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The Diamond Jubilee concert was an orchestrated cacophony of Madness at Buckingham Palace and the ska heroes provided one of the best highlights of the evening.
The Palace roof hosted the seven-strong band and their trademark daft dancing as they performed Our House, a song usually associated with modest terraces.
But the laser mapped projections which lit up the Palace and transformed it into an ever changing British backdrop, complete with a red London bus and the Union Jack, were a joy to behold.
The staging was infinitely more ambitious and cutting edge than the line-up. Many knights and dames of the realm were on hand and were relied upon to perk up the royal entertainment.
Sir Tom Jones won over the crowd, who seemed a little non-plussed by the entertainment so far, he can always be depended upon to lead a huge spirited sing-a-long.
Delilah, his ballad about infidelity and murder, might have seemed inappropriate on paper, but it was an uplifting treat when sung by the gathered throng on the Mall.
Her Majesty, wisely held back her entrance until after the Welsh crooner had finished his murderous anthem. “You missed Tom Jones,” joked compere Lenny Henry. “You just live over there!”
In an attempt to represent the full span of popular music across the Queen’s 60 year reign, contemporary stars like Jessie J and Kylie Minogue shared the bill with classical artists including opera singer Alfie Boe and pianist Lang Lang.
Gary (perhaps on a quest for a Knighthood) also delighted the audience with a stirring performance of Sing, the diamond jubilee song he made with contributions from the nations of the Commonwealth.
Will.I.Am and Cheryl Cole (why was a sub-standard pop star with a criminal conviction for violence invited?) were also included by Gary Barlow – with Cheryl deemed one of the worst performances of the night on Twitter.
But you couldn’t fault the stellar star power or songs for the last hour. Sir Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Sir Paul McCartney: this was a Royal Variety Performance really fit for a queen.
There was only a slight moment of British embarrassment brought about by US artists Stevie Wonder and Will.I.Am twisting their occasions and launching into an impromptu version of Happy Birthday.
But Macca had even the most stoic faces amongst the royal box up and dancing along to Beatles classic All My Loving.
The jovial all-star knees up of Ob La Di Ob La Da proved to be a welcome and eclectic ending to a delightfully eccentric, but good spirited event.
It might not have been the coolest or most cutting edge of shows, but it was thoroughly British in its cheerful nature.
The Americans, for all their showmanship, especially in the world of sports, don’t have anything to compare to this.
Prince Charles summed up the evening’s celebrations perfectly when he paid tribute to “Her Majesty, Mummy. Thank you for making us proud to be British.”