Live: Grand Ole Opry (Royal Albert Hall, London, September 26)

The rhinestone cowboys of Kensington were out in force as the Royal Albert Hall became, for one night only, the home of legendary country music show, the Grand Ole Opry. To celebrate the 100th birthday of the longest running radio broadcast in US history, the Opry – which helped make the name of artists such as Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks – brought five of its biggest stars over from its regular home in Nashville. Starting out in 1925 as the WSM Barn Dance, the show, which originally served as a vehicle for emerging artists, has grown into a worldwide cultural institution, enshrining Tennessee’s capital as the centre of the country music world.

The promise of Luke Combs, Ashley McBryde, Carly Pearce, Darius Rucker and Marty Stuart appearing together under one roof brought more than 5,000 fans into this most regal of London venues. Many wore Stetson hats or sequinned cowboy boots and had clearly travelled from all over the UK for the historic, sold-out concert. The Queen of Country herself (Dolly Parton, as if you needed to ask!) even made an appearance, albeit by video, much to the delight of the audience who were as jubilant and vociferous as at any Last Night of the Proms performance – an event for which the Royal Albert Hall is more usually known.

British host for the night Vernon Kay was accompanied by American Kelly Sutton, the first ever female host of the regular show back home on WSM Radio, which was transmitting the event live to listeners back in the US. ‘Whispering’ Bob Harris, the presenter of BBC’s The Country Show – which was also recording the event – could be seen watching in the stalls, clearly enjoying himself. The veteran broadcaster received an ovation, instigated by Kay, in honour of his work championing the genre in the UK.

Performers stood on a small, circular wooden plinth – a replica of ‘The Circle’ which is permanently installed in Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry House – that had been sourced from the same stage as the Ryman Auditorium (the Opry’s original home) and transported across the Atlantic especially for the evening’s show.

Darius Rucker (lead singer and guitarist of Hootie & the Blowfish) opened to exuberant applause but the most fervent hoots were reserved for more recently risen stars of the genre. Ashley McBryde brought the house down with a rousing performance of ‘Rattlesnake Preacher’ that had everyone up on their feet, only just short of waving their hats in the air and shrieking “yeehaw”.

Carly Pearce caught the mood of artists and audience alike when, after a duet with Luke Combs of ‘Hope You’re Happy Now’, she said, with obvious heartfelt emotion: “If you have country music inside of you, you will understand what it means to stand in that circle”.

One of the night’s most popular artists, Luke Combs, had an honesty, almost shyness, to him that belied his status as a megastar of contemporary country music. He was joined on stage by homegrown talent, Marcus Mumford, for a pared-down acoustic cover of the Elvis Presley classic also popularised by Willie Nelson, ‘Always on My Mind’. Finally, the entire cast joined together on stage for a medley of the highly-apt ‘Will The Circle Be Unbroken’ and ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’.

There will have been more than a few in the Royal Albert Hall contemplating a pilgrimage to Nashville after such a momentous evening. Let’s hope it’s not another 100 years before Nashville makes the trip the other way again.