John Barrowman at Portsmouth Guildhall.

While on stage, it is often difficult to maintain a personal connection with an audience. John Barrowman has no such problem.

By 7pm he already had a gargantuan queue of diehard fans queuing out into the cold October evening. Apparently, no one had noticed that there were two doors from which to enter the Guildhall.

The hall filled and the house lights went down. The excitement poured from every single person, their screams of delight deafening. The first song started up, and it truly did ‘Get the Party Started’.

One thing that was constant throughout the concert was the star’s unwavering concern for the audience. After the first song, he had already asked for all the auditorium doors to be opened so that we didn’t overheat, and he constantly reminded all who had attended that it was because of them that he gets to do what he does.

His gratitude was the most sincere I have ever seen from such a talented celebrity.

Many of the songs he chose to perform were tributes to something or someone, the first of these being a tribute to Superheroes. The J4 dancers, John’s collection of his favourite high-steppers, burst onstage to a mash-up of the Spiderman and Wonder Woman theme tunes, all dressed as the heroes themselves. Certainly it was something for everyone to look at. Skimpy Wonder Woman and skin-tight Spiderman outfits leave nothing to the imagination, as John himself clearly noticed.

Saucy jokes are to be expected from a personality such as his, and there were plenty of them, but all were carefully executed to be funny, and not crude. There is a fine line between making an audience cry with laughter, and facing an uncomfortable silence, and not once did he cross it.

A few songs later, and Jodie Prenger took to the stage, to give the star time to change out of one sparkly suit and into another. Prenger made the judges laugh almost constantly when she appeared on I’d Do Anything, the BBC talent show that she won back in May of 2008, and it is easy to see why. Her bubbly personality fitted perfectly with John’s and the banter between the two was hilarious to watch.

From his spectacular car crash on the TV show Fifth Gear, to a disastrous first skiing trip, when he reclaims the spotlight John Barrowman tells all to keep his audience entertained. It worked fabulously, with all of us hanging on his every word.

And then the interval arrived, and he pirouetted off stage, half falling over in the process.

In the second half, he again showed how considerate he really is by doing a wonderful rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ to Paul, a fellow musician (much to Paul’s horror).

The band took everything in their stride, even having a go on the mic during ‘Let Your Love Flow’ and accepting all the teasing that came after it good-naturedly. Along with the J4 dancers and even the backstage crew, they all seem like a happy family, however cheesy and clichéd that may seem. They played along with all of the gags, and seemed to really enjoy every moment they spent on stage.

The audience loved all this, engaging in light banter with those onstage, and John himself said that the audience was “so with [him] on every single level”.

John showed just how fond he is of honouring others many times throughout the night; dressing the J4 men in pink dresses and thigh-high boots for a tribute to everything drag, getting his parents on stage to dance along to a song he dedicated to them, and even singing songs he said were solely for us; his loyal fans.

It really showed how down to earth John is, as even though his fame is ever growing, he has not forgotten whom he has to thank for it.

John spoke of his insecurity between the upbeat numbers of the last hour of the show, saying how at every new venue, he still wonders if he’ll be able to fill the room. Revelations like this help to keep John a very likeable and very normal person, despite his success. I think that is why he has such a dedicated fan base, because he is such an incredibly likable person. And his enthusiasm is infectious.

There were those who ruined the light-hearted atmosphere in the auditorium, however; those who refused to sit back down after dancing along unless they got to touch their favourite celebrity. It was unfair for adult women to be acting in such a childish manner, simply because they had seats near the front.

John’s ability to be polite in any situation eventually saved the day, and the women sat back down. He is, of course, loved by a great number of overenthusiastic middle-aged women, so is perhaps well practiced in dealing with their demands.

The last song he chose to perform is an iconic one, and will be forever associated with John Barrowman because it describes his personality perfectly. “I Am What I Am” is a song that tells you that you should always be your own fabulous self, a message I think John tries hard to get everyone to listen to.

He gave one final salute, and he was gone, leaving the crowd screeching and clapping until their hands went numb and their throats ached. Finally out into the cold night air, faint choruses of “I Am What I Am” could be heard wafting about the streets of Portsmouth as we proclaimed our fabulousness all the way home.

The next wonderful tour can’t get here fast enough.

By Georgia Humphrey.