MUSIC festival TRNSMT 2019 got under way in Glasgow yesterday with the event heading for a 50,000 sell-out over the weekend.
The musical extravaganza on Glasgow Green started shortly after it was confirmed that T in the Park will not return, three years after the final edition of Scotland’s longest-running and most successful music festival.
There was a scare for TRNSMT promoter Geoff Ellis when it was revealed that headline act Stormzy was having travel difficulties. He was due to appear after The National went to press.
The festival kicked off successfully with Mabel and Gus Dapperton performing in bright sunshine ahead of the expected appearances of Years & Years and Gerry Cinnamon before Stormzy’s much-anticipated performance.
Catfish and the Bottlemen and Bastille are amongst the big names performing tonight, with Scottish hit singers Lewis Capaldi and Emeli Sande starring tomorrow when the headline act will be George Ezra – Sunday is a complete sell-out and only a few day tickets are left for today.
Such was the heat at times yesterday that the organisers took to social media and issued verbal advice on keeping hydrated and using sun cream.
The warnings remain in for as high temperatures are expected today and for part of tomorrow.
There was sadness among festival lovers when Geoff Ellis announced that T in the Park is no more.
“It was an amazing festival, but it ran its course,” Ellis told BBC Scotland.
The first three editions of T in the Park were held at Strathclyde Park, near Hamilton in Lanarkshire, before it moved to Balado where it remained for almost 20 years until moving to Perthshire in 2015.
The move to Strathallan came after concerns were expressed about an oil pipeline under the Balado site.
In turn these led to restrictions so that the 2015 event drew the largest number of complaints and negative comments in T in the Park’s history.
There were planning and other problems at the Perthshire site and two teenaged festival-goers died at the 2016 event.
The promoters said at the time: “For over 23 years, T in the Park has been at the heart of Scotland’s music scene – with you, by our side. But for now, sadly, we need to take a break.
“We launched T in the Park with one aim: to give Scottish music fans an unforgettable weekend with their friends enjoying the best acts from around the globe. And to say we achieved this together is an understatement.
“T in the Park has become one of the best known, biggest and most loved festivals in the world. When we launched back in 1994 there were only two music festivals in the UK – now there are many and T in the Park paved the way for all that have come and gone in Scotland since.
“We created more than just a festival; we created a family and decades of wonderful memories.
He continued: “However, the last couple of years have had their challenges. Against our will, and despite a prolonged fight, we were forced to move from Balado, Kinross in 2015.
“This move was a mammoth task for the event and one that was compounded by a series of onerous site restrictions placed upon us as preparations for the event in 2015 took place.”
It was “put on hold” after that 2016 event, but with TRSMT now in its third year in Glasgow, Ellis confirmed that T in the Park would not be returning.
He said: “Everyone loved T and we all had great fun doing it.
Ellis added: “It’s all about TRNSMT for us now. Things move on and we keep creating.
“The festival scene’s really, really healthy these days and it’s great to still be amongst it.”
Fans took to social media to express their dismay, but many emphasised their fond memories of T in the Park.
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