Merseyside’s Cammell Laird Shipyard recently saw the distinctive red hull of the RRS Sir David Attenborough launched following an impassioned speech by Sir David Attenborough himself. The event was served by Audio specialists tube uk, who worked with live event production company Mills Media Creative to manage the sound.
The 128.9m-long vessel has a 24m beam and a draft of 7m, is owned by the Natural Environment Research Council, and will be operated by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS). It replaces two existing ships and will be engaged in essential research and logistical support for the Survey.
The presentation platform from which Sir David gave his speech was set up directly in front of the bow, and close to the left and right of this were two VIP seating areas. On the starboard side of the bow (stage left) was a larger public area where around 3,000 people assembled to share the special moment.
‘Apart from the unusual location and the sonic challenges which needed to be overcome, it was the nature and profile of the event and the real sense of purpose associated with the BAS mission together with the incredible technology that supports it,’ tube’s Melvyn Coote explains.
Audio-wise, the two grandstands and the open public area were served by a d&b audiotechnik system in front of the stage, configured as two groundstacked main arrays of four Y8s, plus four Y-Subs and one B2, all driven by D80 amps. For the larger public area, were tall ground stacks, with two d&b B2 elements at the bottom, two V-Subs on top, and five V8s up to the top of each array, again powered by D80s. The tops of these stacks were about 3.5-4m off the ground – they were safely ratcheted in place – to ensure a good throw to the back of the area.
For mixing, tube chose Yamaha CL5 consoles, with a Rio3224-D rack at FOH for video inputs, and another onstage for all the stage mic inputs. Sources included a DPA 4066 headset mic running via a Sennheiser 6000 belt pack for a speech by one of the Cammell Laird project management team, plus a selection of lectern mics for the other speakers, including Sir David.
The cables and comms runs were long, over 300m, and the physical dimensions of the site – being a shipyard – were on a grand scale that had to be accommodated. Also, while the other shipyards in which tube has worked on shows have not been active at the time, Camel Laird most definitely was – with shipyard vehicles on the move, including cranes and forklifts.
The event ran smoothly, however, and garnered worldwide media attention on all levels with more than 10m people viewing it on the British Antarctic Survey YouTube channel. ‘A palpable buzz permeated everywhere which was great’ Coote reports, ‘We were extremely proud to ensure that everyone could clearly hear the speeches and the VT clips.
‘We have worked with tube on many live events, and we knew that the sound production would be of the highest level,’ says Andrew Mills, MD of Mills Media Creative. ‘It was a challenging environment and tube delivered a sound system that was spot on. Our client was very happy with the ceremony.’
Having provided audio for a multiplicity of different outdoor events in all environments and scenarios, tube drew on its extensive collective experience and working knowledge of idiosyncratic places and spaces. The company has worked in various shipyards including in Hull for the launch of the 2017 UK City of Culture year, and in Turku, Finland, for the Opening Ceremony of the city’s year as joint European Capital of Culture in 2011.
