The sun has set on Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Dundee after the city hosted the festival for the second time.
About 80,000 fans descended on Camperdown Park over three days to see acts like Lewis Capaldi, Niall Horan, The 1975, Jess Glynne and the Jonas Brothers.
The city has won praise for its organisation of the event – and even the weather played ball with the sun shining for most of the weekend.
However, it was not without the odd hiccup.
We look at five key takeaways from Dundee’s hosting of one of the country’s biggest music events.
1. Camperdown Park a great venue
Although not central and with limited public transport links, Camperdown Park really came into its own as it hosted its third major music festival of recent times.
The huge green expanse meant fans could fit in with room to spare, along with dozens of food and drink vendors, a fairground and other attractions.
The slight hill also gave revellers a vantage point no matter how far they were from the two biggest stages.
And the park itself was a star with Wet Leg singer Rhian Teasdale praising how green the trees were.
One entrance and exit meant there was a bit of a bottleneck on the way out but, for the most part, the crowds kept moving.
Council leader John Alexander previously revealed how the BBC loved the park as a venue – perhaps opening up the possibility of more festivals in the future.
2. Transport hit or miss
Shuttle buses kept revellers moving from the city centre to the festival site.
The free buses also ensured surrounding roads were kept clear of big traffic hold-ups.
There were reports of hour-long waits for buses leaving both Slessor Gardens and the festival at busy times, though, which was not ideal for those hoping to see certain acts or make onward transport connections.
One sour note for fans was ScotRail’s refusal to advertise times for the last trains out of the city.
It meant some revellers ditched the train for the car due to the uncertainty over whether or not they would make it home.
Clearer information would have allowed those attending to plan their day properly.
3. Family-friendly feel
Many music festivals have a reputation for trouble and people going over the top with alcohol.
And while there were a few overdoing it, many felt Big Weekend had the perfect family-friendly feel while still offering a party atmosphere.
Hundreds of families came along with young children to see their favourite acts.
Some kids even kept busy collecting paper cups – where they could collect 10p for each one returned.
And the BBC played its part, with helpers travelling the festival site to check on the welfare of youngsters.
4. A costly day out
At just over £30, a ticket to Big Weekend cost much less than your average music festival.
But anyone thinking they were heading for a cheap day out was in for a shock, with prices for most products on-site well above what you would normally pay outside the event.
A pint of Madri lager, for example, was about £2 more than it was being sold for at local bars and restaurants – while spirits, soft drinks and bottles of wine were also on offer at a significant mark-up.
One reveller also reported paying £5.60 for a coffee, while you did well to spend less than £20 a time to feed two people.
Anyone there with a large family group will have found it an expensive day out – even if it was reflective of many similar events.
5. Performers brought their A-game
With the exception of Royal Blood – who were reportedly less than impressed with the response from the main stage crowd on Sunday – the acts revelled in the Camperdown Park sun.
From the energetic performances of pop acts like Becky Hill and the Jonas Brothers, to the dance raves and the touching and often hilarious set by Lewis Capaldi to bring the festival to a close, there was a real mix of styles with something for everyone.
Niall Horan revealed how he had battled travel problems to make it to Dundee because “there was no way I was going to miss this”.
Many branded Dundee “beautiful” – with singer Tom Grennan claiming that Scotland in the sun is the “best place on Earth”.
Nothing but Thieves got into the spirit of things as they continued their love-in with Dundee City Council.
And even the controversial Matt Healy, lead singer of The 1975, won over some fans with his band’s pop-tinged headline show on Saturday.
A cancelled set by Thirty Seconds to Mars on Saturday was the only dampener, but frontman Jared Leto delivered when they finally made it on stage on Sunday instead.
- What did you think of Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Dundee? Let us know in the comments below
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