Tara Mewawalla
Live reporter

What a night.

Dance music veteran Fatboy Slim has finished his headline set on the first day of Big Weekend in Sunderland - capping off the festival's first ever Dance Party day.

Featuring laser beams, confetti cannons, and pyrotechnics, the legendary DJ took the crowd on a journey through the classics, around a myriad of cultural and musical references, and tied it all together with his classic big beat sound.

Earlier, a number of other electronic music producers and DJs performed across the festival's three stages, including Birmingham-born singer Clementine Douglas and Radio 1 Dance Anthem DJ Charlie Hedges.

You can watch them back on demand on iPlayer and BBC Sounds.

The weather has been glorious and more sunshine is expected over the next two days, when the popstar-studded line-up promises to put on another spectacular show. Ellie Goulding, Louis Tomlinson, Lola Young, Zara Larsson, Olivia Dean and Mitski are on the bill.

As the Big Weekenders head home to catch some well-earned rest, we are leaving our coverage here.

You can read more about what happened on the first day of Radio 1's Big Weekend here - and we'll be back tomorrow.

DJ Sorley told the BBC how he had a "full circle" moment today when he performed on the Introducing Stage 21 years after attending his first Big Weekend - also at Herrington Country Park.

He was in the crowd for Radio 1's Big Weekend here in May 2005, when the-line up included Gwen Stefani, Foo Fighters and The Black Eyed Peas. "There's a photo of us outside one of the tents," he laughed.

"That was before I'd ever even thought about becoming an artist and to be here twenty years later performing... it's like a big full circle," he said.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

Before his set, Fatboy Slim told Newsbeat his set was going to "fly past" - and it did.

He finished as he started, bringing us back to The Rockafeller Skank - and the words "funk soul brother" reverberating across Herrington Country Park.

The crowds are pouring out after a memorable start to Big Weekend 2026.

"Wow, wow, wow," says BBC Radio 1 DJ Pete Tong as Fatboy Slim's set comes to a close. "That's why he's on last, because no one can follow him."

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

After teasing fans with Praise You in the opening of his set, he finally delivered and gave the crowd a full run of the club anthem.

It came after chants of "Eat, Sleep, Rave, Repeat" were heard across Sunderland’s Herrington Country Park.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

Mates Jess, Lilly, Caitlin and Abbie are heading home after a "really good day" - with Sonny Fodera and Fisher the highlights.

"The sun brought the good mood," says Lilly. Jess loved the "atmosphere".

An early night, because they're back tomorrow - when it's all about... "ZARA LARSSON!", they shout together.

Naomi Clarke
BBC Newsbeat, at Big Weekend

If there’s one way to get a UK crowd going, it’s cracking out The Killers’ Mr Brightside.

The crowd at the main stage thanked Fatboy Slim by chanting back every lyric.

A sharp 180* into an acid-house mix up, just showing how much range he has.

Fatboy Slim sat down with Newsbeat earlier today to explain how he created his "heavily edited" set to comply with BBC guidelines.

"I'm actually looking forward to enjoying my songs without any swear words or nudity," he joked. "I've spent the last week just basically taking my set apart."

"There's BBC guidelines," he says, "I was going through it, I was like... that should probably go."

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

From the front of the field to the back, Big Weekend's living up to the name given to day one: it's a dance party.

He might be 62, but Fatboy Slim has an aura that travels from behind the decks across the crowd.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

Here he is.

Fatboy Slim pushes the tempo for the start of his headline set, tearing through different versions of his classics.

You almost forget just how many bangers he can draw on from his four-decade discography.

The crowd's lapping up every single one.

We're around halfway through Fatboy Slim's headline set at Big Weekend and he's really putting on a show.

So far we've heard him sample songs from Queen, Beyonce and Eminem to name a few - and mix them with his characteristic heavy beats.

Eleanor Shearwood
BBC Newsbeat, at Big Weekend

How long does it take to get your hair looking this good?

"We went to the hairdresser's this morning, 10 o'clock, we were there having a cocktail," Poppy Johnson and Millie Wilbour told BBC Newsbeat earlier.

The 20-year-olds from North Yorkshire are so excited for major artists to be performing in the North.

"I feel like a lot of people who are touring don't come to Newcastle sort of area or anything, so this is good because it's pretty local for us and we don't get a lot of that," Johnson says.

Ruby Blenkiron, from Durham, agrees.

The 18-year-old and her friends say they've been waiting for today "pretty much since tickets came out".

She tells BBC Newsbeat she didn't think big names like Zara Larsson and Olivia Dean - the headliners on Saturday and Sunday - would come: "I didn't think it would be like massive people like that".

Tonight's headline act is here - Fatboy Slim is on the Main Stage and is ready to make the tables turn.

Naomi Clarke
BBC Newsbeat

There is already a buzz of electricity at Sunderland's Herrington Country Park after some of the biggest and brightest new DJs and producers have been hyping up festivalgoers throughout the dance-focused opening day of Big Weekend.

Taking to the decks to close out the evening is veteran DJ Fatboy Slim.

The British musician, whose real name is Norman Cook, rose to prominence when he released a string of club hits in the 1990s.

He’s since become a staple on the UK music festival circuit, with setlists full of crowd-pleasing hits like Praise You, Right Here, Right Now and The Rockafeller Skank.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

As the sun starts to set on Sunderland, Fisher closes a hit-filled set as he started it - with pyro.

Fatboy Slim's up next.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

The warm weather might be great for the crowds, but it comes with complications for the artists.

Just before their collaborative back-to-back set earlier, Newsbeat spoke to Ahadadream and Arthi about performing in the sun.

"You can’t see anything on the decks," Arthi says. "And then it’s like touching a hot frying pan!"

"Sometimes I look like a Grandad trying to look down at the screen," Ahadadream jokes.

But both are buzzing to be part of Big Weekend’s first Dance Party day.

"More than ever now, with everyone constantly online, there’s a need for real human connection," Ahadadream says. "The club is a great place for that."

In the queue ahead of opening, festival-goers told the BBC they were pleased Sunderland had been chosen to host the annual Big Weekend.

Two "born-and-bred" Sunderland residents said: "It's our home town, it's nice to have all this commotion going on."

Speaking to BBC Radio Newcastle last week, Fatboy Slim joked crowds from north-east England needed to "get over your shy streak because I've noticed you're very reserved and never shout and never dance".

"It's a very vocal and lively crowd in the North East," he added. "It's always a pleasure playing there.

"I do feel bad sometimes that the North East gets overlooked too often, it's not necessarily on the main touring schedule.

"Maybe people are just thankful we've made the journey."

Image source, Reuters

We're not far off today's headline act - the legendary DJ Fatboy Slim.

Real name Norman Cook, Fatboy Slim gained some recognition in the 1980s with bands The Housemartins and Beats International, before enshrining himself as a mainstay of the dance music scene during the 1990s.

Alongside artists like the Chemical Brothers and Death in Vegas, he helped pioneer and popularise the big beat genre, which sits somewhere between hip hop and acid house.

He boasts a Grammy, two Brit Awards and an Ivor Novello Award, and in 2023, he was awarded the Guinness World Record for the most UK number one singles by one musician as a member of different acts.

Tracks like Praise You and The Rockafeller Skank have filled dancefloors the world-over, and in recent years Slim has focused more on DJ-ing and touring everywhere from Bali to Birmingham.

Tara Mewawalla
Live reporter

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

HorsegiirL - the German DJ, singer and songwriter who describes herself as a human horse - was billed to play on the New Music Stage earlier today in her iconic chestnut-coloured horse head mask.

She attracted attention in 2023. Her energetic electronic-futurepop single My Barn My Rules went viral on TikTok that year, before she released Praise the Farmas the lead single of her three-track Farm Fatale EP which chronicled her leaving a farm and moving to a city.

Sadly, she didn't perform as she told fans yesterday she was cancelling her appearance due to sickness.

Mitch Mansfield, BBC Newsbeat
At Big Weekend

"You know the tracks, you know the energy - it's about to go off," Radio 1's Charlie Hedges tells the Sunderland crowd as she introduces Fisher.

It's a global line-up of dance stars tonight, and the Australian DJ wastes no time in bringing literal fire to the Main Stage - not that we needed any more heat.

Herrington Country Park is a dancefloor.