Latitude's main stage was one of the new Serious 22m, four-bay Supernova structures, which was covered in white skins for the first time, and decorated around the front with Latitude's signature funky daisies.
This version of the Supernova was constructed with round trussing for a generally gentler and more spherical appearance. The stage space was 22m wide and 14.4m deep, with 11m of headroom and with a backshed at the rear for rolling risers, backline storage and to help facilitate quick changeovers.
To the sides were two 4.7m wide by 7.2m deep cowsheds, utilised for monitor and dimmer areas. Serious also supplied a pair of 12m high goalposts for the PA wings and a three-tier front-of-house tower, 4.8m wide and 9m high.
Headliners over the three days included Sigor Ros, Elbow, Franz Ferdinand and Interpol.
The Latitude site features a large lake separating the parklands and performance arenas on one side from the more wooded regions on the other, with the camping areas located behind the woods. Serious was asked to design and build a walking bridge allowing the 25,000 festival population to traverse the lake and move easily around the site. It had to be capable of carrying a dynamic load of up to 120 tonnes of people. The structural engineering was undertaken by Serious's Dragan Kuzmanov
The bridge took five days to build explains Harper. It was 52m long, 9.6m wide and was built from Kwikform Scaffolding, mounted securely on 28 submerged solid steel pontoons. Serious is currently looking into developing elements of its Space Roof trussing into 44 - 68m span walking bridges.
Serious also built the On The Lake/Saddlers Wells Stage, a 9.6 by 7.2m performance area over the water just the other side of the Bridge on which a series of dance and music performances were staged.
(Jim Evans)
