EASTENDERS star Shaun Williamson has been left devastated – after a dream slot at Glastonbury was axed due to coronavirus.
The actor, best known for playing tragic car salesman Barry Evans in the BBC1 soap, was booked to appear at the legendary music festival’s 50th anniversary this summer.
Shaun, who admits he has struggled for work after his character Barry was killed off in 2004, said: “I’ve just started doing all the festivals, I was down to do Glastonbury and it’s all gone.
“My set is along the lines of Barry-oke! I go out and sing ones like Mustang Sally or something like that, then the audience take it in turns to come up and I’ll introduce them and have some banter with them or do a duet with them.
“I do that for about an hour and a half. I do Love Train by The O’Jays, I do Sweet Caroline, you can’t go wrong with that.
“This year I was down to do about ten or 12, and of course I won’t be doing any now until 2021.”
Glastonbury was one of many high-profile events to be cancelled in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Organisers were planning a huge line-up for the 50th anniversary show, with Beatles legend Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift signed as headliners on its famous Pyramid stage.
But Barry says despite making the bulk of his income performing at festivals, he actually hates large crowds.
He added: “I did Reading last year and I had four pints of Guinness and an Ibuprofen. I don’t really do crowds, I don’t really like crowds, the last concert I went to was Kool and the Gang in 1988, I think I left at half-time I went for a drink and never went back.”
