This was the moment Bristol took a big step forward in the journey towards ending the coronavirus pandemic lockdown - and it was made by people shuffling into the Primark store at the Haymarket.
With shops, barbers, swimming pools and pub gardens reopening on April 12, 2021, it was no surprise that the biggest, earliest queue was at the popular clothing store, which has suffered the most in lockdown - because it famously has no online sales.
When the doors opened at 6.45am, the queue for the store was round the sweeping curve of Horsefair into the Haymarket and back up towards the bus stops.
Staff counted shoppers in with strict rules on face coverings and a maximum number of people allowed in the four-storey store.
For the next hour there was a strict one-in-one-out policy so the queue varied in length as more buses arrived at the Haymarket stops around the corner - but the keener shoppers didn't have to queue for very long, not in comparison to the three month wait since the start of the January.
It was a brisk but calm start to the next phase of the easing of lockdown, with pub landlords eagerly scanning the weather forecasts for the prospect of busy outdoor beer gardens - but it will be a chilly one, temperatures in Bristol aren't expected to get up much above 9degC today.
Get all the latest updates on Bristol's big 'reopening' day here.
