These were the scenes at just after midnight as nightclubs in Bristol reopened their doors to celebrate the relaxation of all restrictions on social contact in England.
Crowds cheered outside Lakota as midnight passed, hailing in the popularly dubbed ‘Freedom Day’ - and entry started to the venue’s first full capacity event since the pandemic began.
Titled The Rave Returns , the night saw a host of Lakota’s resident DJs spinning drum and bass to celebrate the end of the club’s 16-month hiatus from indoor events.
From 10:30pm expectant clubbers gathered outside the Stokes Croft venue. By the time the clock struck midnight, the densely packed queue stretched around the block from Lakota’s entrance on Upper York Street.
The mood was a mixture of excitement and nervousness. Some attendees confessed how weird it felt to once again be crammed into the queue for a nightclub; for others, it was their first ever night out.
Masks were few and far between in a crowd which seemed to embrace the chance to return to normality.
With harbourside club Pryzm also hosting a reopening party at midnight, and most other venues running events on Monday night, Bristol nightclubs have been quick to mark the return of the city’s nightlife.
See here our live coverage of the night here.
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