So farewell then, Simply Red — almost. After this Greatest Hits tour, there will be one more jaunt around the arenas in 2009, after which Mick Hucknall has pledged to disband his band in their 25th year.

In truth, it won’t make much difference. Hucknall wants to carry on under his own name and to all intents and purposes he is Simply Red. He could have picked up tonight’s band earlier the same day and few would have noticed.

It will be a pity, though, if he abandons these songs altogether. Twinkling smoothies such as Stars and Holding Back The Years have provided defining musical moments for many couples, to judge from the quantity of middle-aged, interlocked arms here. This was dinner party music long before Dido came along. And notwithstanding the fact that he suddenly looks ancient at 48, Hucknall still has the energy and more importantly, the pipes, to sing them.

Despite frequently heading for a box of tissues by the drum kit with an apparent cold, he managed the big moments with ease, notably hitting some soaring high notes on You Make Me Feel Brand New. Cover versions were an ongoing theme, with reggae classic Night Nurse, The Air That I Breathe, grand finale If You Don’t Know Me By Now and new single Go Now, a hit for The Moody Blues, also aired.

Some originals stood out, too, including the piano house of Fake and galloping carnival beats of Fairground.

“This is the beginning of the end,” he said, but he will find it hard to say goodbye to such a collection. There may be a few more farewell tours in him yet.