Melvin Benn talks all things Latitude…

The hugely popular music and arts festival, Latitude, returns to Henham Park next month and this year promises to be bigger than ever. We spoke to it’s Founder and Festival Director, Melvin Benn, about his passion for the event and what is coming this year…

What was your initial vision for Latitude?

It always started out as a music and arts festival. I was very clear that what I was trying to do was create a live version of what would be a Sunday cultural supplement in the newspaper. So, there'd be literature, there'd be poetry, there'd be film, there'd be theatre, there'd be dance - and all of that is very much in the heart of the festival, and then you go further out to get the music stages.

And it’s for all ages, for everybody.

It started out with families welcome and children welcome - that was always very much the key - but actually it's become a huge part of it now. I think it has become the best and most important family festival in the country. There are some people that come as part of four generations, with the great-grandparents, the grandparents, the mum and dad, and then their kids. They do different things but that's the beauty of Latitude. There's something for all ages.

Again, I'm very happy with that. I think people like to see kids around. I do. All my kids are all grown up here in that sense of it.

What new features can people expect in 2025?

One of the new additions is the ‘The Cosmic Shambles Forest of Science and Culture’.

I think the addition of the whole cultural area around Cosmic Shambles and bringing science into Latitude feels properly overdue. I'm really excited about it actually. It's always been dotted in and out but it's never had a single focus in the way that it will have this year.

We started with the idea of it just being a single stage, but we've grown that now. It's going to be a whole area and there'll be little pop-up tents and little outposts where you'll be able to go in and talk about science in different ways and things like that.

Robin and Trent [Cosmic Shambles founders] - what they do in terms of making science accessible to audiences is just fantastic. They're really funny and they're great at what they do; they're very excited about it and it's contagious.

I think one of the great things about the Latitude audience is just how inquisitive they are; how they want to learn more all the time and they're interested in things. It's a perfect match to be honest, it's an absolute perfect match.

Are there other things you’d like to add in the future?

I introduced an area called ‘Mind, Body and Zen’ about five years ago, and that was a really big move for me. That's become a permanent part of the festival, and the Cosmic Shambles arena now feels another part of the permanent future.

There are always other possibilities but I never say them out loud until I'm ready to announce them. These things can take a little while to materialise. We want to make sure we do it right and we do it well.

What are you looking forward to this year?

I mean obviously there's a music line-up which I'm massively excited about - Sting in particular. I'm really looking forward to seeing him and his band. I saw him in the North West last year and he sounded as though he was 25 years old. I mean, his voice was perfect, his delivery was perfect, the performance was perfect, the musicians were perfect. Straight away it was like, he's definitely a good headliner for us. He's so relaxed backstage and just wandering around chatting to people. He's obviously very comfortable in his skin, which is nice and that comes over in the performance.

Then there’s Fatboy Slim and Elbow and Doves and Snow Patrol. I feel like the audience are enjoying the idea of the line-up because the tickets are selling really, really well, so that's great.

Next year is the 20th anniversary of the festival, any plans?

Well, every year is an anniversary for me in that sense. This is actually the 20th year since the first one happened, but it's not the 20th edition because of Covid.

It doesn't feel like 20 years, but then I've got just such an enthusiasm for the festival that it's hard to make it feel like 20 years. It's a joy and was what I hoped for when I created it.

Latitude Festival is at Henham Park on 24-27 July 2025.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND BOOKING LINK, CLICK HERE