"The festival attracts a prestigious clientele," says Michalis. "We are required to do meet and greets, check accreditation and make sure all members of the public who enter have the right attire on as this is a black tie event. We secure the whole site, making sure that venue capacities comply with regulations and that there is no illegal mooring by boats not associated with the festival.
"We also escort the principal artists from their dressing rooms to stage and back, as well as securing the site that the pyrotechnics are fired from on the opposite side of the river. There are sometimes issues with local residents objecting to their right of way being cut off, so we also have people to manage that situation."
This year, there were some very expensive Salvador Dali exhibits on site, with the most expensive one worth just over one million pounds, so it was essential the team made sure that everything was kept safe.
(Jim Evans)
