BEYONCE managed to turn Croke Park Bootylicious on Saturday night - even though she only sang a few bars from her iconic hit.
Queen Bey had around 75,000 fans on the hallowed turf enthralled as she took to the stage for the only Irish date of her Formation world tour.
Devotees of the former Destiny’s Child star sang along as she arrived on stage in perfect unison, or should that be Formation, with her army of female dancers.
The centre piece - a revolving 60ft tall box dubbed the Monolith - transformed GAA headquarters for the ultimate ladies’ night, as thousands sunk pints and prosecco as the sun set over Dublin.
Impressive pyrotechnics, including fire, lights and even water for the finale, punctuated the show which heavily featured songs her new album Lemonade.
The dance routines, like her vocals, were flawless on the night, with her greatest hits squeezed into an all-too-brief megamix section.
Earlier the superstar and her husband Jay Z had been in the crowd at Wimbledon to see her friend Serena Williams, who appeared the video for her song Sorry, win her 22nd Grand Slam crown.
And just twenty-fours earlier the appearance of a multi-million pound yacht in Belfast on Friday had sparked rumours that the music power couple could be on board.
Beyonce reportedly then flew back from London to Dublin by private jet on Saturday afternoon - something you’d think she’d mention to the fans, though you get the impression the show is choreographed to within an inch of itself.
Her only unscripted banter was how Dublin was always the “loudest crowd” and, later how “women are born strong”.
But the 34-year-old star looked awestruck with the crowd's interaction and, for a split second, there was the real Beyonce, revelling in the realisation that as a solo artist she’s still the best in the business.
The only other criticism was the amount of costume changes which allowed her to showcase designers like Balmain, Givenchy and Gucci, though the stage show kept the crowd’s attention.
Her closing track, a stripped down performance of Halo, was spine-tingling and set against a sea of mobile phones lit up across Croke Park, proving why fans will always be crazy in love with Beyonce.
