Lots of pop from Aussie princess but few bubbles

Kylie Minogue's show at Beijing Worker's Gymnasium this week showed that she is a real "Pea Princess". The consensus was that the Aussie was in good shape and moved well for a 40-year-old dame, while her voice is maturing with age.

Known here as the "Pea" on account of her modest stature rather than the Hans Christian Anderson tale, she performed for nearly two hours. There was dancing in the aisles despite security guards pleading with fans to sit down and Minogue then nearly caused an incident when she tossed a whistle into the VIP section, sparking a fight for possession that panicked security.

All good fun but I do have a beef. Yes, there was a golden confetti shower, the dance troupe and band were tight and the LED screen was huge, but many in the audience were expecting more bang for the reported 16 million bucks it cost to stage.