Beverley Knight

The Civic, Wolverhampton

Marching on to the stage waving a Wolves Forever flag, it was clear this was no ordinary gig for homecoming queen Beverley Knight.

The R&B diva kicked things off with Made It Back before telling the sold-out Civic Hall how much she had been looking forward to this show.

In the crowd were her family and her best friend, to whom she tearfully dedicated the mellow Sista Sista.

It quickly became clear it was not simply her football allegiance which the audience adored – every song was greeted with rapturous applause and plenty of loud cheers.

Beverley has had a busy year, appearing on the BBC’s Just The Two Of Us and touring with Take That, Bryan Adams and Take That again.

But she clearly had enough energy in the tank for this performance, as some of her moves would have made Beyonce look sluggish.

The 90 minute set included plenty from her new ‘best of’ album Voice, including Shoulda Woulda Coulda, Greatest Day and Piece of My Heart.

By James Calnan