IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson has made it clear that Glastonbury Festival isn’t on the band’s radar—and wouldn’t be even if they were asked.
While heavy metal isn’t the dominant genre at Worthy Farm, a number of metal and rock acts have taken the stage over the years, including METALLICA, MOTÖRHEAD, NINE INCH NAILS, DEFTONES, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, FOO FIGHTERS, and even NAPALM DEATH. Still, IRON MAIDEN has never played the iconic festival—and apparently, they prefer it that way.
In a new interview with The i Paper ahead of IRON MAIDEN’s massive homecoming show at London Stadium on June 28, Dickinson was asked if the timing of the gig, which coincides with Glastonbury weekend, was intentional.
His response? Pure Bruce: “No! I always said I’d turn Glastonbury down if we were ever invited. I don’t want to go play in front of Gwyneth Paltrow and a perfume-infested yurt.”
It’s the kind of take longtime MAIDEN fans have come to expect from Dickinson, whose disdain for mainstream celebrity culture stands in stark contrast to the band’s everyman ethos.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Dickinson emphasized the importance of keeping ticket prices accessible: “It’s not just about making money. We want s**tloads of people to come and see us. I’m amazed at the prices that some people are prepared to pay to see some legacy acts.”
IRON MAIDEN’s “Run For Your Lives” world tour kicked off on May 27 in Budapest and has already sold over one million tickets, with many shows fully sold out. Despite this success, Dickinson and the band remain focused on staying connected to fans, both musically and financially.
For those hoping to catch the band live this summer, here are the remaining European dates on their 2025 tour:
- June 28 – London, ENGLAND @ London Stadium
- June 30 – Glasgow, SCOTLAND @ OVO Hydro
- July 3 – Belfort, FRANCE @ Eurockéennes Festival
- July 5 – Madrid, SPAIN @ Riyadh Air Metropolitano
- July 6 – Lisbon, PORTUGAL @ MEO Arena
- July 9 – Zurich, SWITZERLAND @ Hallenstadion
- July 11 – Gelsenkirchen, GERMANY @ Veltins-Arena
- July 13 – Padova, ITALY @ Stadio Euganeo
- July 15 – Bremen, GERMANY @ Bürgerweide
- July 17 – Vienna, AUSTRIA @ Ernst Happel Stadium
- July 19 & 20 – Paris, FRANCE @ Paris La Défense Arena
- July 23 – Arnhem, NETHERLANDS @ GelreDome
- July 25 – Frankfurt, GERMANY @ Deutsche Bank Park
- July 26 – Stuttgart, GERMANY @ Cannstatter Wasen
- July 29 & 30 – Berlin, GERMANY @ Waldbühne
- August 2 – Warsaw, POLAND @ PGE Narodowy
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.