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Fans hopelessly devoted

OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN

Convention and Exhibition Centre,

Ends tonight.

First, a confession: I've been having an affair with Olivia Newton-John since 1978. It all started when my mother, a teacher, dragged me along with her high school class to see Grease at the local cinema. Since then, Newton-John and I have met in darkened lounge rooms at least twice a year - she in reruns of that film on the telly; me on the couch, watching intently.

What all this means is that no matter how she was going to perform at the Convention and Exhibition Centre last night, I was determined to be impressed. So, it seems, were most people in the crowd - Newton-John could simply do no wrong. And that's despite the surroundings, as the cavernous Centre's Hall Three hardly lends itself to a night of intimacy.

Newton-John appeared in sparkling sequinned black pants and pink sleeveless top, launching herself into Xanadu - the first of what proved to be a steady stream of the hits that made her famous. It wasn't long before she had the crowd clapping along, and the first bouquet was thrust on stage by a fan.

The night then moved through a selection of the country-inspired songs that started her career, including her breakthrough, Bob Dylan's If Not For You, and on to a tribute to some of the people who, she said, had inspired her through almost 30 years of recording. A touching acoustic version of Paul McCartney's Long and Winding Road was the highlight of this selection.

And then the moment came - a leather jacket was produced and suddenly Olivia was Sandy again and my Grease dreams had returned as she took us through You're The One That I Want, Hopelessly Devoted To You and Summer Nights.

After a string of crowd-pleasers, she rounded off the night with Physical, Twist Of Fate and I Honestly Love You. It had been 22 years since our first encounter, and finally I was satisfied.

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