Entertainment

Pairc Ui Chaoimh was venue for Prince's first royally funky Irish visit

The poster for Prince's final Irish gig
The poster for Prince's final Irish gig The poster for Prince's final Irish gig

PRINCE's most famous gig in Ireland may be the one that never happened – 2008's aborted visit to Croke Park – but the late pint-sized purple popmaster rarely disappointed fans whenever he did make it to these shores.

Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork was the venue for Prince's first royally funky Irish visit, in the summer of 1990.

Part of the star's 'greatest hits'-orientated Nude tour, it found him pumping out the likes of 1999, Kiss, Alphabet St, Purple Rain, When Doves Cry, plus Nothing Compares 2U, – the Prince-penned Family track covered by Sinnead O'Connor for her chart breakthrough earlier that year – and highlights from his Batman soundtrack.

Two years later Prince was back, at Dublin's RDS Showgrounds on the Diamonds and Pearls tour, before moving indoors for his final Irish shows of the 20th century.

The Artist Formerly Known As Prince gave fans two nights at Dublin's Point Theatre in March 1995, followed by a 'secret' show at the POD nightclub featuring a cameo by Bono.

The legal struggles with record company Warner Bros were behind him by the time a re-branded, rejuvenated Prince returned to Ireland.

He was in relaxed, chatty form while performing a hits-heavy set at The Point Theatre in October 2002, later treating 300 lucky punters to an impromptu gig at Spirit nightclub.

Almost a decade would pass before Prince's eighth and final gig here, in July 2011 at Dublin's Malahide Castle.

The set featuring four encores – a fittingly extended show for what proved to be a musical icon's Irish swansong.