Scissor Sisters headline Belfast festival

Belfast will play host to New York disco chic today as art scene darlings Scissor Sisters headline a major two-day rock festival in the city.

Thousands will pack into the city’s Botanic Gardens for the annual Tennents ViTal event.

Even though a huge operation has been mounted to handle gig-goers arriving for Belfast’s only major outdoor rock concert, police were not anticipating a security headache.

A PSNI spokesman said: “For any major event like this there’s operational planning in the district command unit. They sit down and see what they need to resource it, but we have no special plans.”

As well as the award-winning Scissor Sisters, crowds are expected to pack into the park tonight for Scottish rockers Franz Ferdinand, who sealed their credentials by scooping the Mercury Music Prize last year for their self-titled debut album.

Maroon 5, Welsh songstress Jem and local heroes in the making Leya complete tonight’s bill.

On Wednesday Kings of Leon, three sons of a Tennessee preacher and their cousin whose infectious blues-laced rock has won critical acclaim, top an equally strong bill.

Sombre dance veterans Faithless and the Coral, a cosmic Liverpudlian collective with impressively diverse record collections, offer support.