Singer Olly Murs wowed the crowd at sun drenched concert in Colchester

There was dancing in the stands, and on the pitch, as Olly girated, jumped, bounced and grinded his way through a 90 minute set in front of a screaming audience.

The emotional singer was delighted to be back where it all began for his second performance of the day.

Arriving on the stage he said: "Good evening Colchester. It is good to be home."

And after his opening song, You Don't Know Love, he added: "I am loving it already. I am in Essex.

"This is not a festival, this is my show in Essex.

"It means the world.

"Thank you for coming and buying a ticket.

"If I cry I apologise but I know you will sing the songs.

"I am here to entertain you."

Olly was supported on the stage last night by X Factor winner and another product of Essex, Louisa Johnson.

And off the stage the gig was supported by stewards, security and large numbers of police all of whom were praised for their fantastic attitude and assistance.

Officers were high fiving concert goers and added to the experience with universal appreciation for the work they did to keep people safe, after the tragic events in Manchester and London.

Olly Murs added his appreciation for the emergency services, St John Ambulance and all the other support with fans posting on social media about how grateful they were.

With the sun shining, and under a beautiful blue sky, Louisa Johnson took to the stage at 7.30pm.

Many had already been around for hours knowing security would be tight and the extra time helped some after a bus fire closed the A12 Colchester bound at Kelvedon earlier in the afternoon.

Louisa opened with So Good and then sang a mix of originals and covers during a 30 minute set and later returned to duet with Olly on their new single Unpredictable.

There was some singing, and some excited screaming, before the sound went up to 11 as Mr Murs took to the stage with his band and singers.

He sang crowd favourties inclunding Troublemaker, Dance with me Tonight, Dear Darlin', and Heart Skips a Beat, among many more.

He revived his first X Factor audition in 2009 with Superstition among a number of covers from the 1970s onwards with his mum and nan among the crowd.

He said: "The last time I did a gig in Colchester was Charter Hall.

"Some of you came but many had no idea who I was.

"It was 2009 for the X Factor final. I got old Simon Cowell and I took him to Colchester.

"He said 'this is an interesting town Olly'.

"Some of you may have come to gigs I did in Witham.

"Nine years ago I was in Bar 68 in Witham.

"I remember inviting 100 people on Facebook. Now there are 17,000 here in Colchester tonight, incredible."

As the show continued, in front of his delighted audience on a warm evening, he asked everyone to hug somebody and spoke of their courage at coming out tonight.

And as the sun went down the sound went up before a special encore in honour of it being his home gig.

Olly said: "I would rather be cheeky and from Essex. The best women are in Essex.

"I am going to say the best men are in Essex. Thanks for coming fellas.

"What I love about Essex is the people, I love coming home.

"I am always home in Witham.

"I love Coggeshall Town, we are going to take Coggeshall Town to professional football.

"Colchester, thank you so much for coming to the show.

"I want to thank Colchester United Football Club, I want to thank all the emergency services for being here tonight.

"Nine years ago I tried to change my life.

"I was working in a call centre giving people advice on how to save money on their energy bills.

"I went on X Factor and my life changed.

"I have never forgotten my roots, I have never forgotten where I came from. I love you Essex."

At 10pm the crowd left still singing his songs.

Many people were chanting Olly, Olly Olly.

And last night the reply was Murs, Murs, Murs.

Today police confirmed there were no arrests or problems.

Superintendent Steve Johnson said: “Ahead of Saturday’s concert, we worked closely with the event organisers to ensure the general security operation was supported.

"This resulted in a trouble-free event which was enjoyed by all.

“Thank you to everyone for leaving enough time for the searches, and for people’s patience while these took place.

“Officers were there to make sure everyone was looked after, and that they also felt safe during the concert.

“Overall, this went really well and we’d like to thank everyone for their co-operation, while keeping in the spirit of the day.”