ON HER Twitter account before her trip to Brighton, Charlotte Church dared her followers to enter the dungeon – an ominous invitation to a night in which Concorde 2 was entranced by the singer and her pop jukebox.

The seaside venue was an amusement arcade in a previous life and that sense of fun was apparent once more on Friday night. The premise of the Late Night Pop Dungeon is simple – Church and her band belt out pop favourites from decades past, including Bowie, Britney Spears and Beyonce. In Brighton, Amerie’s One Thing was an early highlight, with Church clad in thigh-high boots and a feather boa that nodded towards burlesque.

The singer released her debut album, Voice of an Angel, when she was just 12. It was a big hit, making Church the youngest artist in history with a number one album on the British classical crossover charts. The record revealed her upbringing in vocal training – she was, and is, an accomplished soprano. She hasn’t released an album since 2010, and in recent years her political activism has taken precedence.

She is a regular figure on the protest circuit, most recently seen at a rally in Cardiff against Donald Trump’s presidency. On Friday’s evidence, Church has transformed from a singing angel into a pop-rock diva. Her backing band had a glam look, vaguely reminiscent of Slade. When she sang En Vogue’s rhythm, and blues classic Don’t Let Go, with the irresistible lyric “There’ll be some love making’, heart breakin’, soul shakin’”, the audience could be seen swaying and headbanging.

Church reached high notes with ease in Prince’s classic Diamonds and Pearls – at this stage she was wearing a cap but a raspberry beret would have been a better tribute to the late pop icon. It was impossible to say how many people were present at the event, but all of them can say they not only braved Chuch’s Dungeon, but loved every minute of it.

Sunjay Kakar