Gallagher used his ‘all access’ pass to gain access to the disability viewing platform and joked about ‘the great view’ disabled people get
Noel Gallagher has been slammed by a disability charity after comments he made about his time at this year’s Glastonbury Festival.
The ex-Oasis frontman, 55, performed with his band The High Flying Birds on the Pyramid Stage just before Sir Paul McCartney headlined on Saturday night.
It has since emerged that Gallagher stayed after his set to watch other artists perform, including Jamie T – but he did so from the disabled viewing platform.
Speaking on The Matt Morgan Podcast, the rockstar explained how a security guard initially tried to stop him from entering the area dedicated to people with disabilities but he showed his ‘access all areas’ pass to gain access.
Gallagher said he and his group of friends “couldn’t get to the bit on stage because we were f***ing wasted” so he flashed his pass and said “this lot are with me, and we walked on to this platform – unbeknownst to us it was the disabled platform”.
The 55-year-old then joked that he would have tipped someone out of their wheelchair and encouraged his son to sit in it. He said he would touch people on the forehead and tell them: “Rise, you can walk”.
“I gotta say, those disabled cats have a great view of everything,” he added.
Disability charity Scope has since spoken out about the star’s comments.
Speaking about Gallagher, Warren Kirwan, Scope’s media manager, told MailOnline: “The casual abuse and belittling of disabled people in this interview is vile. There is no excuse for this kind of language.
“On top of that, accessible platforms aren’t for privileged rock stars and their friends. These platforms exist so that disabled people can enjoy live music – without them many of our festivals would simply be off limits.”
Noel may belittle the experience of disabled music fans.
But for many, the reality of attending live music and festivals can be stressful and upsetting.
— Scope (@scope) July 4, 2022
The charity also took to Twitter to share its fury, stating: “Reports of @NoelGallagher ‘s behaviour at Glastonbury were upsetting enough. But to hear him boast about his actions, and openly mock disabled people in the process, is beyond insulting.
It added: “Noel may belittle the experience of disabled music fans. But for many, the reality of attending live music and festivals can be stressful and upsetting.”
JOE has contacted Noel Gallagher’s team for comment.
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