But it was back to pure spectacle forLook What You Made Me Do,the song about Swift’s feud with Kanye West,made even less relatable by its staging with a giant inflatable snake. Likewise with the closer,This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things,its Gatsby-esque sentiments enhanced by a fountain for Swift and her dancers to frolic in. On this night of all nights it felt gratuitous.

Some of the production numbers worked beautifully.Gorgeous,the closest the new album comes to a groove,was an infectious highlight,turned empowering by Swift name-checking and briefly spotlighting each of her female backing singers and dancers. Refreshingly for a show as image-conscious as this one,they came in all shapes,sizes and colours.

Shake It Off from 2015’s1989 album also lifted the soggy crowd,particularly as Swift was transported halfway down the field in a golden birdcage chairlift to sing it. The wristbands we were all wearing,which lit up in time to Swift's impressively tight band,went into a rainbow frenzy for her biggest hit and it was a breathtaking effect.

But the best moments were when Swift dialled down the gimmicks and showed us her singer-songwriter soul. Backed only by her own acoustic guitar,22 (from 2012’sRed,her last album with any vestige of country) reminded us that while Swift will never have the biggest voice in pop,she has one of the clearest and most communicative ones.

Amid all the pyrotechnics and insert-Sydney-here stage banter,that four minutes alone was worth the price of admission.