Sabrina Carpenter brings a different vibe to BST and we’re all for it

As the sun sets over another summer’s day in London, it’s not just the high temperature (and Central Line) keeping Londoners warm, it’s Sabrina Carpenter at her absolute best for the British Summertime festival.

The pop princess fills Hyde Park with mostly women: mums with daughters, best friends in their thirties dressed in matching baby pink dresses and tweenagers, who were rehearsing the songs’ viral TikTok dances before her grand entrance.

Dressed in a red sparkly playsuit, she sings the first notes of Busy Woman – a very apt song title for the 26-year-old who seems to have been touring since time began (Short ‘n’ Sweet tour began in September 2024 and ends later this year, but BST marks her final UK dates).

Sabrina has got the audience in the palm of her hands as she says her cheeky lyrics, ‘If you don’t want me, I’ll just deem you gay’ before winking at the camera, which is projected onto the giant screens on either side of the stage. It’s high camp and delivered perfectly into her bejewelled microphone, setting the tone for the evening.

It’s where the party begins, and it doesn’t end for the next 90 minutes, with Sabrina’s high energy mimicked by her enthusiastic fans.

She knows what she’s doing when she follows the opener up with crowd pleasers, Taste and Complicated, before slowing things down for Slim Pickins. Her breathy, silky tones are particularly captivating in the low-tempo song, drawing us in with every word.

I’ve been a regular at BST for quite a few years, but I’ve never seen anybody make the headline spot into such a production. The theatrics, costumes, and special effects were of the same quality that you would expect in a stadium tour date. The kitsch 1950s-style adverts between songs are a particular highlight, with Sabrina taking on the role of salesperson for made-up products.

The biggest scream of the night was for a Manchild cleaning spray, which promises to alleviate the lives of boys who don’t grow up. Although Sabrina can’t actually perform miracles in that department, she provides free therapy by letting the audience scream out ‘Won’t you let an innocent woman be? Never heard of self-care. Half your brain just ain’t there,’ with her. The enthusiasm for her latest song shows that Sabrina’s star power is only rising, so it’s looking good for the Manchild album, which is coming out next month.

Between the hits, Sabrina takes time to converse with the audience and provide the elements that those chronically online were undoubtedly expecting. A key segment of her tour is arresting someone for being too hot. It’s often a celebrity, but tonight, she decided to give a young woman from South London, who perhaps appreciated the honour more.

She also used her trademark humour to poke fun at British weather with her own rendition of It’s Raining Men. Seeing Sabrina do a The Weather Girls cover was not on my 2025 bingo card, but I’m glad it happened.

The all-singing, all-dancing and tambourine-playing (yes, she gets a tambourine out) show comes in the face of criticism for her raunchy cover art for Manchild. But it’s quite clear her target audience is right behind her, and salutes her cheeky boundary-pushing art. She hasn’t let the haters change her persona, and so, of course, a love heart-shaped bed comes out for Bed Chemistry.

‘Parental discretion is advised’ is cheekily displayed to warn crowds, before she writhes around with two male dancers, who end the song with a smooch.

And of course, there was only ever going to be one way to round off the evening – with a shot of Espresso. We may prefer our tea in Britain, but you wouldn’t have guessed it as thousands screamed the caffiene hit. Same time tomorrow?

Sabrina Carpenter performs at BST Hyde Park again tonight.

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