La Machine

The spider on Concourse House

What is it?

The arrival of a giant mechanical spider heralds the starts of what is billed as a magical event for children and adults which will bring the streets of Liverpool to life this September.

The £1.8m La Machine has been commissioned by arts company Artichoke and is promised to be a stunning piece of street theatre.

Designed by French street arts firm, La Machine, the identity of the creature had been kept a closely guarded secret.

The precise nature of what will happen with the spider as it makes its way around Liverpool are still being kept under wraps.

The spider was built in Nantes and is 50 feet high weighing 37 tonnes.

Construction work in Nantes

Made from steel and reclaimed poplar the spider can move at speeds of up to two miles an hour.

Using 50 hydraulic axes of movement the spider took a year to build.

The technical requirements for the event are immense with 16 cranes being used over the five days along with six forklift trucks and eight cherry pickers.

There are 66 French personnel working on the project in Liverpool along with 20 British musicians and a 250 strong technical and support crew.

All of the venues will be easily accessible from Liverpool city centre, a parade will take place on Saturday 6 September from the waterfront taking in Castle Street, Lord Street, Church Street and Ranelagh Street.

The finale will take place in William Brown Street on Sunday 7 September.

The following are indications of the best times and places to see the action

Friday, 5 September

11.30am to 1pm - Outside Echo Arena Liverpool at Kings Dock
6.30pm to 9pm - From the arena to the Cunard Building passing Salthouse Dock

Saturday, 6 September

11.30am to 12.30pm - The action starts at the Cunard Building
3pm to 9pm - From Cunard Building to Concourse House, via Water Street, Castle Street, Derby Square, Lord Street, Parker Street, Ranelagh Place

Sunday, 7 September

3pm to 4pm - Concourse House
7.30pm to 10pm - Concourse House to William Brown Street and Queensway Tunnel entrance.

Take your cameras or mobile phones, We want your pictures of the event, send them to liverpool@bbc.co.uk.

The Spider

For more details keep logging on to this website and stay listening to BBC Radio Merseyside which will be broadcasting live coverage throughout the five day event.

At 7.30pm on 10 September, BBC One North West will screen La Machine in Liverpool.  Gordon Burns and Jayne Barrett present extensive coverage of the finale on Sunday and look back across the weekends highlights. The programme will be available on iPlayer after broadcast.

Will it involve road closures?

Inevitably there will be the closure of some city centre streets but disruption will be kept to a minimum with many of the major events taking place outside of peak time.

If you're travelling to see La Machine it would be best to use public transport where possible.