(And boy, was it dusty!) I’ve been reflecting on my stand-out moments from this year’s Glastonbury Festival.

If you’ve never been, it’d be understandable to assume that it’s headliner after headliner. Huge crowds watching loud bands and DJs, but for me the real magic lies in the immersive moments that you can discover. The ones you won’t find on the BBC coverage.

I’d consider myself an experience hunter, and this year was a real treat; I stumbled across some hilarious walkabouts, a full roaming Hollywood film-set with banana cameras and booms, the world’s tiniest cinema, an activism-training-camp, and a secret venue (that I will keep a secret…)

But amongst all of this, the most impressive experience was ‘Terminal 1’. A programmed venue in its own right, but with an easy-to-miss immersive experience that is equal parts beautiful, moving and hard-hitting.

Everyone must answer a question from the British citizenship test. These questions are hard! And after queuing for 30 minutes to access the experience, the pressure is felt. I was asked “true or false, the Welsh rebellion occurred in the 17th Century” and though I am Welsh, I still took a blind guess. With 50/50 odds, I was lucky and managed to access the experience.

You are then met by individual rooms, each one led by a different artist or collective that centred on themes of immigration, with oppressive barbed wire and aggressive immigration guards. You’re shouted at in a language you do not understand and have to walk bare-foot across stones.

Then finally, you make it to the Rwanda Duty-Free lounge; a beautiful, rich and warm space. You’re welcomed by artists from Rwanda and are taught about the culture of the country and the current situation there.

This area was designed as a counter to the prevailing negative narrative about Rwanda: “Rwanda has been used as a deterrent, as a place we should be scared of,” he said. “But Rwandans haven’t had the right to speak and say: ‘Hey, this is where we are’.”

Finally, you make it to the top of the building, where you can take in one of the best views of Glastonbury, allowing you a moment to reflect on what you have experienced, and re-calibrate yourself back into the Festival.

No-one is illegal. I was reminded that we are all humans, that we are all migrants in one way or another. The message was clear. I will be inspired by this piece for the remainder of my career in designing Immersive Experiences.

Whilst the immersive theatrics and technologies were not groundbreaking, my biggest take-away is this: Having a point-of-view, a true message, and purpose to your experience, goes a long way in making it memorable.
Let’s not forget that the story is the most important thing.

To the artists and producers who brought this to life and shared their stories: Thank you. I hope to see this space return next year.