The concert itself was surely one of the greatest the Palacio de Festivales has witnessed in its 14 year history, and full marks to the Management Team who pulled off the coup of bringing Nigel and The Polish Chamber Orchestra to Santander.

The Santander audience is an odd one. Conservative, constrained and very confined to certain rules of conduct and perception, the arrival of Nigel on the stage with his Doc Martens and Palestinian scarf caused uncomfortable stirring in the stalls. However, his opening words in Spanish warmed the air conditioned upper circle immediately. " Are you ready to rumble?" was lost to the many fifty and sixty year olds who had been denied the chance to study English in their youth but the privileged few knew we were in for a treat.

And treat it was. I had taken my two daughters (4 and 5)to their first ever classical concert and it will be a long time before they will be able to enjoy a performance of such quality.

The Santander audience found it hard to contain their applause between movements - why can't we applaud during pauses, by the way?? The final result of the performance was a standing ovation - only afforded to Spanish folkloric figures.

Nigel won 99% of the audience over with his chirpy charm, even before he played a note. By the time he'd finished he'd performed something miraculous - Silence comes very dear in Spain but we heard it yesterday.

A final point . The chemistry that exists between Nigel and the Polish Chamber Orchestra is a delight to watch and no wonder they love to perform with him. One fantastic detail was at the end of the concert, when no-one was allowed to enter the dressing rooms until all the orchestra and Nigel had shared a toast to their success.

Those who didn't buy tickets because of the way the man dresses can keep up their pretences.

Some things will never change.

Nigel , please don't.