VERY moving opening ceremony at the Commonwealth Games - apart from that toe-curling pantomime parody at the beginning.

Reader Jack Konopate watched open-mouthed until opining: "Quick! Someone blow up the Red Road flats. It was a brilliant idea after all."

And Tom McRae wondered if the Queen was sitting there going: "Had that. Lost it. Sold it. Gave it away. Didn't want it anyway."

Lost for words

COMMENTATOR Hazel Irvine did her best to remain professional, and only slipped up when she said gaudily dressed crooner John Barrowman came originally from Mount Florida. Says Moira Love in Cumbernauld: "Will the good people of Mount Vernon mind her attributing their most famous son to Mount Florida? Or will they be secretly quite pleased? I can't help wondering."

Open and shut case

POOR Sir Chris Hoy, struggling to open the top of the Queen's Baton. He was even asked for his pass by security when he visited the velodrome the next day- and it's named after him.

As Bruce Skivington observed: "I take it in the Hoy household it's the wife who opens jars."

Not to pooh-pooh

ONE of the stars of the opening ceremony was being stopped in the street yesterday and being mobbed by fans. No, not the aforesaid John, but Jock, one of the terriers that led in the teams with such gallus style. People were stopping, wanting their pictures taken with him. Jock's owner Jacqui says the dogs were well looked after, even with folk on hand to spray them with water if they were getting too hot.

It was only at the dress rehearsal that one of the other dogs got a bit excited and did on the stage what dogs do naturally. It led to the director shouting into the earpiecees of the performers: "Watch out for the turd! Watch out for the turd!" At least we think that's what he was referring to.

Platter patter

MEANWHILE, Glaswegians continue to welcome the visitors to the city. A reader wonders how much the visitors she spotted ordering breakfast in a Glasgow cafe understood when their server cheerfully brought their plates and told them: "Get that intae ye!"

And Isobel MacDonald from Arran was visiting the Tall Ship on the Clyde when a "taps aff toothless Casanova" was trying to chat up the two girls in front of her, and told them the ship was festooned with flags "as the Olympics are on the noo in Glasgow".

Bright young things

OUT of the mouths of babes. A young mum was taking her brood of kids in the brilliant sunshine to Glasgow Green yesterday afternoon where an entertainment zone with stages and stalls has been set up. "What does it cost to get in?" asked her young son eyeing up the gates you have to go through where your bags are checked.

"It's free," said his mum.

"Is that why we're going to it?" he then asked.

Not so super Mo

SAD news that Mo Farah has withdrawn from competing in the Games. Those who know their football history will get the point Oldfirmfacts1 makes on Twitter when he says: "That's not the first Mo to disappoint sports fans in Glasgow."

Plane confused

TALKING of Twitter, a spoof account for Stansted Airport posted yesterday: "Lots of tracksuits on flights to the Commonwealth Games. We can't tell the difference between athletes and the Glaswegian brides and grooms."