The wonderfully weird shit you need to do at Glastonbury

No Glastonbury experience would be complete without a trip into the unknown wonderland of Shangri-La. The whole theme of the area this year is activism, and attendees are encouraged to make placards, tag the walls and stage demonstrations.

The whole epicentre of the operation is held at Shangri Hell's occupied corporate headquarters – the hexagonal maze of nano venues has been occupied by political parties such as USLip (United Shangri-La Independence Party), the Monster Raving Party, the BNP (Beautiful Naked People) and the Shangrillati.

Throw in daytime food at the Deluxe Diner from some of the best street food vendors in the country, as well as performances from Norman Jay, Dusky B2B with Skream, J.E.S.U.S, the Radio 1 Essential Mix with Friction, and you've got a heady mix of fun that could practically be a festival in its own right.

There is always all manner of things to marvel at in the Greenpeace field, from the world's top skaters to fully functioning toilets and showers, however this year they also have a stomach turning 6.5-metre drop slide off a trawler ship as part of a 'Bycatch' campaign. You're going to have to dress up as a fish to join in the fun, but aid in that department will be provided. You'll be hooked.

Glastonbury is almost unmatched in the volume of things to see late at night, so much so that when you wake up the next day, you question if it actually ever happened at all. Add to that list the Wheel of Four Tunes. The duo performs on the Sensation Seekers Stage at various times across the weekend and the premise is fairly simple: two guys dressed as Power Rangers doing Wheel Of Fortune-driven karaoke. The Sensation Seekers Stage is in Bella's Field, and its motto says it is "where you'll find a whole bag of wrong, it's oh so right". It's a decent bet for finding the weird and the wonderful.

Now in its second year just south of The Park, Arcadia's infamous giant spider seems to have found its new home since being moved out of the late night fields, due to its increasing popularity. Those behind the area are keeping their cards close to their chest this year, but we do know that there is an all-new Arcadia Spectacular show, which involves baby spiders invading the site as well as the stage's usual pulsating sound system.

Add into this mix a line-up that includes Adam Beyer, Groove Armada, Booka Shade, Annie Mac, Maceo Plex, The Bug, Redlight and a Swamp 81 takeover, it looks set to be one of the best years yet.

Glastonbury festival founder Michael Eavis singing karaoke before the main stages open has become something of a fixture at the festival. Whether it's down the Rabbit Hole on Thursday night or in a hidden corner of the Field of Avalon, the man behind one of the world's biggest festivals is known to be partial to a bit of Frank Sinatra ('My Way') or Elvis Presley ('Suspicious Mind'), so if you want to get up close with a true legend of British popular culture, what better way to do it? As always, keep your eye on any slots still to be announced to be in on the fun.

As well as the mammoth opening parties, Block 9 is also starting earlier this year, with daytime parties over the weekend starting from 4pm. Gideon Berger, co founder of Block 9, explains: "People are so keen to come down to GenoSys, London Underground and NYC Downlow that we need to do it to cater for them. Each day we have one headliner in the day and one at night. The day goes through until 9pm and we have some whopping headliners including Awesome Tapes From Africa, Andy Butler from Hercules and Love Affair and Joe Claussell."

As well as the usual stages, the area have taken it up another notch with a heap of new installations. Berger continues: "We've had an 80 tonne crane and an 60 tonne crane in to lower a giant object into the ground. I'm not going to tell you exactly what it is, you'll have to come to Block 9." The area is also known for a slew of the festival's best secret shows. Berger concludes: "We have the daddy of all secret shows this year – with bells on. It's epic. But I'm not telling you when, where or who it will be."

As we reported, WaterAid's 'loo with a view' will make it possible to watch the Pyramid Stage while you wee. The toilet uses a two-way mirror to allow users to see out, without anyone outside seeing in. So, if you get caught short midway through Kanye, fear not.

The whole thing is to raise awareness of WaterAid's Make It Happen campaign, and as well giving you the ability to watch bands while you wee, the charity will also be bringing the WaterAid poo – a hygiene campaigner with an unmissable outfit.

The giant walking poop will be out collecting signatures for the petition to make taps and toilets a focus of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which are due to be decided in September.

Norman Cook has become something of a Glastonbury institution over the past few years. Fatboy has played secret sets in areas like Block 9 and The Bimble Inn, under a variety of pseudonyms, as well as his headline slot on the Sonic! stage a year ago. Last week Norman Cook tweeted confirmation of his appearance on The Blues stage on Saturday.

Quite what the "other mischief" is we cannot reveal, but one thing is for sure, keep your eyes out and you could see Fatboy Slim spinning his inimitable brand of big beat to just a couple of hundred people.

The Ribbon Tower in The Park has been offering views across the festival from its highest vantage point for almost a decade now, but this year the Tor View in the Theatre and Circus field's Glebeland will offer a new view across the festival. At seven metres tall, it stands at a much more central point than its bigger brother in The Park, offering a bird's eye view right at the centre of the action.