Glastonbury festivalgoers are famously robust whatever the weather, packing willies, umbrellas and waterproof ponchos to ensure their heads don’t drop should the heaven decide to open. 

Glastonbury FestivalIt Could Be A Muddy Glastonbury Festival. Photo: Getty images, Credit: Matt Cardy

And it looks like this year might be a wet one. Forecasters are predicting sunshine up until the gates open, then a deluge of rainfall is set to cascade over Worthy Farm as Arcade Fire, Kasabian and Metallica headline the Pyramid Stage. The Met Office are predicting heavy rain showers between 10am and 9pm on Friday - the first full day of music at the festival. 

Images of mud-soaked revellers at Glastonbury have become famous, while the festival does enjoy an unwanted reputation for wet weather. It’s not an unwarranted rep, though; only eight festivals in Glastonbury's history have been rain-free. 2010 was one of the sunniest years, while the hottest year was 1984.

More: 10 acts you never knew were playing Glastonbury Festival 

Ticketholders shouldn’t worry too much, though. Despite rain being forecast, the last of precipitation before the festival means the likelihood of flooding is low, and it definitely won’t be the worst in history – 2005’s festival saw one of the worst years weather-wise to date. 

And while the punters may well be wet, they’ll at least have access to free Wi-Fi around the farm by way of some 4G cows providing hot spots. “It's not the first cow I've ever painted but it's certainly the most high-tech. We've loved bringing these 4G beasts to life and I think they look brilliant. My team and I have even named them: Dolly, Daisy and Molly seemed the perfect fit to me,” said Hank Kruger, who decorated Wi-Fi cows.