TRNSMT day one review: Revellers Have A Nice Day as Stereophonics put on captivating headline show and Tom Walker impresses

Danny O'Donaghue of The Script performs on the main stage (Ryan Johnston / TRNSMT)

THOUSANDS of revellers descended on Glasgow Green for the first day of TRNSMT and were treated to a day packed with great music and sunshine.

Picture This were first up, with their soulful set opening the second year of the festival as crowds filtered in.

And Embrace followed them up with a touch of nineties / noughties nostalgia.

Jessie J then took to the stage, aiming “to make Glasgow dance!” She certainly achieved her goal, and no wonder with a back catalogue of smash chart hits to call upon.

Kodaline captivated the audience before James Bay, complete with tartan trousers, treated fans to their favourites and some newly released songs.

The Hold Back The River star conducted the audience in a singalong of his biggest hit – and also riskily chose to cover Rangers fan favourite The Best by Tina Turner. It seemed to go down ok…

“This is why I come to Glasgow! You sound amazing! I honestly cannot tell you how incredible it is to be back here,” he said.

It was then the turn of Irish stars The Script, with frontman Danny O’Donoghue donning a kilt for the occasion. And he was full of love for the Scottish crowd – “This is why they shoot the DVDs here,” he said – albeit with a few more enthusiastic expletives.

The main stage audience basking in sunshine (Ryan Johnston / TRNSMT)

There was a flurry of confetti after a rousing rendition of their hit Breakeven, which remarkably is now a decade old.

“It was only a few years ago we were in the audience like you,” Danny exclaimed, before telling the thousands assembled in front of him that he wanted to “transmit” – see what he did there – all the “love and emotion” of final song Hall of Fame.

The acts throughout the day were well spaced out, giving the crowd time to digest both the music and the great selection of food on offer.

The options for eating were great, with plenty of kiosks and vans offering a wide range from pizza to pancakes.

The usual outdoor festival toilet and bar queues were, of course, present but the facilities on offer were of a good standard. Plus, the spacious site allowed areas to retreat to the shade – just as well with the temperatures reaching the high twenties.

As well as filling the stomach and cleansing the pallet, there were other places to see live music on site.

In a cool spot down by the banks of the river, the Hotels.com area was a place for relaxing and chilling with acoustic performances.

For something a little different, right next door was the #SmirnoffHouse where DJs played a little more uptempo tunes.

Stand in the right place between the two and it’s quite the mix.

Tom Walker on the King Tut’s Stage (Ross Crae / DC Thomson)

Over at the well attended King Tut’s Stage, up and comers including The Ninth Wave, Marmozets and Pale Waves showed off their talents, hoping to follow the lead of Gerry Cinnamon and Lewis Capaldi in graduating to the main stage next year.

The final act on the King Tut’s stage was the normally English Tom Walker, who explained that he was, in fact, Cumbernauld born and raised.

The singer-songwriter laid on an impressive set for the sizeable crowd, including stand out single Leave The Light On and a song dedicated to his 80-year-old gran.

She was there cheering him on, attending her first ever festival!

Soon it was time for everyone to migrate towards the main stage. It brought a wave of an assortment of outfits, from glittery festival chic to one man in a full Holland football kit complete with captain’s armband.

And as the temperature cooled, the merchandise stall did a roaring trade for TRNSMT hoodies.

Stereophonics rock the crowd (Ross Crae / DC Thomson)

At 9:20pm, Welsh rockers Stereophonics took to the main stage with frontman Kelly Jones immediately commanding the attention of the crowd.

Their set weaved through the classic back catalogue from a career spanning over 25 years, and the crowd really came alive during the ‘ba ba bas’ of Have A Nice Day.

As the sun set, the stage lighting became more and more impressive.

Kelly Jones and co dispensed with the rigmarole of leaving the stage and returning for an encore, ending with Mr & Mrs Smith and Dakota.

The former saw drummer Jamie Morrison rising from the front of the stage for a blaring solo before being serenaded with Happy Birthday because, you guessed it, it was his birthday.

A slowed down rendition of Dakota was soon crescendoing to blistering pace to bring to a close a tremendous first day for the returning festival.