F is for FABULOUS

Because this evening I am seeing KYLIE MINOGUE live in concert at the o2 Arena in London. I have been a huge Kylie fan since I can remember. When I was three years old, she was acting in Neighbours as Charlene and I had to watch it every lunch time. She had me mesmerised. When first album 'Kylie' came along, I was given it for Christmas on vinyl and it was decided- I would be a loyal Kylie fan from then on.

Throughout the 90s it was not cool to like Kylie as a pre-teen. She was evolving as an artist, collaborating with Nick Cave over Pete Waterman and no-one at school could understand my unashamed love for her. On every no uniform day I wore my Kylie shirt with pride and was always armed with a handful of cassettes on the days that our teacher allowed us to play music while we worked.

By the time 'Spinning Around' was released in 2000, I was 15 years old and working on the entertainment counter at Woolworths. I bought the single on both CD singles that were released with different remixes and b-sides, much to the surprise of my colleague, Holly, who couldn't believe I adored Miss Minogue. In early 2001 I saw Kylie perform at Hammersmith as part of her 'On a night like this' tour, where she would perform 'Can't get you out of my head' for the first time. It was a magical experience and only furthered my love for the icon I had used as my escapism for many years. Over the past decade Kylie has become an unquestioned icon and the master of female fronted pop, with record breaking world tours, international number one albums and a bigger following than ever. Looks like I was right all along...

Kylie, I salute you.