Lewis Capaldi headlines Lytham Festival with a thrilling night of powerful hits including Hold Me While You Wait and Someone You Loved

Fans who packed into Lytham Festival last night for headliner Lewis Capaldi had held on tight to the notion of seeing their idol on the greens at Lytham. They knew he would be back after the pandemic for this year’s Festival – and he was. They weren't disappointed.

For them it was a second grasp chance to see the 25-year-old Glaswegian belt out his powerful, melancholy ballads on home turf.

The rain held off long enough to give festival-goers a slice of evening sunshine and once they had warmed up nicely by support acts Luke La Volpe – Capaldi’s lifelong pal from Glasgow and a rising star in his own right - and Canadian JP Saxe, they had reached a level of anticipation clearly fuelled by that seemingly never-ending wait.

He made an impressive entrance as confetti cannons rained down on the audience before he launched into Grace, delighting the crowd in every moment.

He was clear with his fans from the outset, he couldn't deliver any fresh music, he was still working on it and suggested he'd ‘just do the old ones' - clearly the right move judging by the response.

All the favourites were there – Hollywood, Hold Me While You Wait, Before You Go and an incredible version of Vanessa Carlton’s A Thousand Miles.

In his typical down to earth manner, punctuated with plenty of humour and banter, Capaldi was right on the level with his audience and his approach connected with fans (except for the younger ears in the crowd!)

Capaldi’s biggest hit is 2019 chart topper Someone You Loved - the one that anchored him as a pop star.

That was his encore and was the one they had all been waiting for. There's always something powerfully emotional about standing in a crowd belting out one of your favourite songs alongside thousands of other people. That was the main moment and the part which everyone will remember from a gig that was superb in every way.

Who'd have thought that Lytham could have stamped its name firmly on the music festival calendar and deliver every single time. But without a shadow of a doubt it has.

Diana Ross gets Lytham Festival 2022 off to a dazzling start with a memorable concert packed with hits including Chain Reaction and Upside Down