to welcome a bunch of new people to the crew for the first time. Indeed, for many of them, it’s even their first time at Glastonbury!

So, welcome Hayleigh, Milly, Chris and Rik to the good ship Worthy FM. You’re in for quite a voyage!

For as long as I can remember I’ve been fascinated by festivals, and Glastonbury is the one that stands out a mile from any of the others. So on a cold October morning two years ago, after I scraped some money together, I booked my ticket for my first festival, Glastonbury 2010. The experience will stay with me forever, driving down from the Midlands trying to figure out which cars were going to Pilton as well, realising we were close when Worthy FM emerged from the static coming out of the car radio, and pitching our tent in an empty field only to watch more an more people arrive.

In all fairness we didn’t stray too far from the main stages, but there were many stand out moments. Gorillaz on Friday night blew me away with a phenomenal mix of music and beautiful cinematography, Jamie T on Saturday was possibly the most fun I’ve had at a gig in a long time (not to mention the slightly smug sense of satisfaction that we got knowing we were getting a better show than everybody watching Muse), and of course Stevie Wonder closing the festival on Sunday.

Gorillaz headline on the Pyramid Stage

Other brilliant moments included the first, and I stress first, England World Cup match, the silent disco in the dance village, watching tens of thousands of slightly sunburnt white people (including myself) singing “motherf****** P.I.M.P.” back to Snoop Dogg, and waking up early Sunday morning to watch Toy Story 3 in the cinema tent. It truly was a fantastic few days.

So after such a phenomenal festival, I was considering what to do for this year. Do I book again, especially as I had a fresh student loan burning a hole in my pocket? Well unfortunately after I’d paid my rent I was back on my uppers again, so I had to let the ticket sale pass me by. It was only by searching on the Glastonbury website that I found Worthy FM on the internet. I’d listened at the festival but I had just assumed they had their own team set in stone, but when visiting worthyfm.com I found a request for applications.

A sea of England fans waiting for kick-off

Radio and music are some of my biggest passions in life so I decided to get my recorder out and go down to woods next door to my student halls to start recording a short item about being at the festival for my application.

I ended up talking about the markets, the West Holts stage, and the camping fields, and immediately I was back in Somerset in the baking heat of last June. I was actually in a cold damp field in West Yorkshire, but it’s amazing what the imagination can do. After chopping and changing, recording and re-recording, I finally had a demo I was happy with, so off it went to Worthy FM. A few weeks later I found out that I had been lucky enough to be offered a space as an Editor for Worthy FM at Glastonbury 2011.

I was always worried that my second festival, be it Glastonbury or otherwise, would never live up to that buzz of my first festival experience. After the events of the last few weeks, I’m confident that that wont be the case.

As loads have you will have seen, and loads of you emailed us about, we ran a competition during March to win a place as either an editor or a presenter on Worthy FM at Glastonbury this year.

We had another bumper crop of applications, and again the standard was really high. Station Manager Joanne Schofield, along with Sara Davis (BBC Network Radio) for the editors and Emily Eavis (Festival Organiser) for the presenters, have listened to each and every mp3 sent in, and have decided that these are the folk to sail in the good ship Worthy FM this year.

Editor Competition Winners

Robert Geary I am a regular festival goer, and this will be my third Glastonbury. I’ve been to other festivals, but after my first Glastonbury in 2009, I knew that, for me, nothing could compete with the atmosphere, the line up and the sheer amount of things to see and do at Glasto. My favourite memory of Glastonbury festival is last year on the Saturday. There weren’t any bands on I wanted to see, so I just walked around the site, walking through the arts and crafts field, watching people on the spoken word stage and seeing acoustic sets on a stage powered by two bicycles. Loved it.

Peter Crowther I’ve been in love with radio for as long as I can remember, and currently work for a station as a Tech Op, but my real passion is producing. It’s stressful, but nothing is better than hearing a show going out knowing you’ve put it all together. My first experience of Glastonbury was last year, when me and a few mates ventured down from Wolverhampton for the fortieth year. Obviously we saw all the big names, ventured round the smaller stages and so on, but my festival was made on the Sunday. Watching Ray Davies on a conveniently “Sunny Afternoon”. I really can’t think of a better way of spending a weekend.

Presenter Competition Winners

Ollie Owens I have been volunteering at my local community radio station for almost two years, presenting and producing my own radio show, which includes interviews, features, alternative music and the occasional live set with bands and artists. One of my favourite shows so far has been presenting live from the Bristol Harbour Festival, so I’m definitely up for some more live festival presenting at Glastonbury this year.

Michelle Owen I have worked in radio since I was 16, and so far I’ve volunteered for Radio Maldwyn, our student radio station Xtreme radio, community radio Afan FM, and now XS where I have been a volunteer presenter since January 2009. I’ve also done work experience for Sky, ITV and Absolute Radio. The first thing they asked me was what my favourite festival is, so of course without hesitation I said Glastonbury. I am finishing University in just a few weeks, and I’m really looking forward to volunteering for the radio at my favourite festival this summer, bring it on! (Michelle’s photo is held up in the Worthy FM email ether, this is an artist’s impression of her for now)

So well done to them, and to everyone who entered. Here’s a word from Joanne;

“We always get lots of applications to volunteer for Worthy FM each year, and this competition has been no different. We had loads of great mp3′s sent in, and judging really was tricky. So to all those who won, welcome to the world of Worthy FM, and commiserations to all you talented people who didn’t. See you on site in June!”

Time is ticking and there are only a few days left if you want to apply for one of this year’s volunteer positions to be a presenter or editor. Why should you apply to be part of Worthy FM? Because aside from showcasing your skills and attending Britain’s best festival, you’ll also be part of a fantastic team and experience the festival from a totally different perspective…

After a stint working for the Glastonbury Festival website in 2008 I was itching to get involved in some way again last year and when a friend told me about the volunteering competition for Worthy FM I knew I had to apply.

My experience of the application process was not exactly the norm and it wasn’t until just a couple of weeks before the festival that I received the email telling me I had made it – I would be part of the crew for Worthy FM 2010.

If memory serves I think I actually did some sort of happy dance around my living room before calling my nearest and dearest to share the good news. The next couple of weeks went by so quickly and while I got to know some of the team via email, I was still terrified when I met them all for the first time as we gathered in Bristol to form a convoy to the festival. Naturally I was worrying for nothing – the mix of old timers and new team members were good humoured, friendly and itching to get on site and experience the festival, Worthy style.

Once on site we all pitched our tents at Worthy FM HQ and received a briefing from Joanne before being sent off to explore the festival. Wandering through fields that would be covered with a sea of tents and punters just a few days later was magical, as was meeting performers, stage managers, painters and area crews. Over the next few days all of us were taken on a tour of the site, received tutorials in making features and using the studio equipment, and given individual timetables.

One thing I worried about when signing up to volunteer was how much time I would have to experience the festival in all its glory. Would I still get to see my friends and catch the bands I wanted? Would I still be able to drink, dance and make merry? Er, yeah I would – even though we were scheduled to work around 5 or 6 hours a day most of us ended up working longer or going out together for a night ‘on the town’. If we were desperate to see a band or performer our team leaders were flexible and we still managed to enjoy the odd drink or three.

One of the best things about volunteering for Worthy was that at any given time of day or night there would always be someone to get up to mischief with, weather it was to benefit the station or ourselves. I got to meet idols backstage, sing on the middle of the West Holts stage, photograph royalty and co-present some shows. More importantly, I met an amazing bunch of people, became part of a Glastonbury institution and used my skills and interests to bring something new to the team.

Don’t get me wrong – volunteering for Worthy FM could be hard work at times, but it was one of the best festival experiences I’ve ever had and I’m rather chuffed to be back again this year.

If you want to volunteer as a presenter or editor for Worthy FM this year check out our Volunteering page for more info and make sure you enter before the end of 11:59pm on Saturday 19th March.