Sugababes @ Cliffs Pavilion, Southend

Sugababes did what Rhianna didn't and actually turned up in Southend this evening. longpier sent MP to get a flavour of the girls' gig:

Playing to a sell-out crowd of around 2,000, Heidi, Keisha and Amelle started the set with 'Hole in the Head', racing their way through 20 of their most famous tunes, ending with the encore of 'About You Now' and, inevitably, their most poppy of pop hits 'Push The Button'.

Heidi and Amelle seemed to be enjoying the 1hr 30 performance, waving to the predominately female audience throughout, while Keisha was more reserved.

Half-way through, the girls did a cover of 'Don't Let Go' by 90s RnB female band En Vogue which went down pretty well with the crowd.

Whereas many bands - brought together by greedy record companies - inevitably separate after a short burst of success, Sugababes have replaced two-thirds of their band (Siobhán Donaghy in 2001 and Mutya Buena in 2005) and yet survived a decade at the top. A testiment to durability in a fickle market.