Summer 2024 saw PRG supply LX, Rigging and Video for Stage 1 and the outlying Towers, Stage 2 video and rigging Labour site wide. This is the first time in its 21 year history PRG has supplied video to the festival. Bigger and better than ever before…. 

With 800m2 of 5.9mm LED black face screen on stage 1 and Towers providing an unified and coherent surface for artists live footage, Download emergency notification and of course, sponsor custom content and advertising. All controlled with our dedicated festival server and control racks powering and simplifying plug in for our touring guests across LX and Video. For LX Our Console switching at FOH we used our tried and tested custom black box that provides seamless switching, completed our control package with zero flutter or delay, a unique tool created by PRG. LD Mark Scrimshaw commented “it’s game changing and so easy to set up. All our visiting LD teams are very impressed and want a system like this wherever they go! “ seamless integration of LX and Video at FOH is another Download first.

Account manager Ben Holdsworth said “ providing LX, Rigging and Video systems on this massive project is a game changer.  It’s so much easier to integrate all the systems when it’s one team driving the delivery. It’s never been so easy for an LD and Video Director or content creator to turn up, plug in and go live! “ HOD video Jordan agrees. “ the system has been designed for anyone to plug in anywhere and everywhere. Over the course of the weekend over 30 Guests took advantage of our bespoke set up with not one single issue at any time. Even Saturdays show stop was seamless - a single radio call and the customer information needed was displayed across our Imag and Tower screens, keeping everyone informed and calm in a potentially difficult situation.”

Over on Stage 2 our video delivery was headed up by PRG success story Maisie Townshend, who joined us 3 years ago as a junior member of our events team. Maisie has developed a keen eye for detail and has developed and enhanced her skill set at PRG. Along with a strong team ethic and naturally calm demeanour she was our obvious choice for this  demanding high impact / short timeframe Stage. Imag screens of Titan X LED in our custom frames with built in Wind Bracing to allow continued performance during winds speeds of up to 24mps. Maisie commented “ I was very pleased with the installation and operation of the whole weekend. The delivery was on schedule, on Budget and not one raised voice all weekend! Servicing so many bands over a short timeline is not without its challenges, the bands on stage 2 in some instances don’t have the experienced techs with them and rely on us heavily to deliver and exceed expectations.” We are #PRG proud of everything you delivered for us! Thanks Maisie! 

On site Manager and pre production Guru Bradley Stokes is a Download stalwart, having been LX chief on stage 2, stage 1 and now overall on site chief for PRG his experience on this site is unparalleled. He can even remember a year when it was dry! “We start pre production on this in January” says Brad. “It’s a very demanding and heavy show. We move around a hundred tons through the roof of stage 1 over the weekend and this is planned meticulously as part of our roof management package. We control the roof in pre-production and then hand accurate weight calculations for each day to serious stages for sign off. We accept full responsibility for the calculations and analysis and this gives us the knowledge to safely run this stage with our Rigging team from concept and artist requirments right through to delivery.” PM Andy Gray commented on the roof management plan “It’s a fantastic way to ensure everything is captured in advance and is a service I would not be without on a project of this complexity, The PRG delivery across LX, Rigging and Video is seamlessly integrated, and with the economic savings of scale being directly passed on to the end client it realy is a great solution for everyone.”

Chris Holz the PRG video account manager is very proud of his team and rightly so! “2 stages with 6 headline acts over 3 show days and not one single technical glitch at any time. 7 trucks of video delivered on schedule. Complete with Custom rigging and bespoke engineered frames and wind bracing for the towers. From confirmation to delivery - on site working and ready a day ahead of schedule - in 9 weeks. A remarkable achievement from a remarkable team with a Herculean effort” LED chief Alistair McDiarmid took control of LED tower delivery with custom flange plates and bespoke rolled pipe for wind bracing designed and engineered in a very short time frame. “A definite challenge” said native New Zealander Al, flown over to the UK to run the complex and unique operation, “we did a test build at our Longbridge facility to ensure we got the maths right - we did, and then it was a simple case of hanging 6 tons of video on a tower in a field times four. “

The 16 strong Rigging team headed up by Chris “Karrit” Harris put in some long shifts and pulled a lot of chain over the week long production period. Taking care of all the headline shows across stage 1 and 2 and providing local rigging labour for 4 other stages takes an enormous amount of planning and a coordinated multi faceted approach. Each change over needs careful consideration alongside, and with Brad and the LX team. Karrit’s team delivered on schedule and with a smile!  Hanging 400m2 of scrims and safely packing them away afterwards requires a great team effort! Particularly when standing in 30cm of Download mud! 

With 14 trucks of equipment over 78 crew on site at any one time and with sometimes atrocious weather conditions - PRG delivered a faultless Download XXI. Ben Holdsworth summed it up with his closing comment. “One PRG team with one PRG Vision come together to create one amazing and hugely successful #FAB event! “