Protest group campaign to remove Metallica from Glastonbury

Rival pro and anti Metallica campaigns emerge on Facebook

Photographer: Sara BowreyVirtual Festivals on 03 June 2014

An online campaign for the removal of Metallica from the Glastonbury Festival bill has been launched with a small but growing number of sign ups.

A Facebook page entitled 'Remove Metalica from Glastonbury Festival for their support of Bear Hunting' appeared last week and organisers of the group appear to object to Metallica's frontman James Hetfield's long running interest in hunting. Now a rival campaign has been launched today, simply entitled 'Keep Metallica', with a total of 14 supporters who have liked the page thus far. The band are due to headline the festival on Saturday June 28 - the first heavy metal band to top the event at Worthy Farm.



50-year-old Hetfield, who is a member of the National Rifle Association, has described himself as a "keen huntsman" and been known to travel around the world to take part in shooting expeditions. Today it was announced that he would narrate a television series about bear hunters, entitled 'The Hunt'. Premiering on the History Channel in the US this weekend, the eight-part series will see a group of hunters visit the island of Kodiak in Alaska to hunt the Kodiak brown bear.



Organisers of the group said: "This page is an appeal to Glastonbury to remove Metallica from their lineup. We believe James Hetfield's support of big-game hunting is incompatible with the spirit of Glastonbury and brings its good name into disrepute."



Producers of The Hunt have responded to other non-specific critics of the documentary, arguing that it presents a balanced view of hunting in the area: "Brown bear co-existence with humans on the island is a delicate balance, yet is regarded as one of the most successful conservation efforts in the world. Most hunters go after adult males, or boars, who when food is scarce are known to kill and eat cubs, as well as cause trouble near populated areas."

Metallica's self-titled 1991 record, known more commonly as 'The Black Album', recently became the first album, since SoundScan started tracking sales in 1991, to reach 16 million sales in the US.



Click here to read our blog post in support of Metallica taking a headline spot at this year's Worthy Farm event.



Glastonbury Festival 2014 takes place from 25-29 June on Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset. Glastonbury Festival tickets for 2014 have now sold out.