Latitude was recently described as a festival for the middle aged and middle-class. As a regular attendee since my teens, this writer would care to disagree.

The festival takes place in picturesque fields protected by sky-scraping forests in Suffolk, East England. It is obvious that the older generations outweigh the younger but it by no means clashes. Instead there is easy-going understanding attitude throughout- everyone is there to relax, learn and to have a lot of fun. It has a similar feel to the new award winning festival ‘Festival No6’ in Portmeirion, Wales. By day the festival boasts poetry tents, comedy, lake activities and plenty of cocktail drinking – then night falls and it’s a different story.

Everyone definitely lets loose and there was no room for the monsoon rain to dampen moods. It’s a place to show off new talent and Dublin boys Raglans undeniably conquered their crowd and partied backstage with us after their success. Lily Allen replacing Two Door Cinema Club as a headliner was a game-changer – and disappointing to some – but the move seemed to attract a large crowd with high spirits. By and large, the stand-out show among the younger crowds was that of Australian psych-rock act Tame Impala.

 

After Scroobius Pip vs Dan Le Sac announced their split, with their final show taking place at Bestival in September last year, the crowd in the poetry tent to hear Scroobius Pip was enormous. All ages and all backgrounds came together to hear his philosophy and inspiring words.

The weekend went far too quickly, but it was the coming together of multiple backgrounds to experience new things which made it an exceptional festival, and it is the reason why it is still here today.

Words and photography courtesy of Lux & Noah