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Piers Morgan defends Paul McCartney after Glastonbury set criticised for having ‘not enough Beatles hits’

Piers Morgan has taken it upon himself to defend music icon Paul McCartney following the latter’s headline set at Glastonbury 2022.

McCartney’s Saturday night set was hailed by many as one of the best the festival had ever hosted. Mark Beaumont described it in The Independent’s review as “far and away the best this writer has seen on the Pyramid stage in 30 years of Glastonburies”.

Follow The Independent’s Glastonbury liveblog.

Nonetheless, some social media users criticised the set for not including enough Beatles hits in the setlist – prompting the former Good Morning Britain host to weigh in.

“Twitter’s moaning Macca ‘didn’t do enough Beatles hits,’” Morgan wrote.

“He played ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, ‘Love Me Do’, ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, ‘Lady Madonna’, ‘Blackbird’, ‘Get Back’, ‘Something’, ‘Let It Be’, and ‘Hey Jude’.

“Those songs alone are 9 of the greatest pop songs ever,” he added. “Twitter... STFU.”

McCartney was seen holding aloft a Ukrainian flag when he took the stage for an encore at his headline set on Saturday.

Getting back: McCartney on stage at Glastonbury (Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)
Getting back: McCartney on stage at Glastonbury (Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

McCartney’s marathon headline slot featured surprise guest appearances from Dave Grohl and Bruce Springsteen, with the latter joining McCartney for a rendition of “Glory Days”

The ex-Beatle also performed a “duet” alongside his late bandmate John Lennon, using digitally isolated vocals and video footage.

McCartney’s record-breaking Glastonbury set included a tribute to his other late bandmate, George Harrison.

In a five-star review for The Independent, Mark Beaumont wrote: “By the time ‘Live and Let Die’ fills the sky with flames and drama, and ‘Let it Be’ and ‘Hey Jude’ have broken then repaired 100,000 hearts, the show is far and away the best this writer has seen on the Pyramid stage in 30 years of Glastonburies.

A crowd gathers to watch Paul McCartney on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage (AFP via Getty Images)
A crowd gathers to watch Paul McCartney on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage (AFP via Getty Images)

“When Macca returns to duet with the isolated Lennon vocal of ‘I’ve Got a Feeling’, creating the closest to a Beatles reunion we’re ever likely to see and giving Glastonbury all the feelings, it’s probably the best I’ve seen on any stage. [...] We’re gonna need a bigger star rating system.”

You can find a round-up of highlights from day four at Glastonbury, including Greta Thunberg’s surpirse apperance and Olivia Rodrigo’s blistering duet with Lily Allen directed at the Supreme Court over the recent Roe v Wade ruling, here.

You can follow along with the latest updates from Worthy Farm at our liveblog here.