Latitude Festival 2025
Would I come again? You bet your pink sheepskin fleece I would.
Latitude, East Anglia's behemoth of a festival of music and the arts - it rises like a phoenix each July, rules majestically over the Henham Estate in Suffolk for four days and nights before slipping quietly away leaving nothing but sheep in its wake. Since its inception in 2006, Latitude has established itself as one of the country's biggest family-focussed events, appealing to everyone, from parents with babes in arms to children of the sixties who still refuse to grow old gracefully. Its inclusive approach has made it a right of passage for teenagers celebrating the end of exams (both my children came here for their first solo festival experience), yet still welcoming those of more senior years, not yet ready to hang up their mojo. I was returning for my thirteenth visit. Unlucky for some?.
This annual shindig of all things culture has grown beyond recognition over the last two decades. Some things have remained the same – we arrive on Thursday afternoon, pitch our tents and go for a wander round the festival site on the Thursday night. On Friday we are up and raring to go as the arena re-opens at 11.00hr for the first of three full-on days of culture and entertainment – music, comedy, theatre, film, dance and literature. And almost anything in between. When the live music ends at 11.00pm, those with the energy can carry on dancing until three in the morning. The following day can begin with a hangover, or alternatively a swim in the lake, or a session of yoga. It is entirely up to you.
Music headliners this year were Sting, Fatboy Slim, and Snow Patrol.
Sting was returning to the East after headlining the Forestry Live gig at High Lodge, Thetford last summer, and once again delivered a set of classic songs that covered the Police years as well as his solo hits. Looking absolutely amazing for his age, he delivered, and delivered some more, ending with the classic Every Breath You Take and Roxanne.
Fatboy Slim was making his Latitude debut, but brought the arena to life with a stream of bangers that had the massive crowd jumping and beaming with joy – it was just like Brighton Beach, in a field.
Snow Patrol, by contrast, turned the dial down a notch for the closing night, sending the Latitude faithful home delighted by a set that included both Run and Chasing Cars, songs that Snow Patrol played when they headlined the very first Latitude back in 2006.
But Latitude is not just about the headliners. No less than 21 local acts performed on the seven music stages, and those that I particularly enjoyed hearing again included Lowestoft's Jazmine Banks & The Wild Hearts (who also played earlier in the month at Norwich's Lord Mayor's Celebrations), the magnificent Floral Image, and singer-songwriter Alice-Lily, a medical student from Rackheath, who delivered a spellbinding set on the BBC Introducing Stage.
Big names in comedy, if you could actually get into the Comedy Arena, included Greg Davies, Michelle Wolf and Jen Brister; whilst the likes of Mark Kermode, Luke Wright, and Adam Buxton in conversation with Elbow's Guy Garvey, could be enjoyed in the more relaxed surroundings of The Listening Post.
Across on the other side of the lake, a more relaxed vibe could be found amidst the eccentric delights of the Trailer Park. It was here that I stumbled across well-known Norwich buskers The Foreign Locals, tribute band Daft Funk, and Sonic Furs performing their interpretation of Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense in its entirety. Just across the path to the village was The Alcove, tucked away in the woods, where I discovered the likes of Saint Clair, The Wyches, and Norwich's Arthur Black.
Once again, I came away from Latitude feeling slightly broken. I do it every year, and every year I do exactly the same – I try to do too much. The trouble is, there is just so much going on, and there are just so many hours in a day. But Latitude really is something different. Something special.
I know people moan about it. It is expensive (a weekend camping ticket this year was £308, compared to my first visit in 2008 when I paid £130), but when you calculate what that works out to, per act that you definitely want to see, and compare that to how many Norwich gigs or theatre tickets that the same money would buy, then it still represents exceedingly good value. And that is before you add on all those extra acts that you go to out of sheer curiosity, and those amazing things that you just stumble across and become instant fans of.
Perhaps 2025 was not a classic Latitude. Basement Jaxx, Example, and Fatboy Slim were immense. If you saw those three acts and nothing else you will have got your money's worth. Kaiser Chiefs, Clean Bandit and Mika were perhaps a little disappoiting, and a dearth of European and American acts suggests that international acts are still difficult to bring across to the UK in these post-Covid, post-Brexit times. Many of the well-known names, the likes of Elbow, Doves, Feeder, and Scouting For Girls, will have appealed to Latitude's middle-of-the-road, Radio 2 demograph and, let's face it, the youngsters are happy as long as they can carry on dancing in the woods once the grown-ups have gone to bed.
On the positive, the toilet facilities are so much better these days, the water stations mean you can remain hydrated, and the BSL translators were amazing. An attempt to curb the spread of folding chairs, picnic rugs and children's wagon trains toward the front of the arenas and surrounding stages proved mostly successful, and the heavy rain that caused so much trouble in getting vehicles onto site on the Thursday stayed away apart from some light drizzle on the Saturday afternoon, and a brief torrential downpour on the Sunday morning.
Oh, and the decision to put up big screens for the football was a lovely gesture. Well done to the Lionesses!
Latitude may not be perfect, but would I come again? You bet your pink sheepskin fleece I would.
Remeber to check out Mark Stimpson's excellent photo galleries elsewhere on the Outline website.
