La Machine: Streets packed for spider walkabout

Sep 6 2008 By Catherine Jones, Culture Reporter

La machine

THERE were scenes reminiscent of The Beatles or football homecomings as crowds packed the city’s streets today to see Liverpool’s giant spider.

An estimated 50,000 people packed Castle Street and the surrounding area to watch La Princess, as she is known, walk from the Cunard building to the Town Hall and on to Derby Square.

The mechanical arachnid, accompanied by musicians on special cranes, was met by gasps, cheers and applause as she made her way through the city centre.

Lord Mayor Steve Rotheram, watching from the Town Hall balcony, said: “The reaction shows when Liverpool puts something on, the support of people is just incredible.”

But police officers along the route were inundated with complaints from worried parents as the crushing forced some to put their children on car roofs to keep them safe.

Stewards in front of the beast tried to clear its path but many holding cameras and phones in the air refused to budge, giving others nowhere to go as the 50ft creature bore down on them.

An ambulance had to be called to Castle Street and held up the spider’s journey when one man collapsed. He was taken away from the crowds to be treated by paramedics.

The day started off with disappointment for some as thousands crammed the Strand to watch the giant spider “wake up”.

But many voiced their anger after the 50ft arachnid failed to move.

A harpist was lifted into the air on a crane to play haunting music to the snow-covered giant mechanical creature, as crowds watch in anticipation at around 11.30am.

But as the music came to an end 15 minutes later, the creature remained static and “asleep” outside the Cunard Building.

Helen Marriage, of production company Artichoke, said the French team behind the La Machine spectacular had a different way of working to the English, who like to know specifically when and where events are taking place.

The production team, she said, wanted the fairytale surrounding the spider to unfold as a surprise.