Foo Fighters surprise Glastonbury fans by showing up as The Churn Ups 

It seems the Glastonbury Festival organizers have some surprises up their sleeves this year. The first came as the rock band Foo Fighters took to today's main Pyramid stage as The Churn Ups.

Mystery band The Churn Ups were billed on the Glastonbury lineup on Friday. That led to plenty of speculation beforehand. Suspicions of the band being either Jarvis Cocker and Pulp or Foo Fighters have been circulating online for a few weeks. 

There was an enormous anticipation in the crowd as they waited to see exactly who would appear. At just after 18:15 p.m. U.K. time today, The Churn Ups took to the stage and were led on by none other than Dave Grohl. It was quite a scene as they received a huge welcoming ovation and burst into their traditional opening number, "All My Life."

Glastonbury and The Foo Fighters

The Foo Fighters and Grohl have a history with Glastonbury and look to have used that to give an advance clue on today’s surprise billing. It’s exactly 25 years since they first appeared at Glastonbury, on the exact same stage, at the exact same time and slot. We should have guessed, really.

The band was due to headline in 2015 but had to withdraw when Grohl suffered a broken leg falling from a stage in Gothenburg. The band eventually came back to headline in 2017 instead. Grohl, of course, graced the Pyramid stage last year as he and Bruce Springsteen joined Paul McCartney for his memorable set.

This year's appearance carries some extra emotion as the band return to Glastonbury without drummer Taylor Hawkins who died last March aged 50. Josh Freese was with the band instead for this surprise appearance, just a few weeks after he was formally announced as the band's new drummer. 

Who knows what other surprises will come over the remainder of the weekend at this huge festival of music?

Stairway to 11 is dedicated to providing news, reviews, and original content covering classic rock, oldies, and old-school music of all genres. This site also serves as a community for like-minded fans to catch up on the latest news and discuss their passion. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.