She told the Aviva Stadium crowd: “I haven’t been able to play a show in Dublin for over five years.
“Nobody does it like you, you know this.
“People in the crowd should be winning awards for their performances, their facial expressions, their choreography.”
The 34-year-old pop superstar emerged on a hidden platform at 7.15 pm to thunderous applause and screams.
Swift introduced herself to the audience with an understated: “Oh, hi.”
“Does anyone here happen to know the words?” she asked during Cruel Summer.
Taylor said: “Dublin. This was wild. That made me feel amazing.
“Tonight, I get to play a sold-out show in Dublin on a Friday night.
“You guys are making me feel so good, it’s going straight to my head.
“You’re making me feel very powerful.”
Swifties lucky enough to get the coveted tickets gathered at the stadium early on Friday afternoon to make sure they didn’t miss a second of the three and a half hour show.
A giant countdown clock appeared on the screen heralding her entrance.
Her fan base eagerly awaited hearing her career defining hits, including Shake It Off, Blank Space, 22, I Knew You Were Trouble, You Belong With Me, Love Story, All Too Well and Anti-Hero.
It came as Taylor Swift fever hit Belfast today as fans set off for Dublin to enjoy the first night of the pop star’s Eras Tour.
Excited Swifties boarded a special train at Lanyon Station bound for the Irish capital at 1pm, with hundreds more setting off by bus and car for the mega gig.
As they set off, fans described their excitement.
Becky Fergusson (40), from Holywood in Co Down, made Eras Tour-themed jackets for herself and her daughter who are attending the concert with her husband.
“I got this denim jacket, I bleached it, I tie-dyed it, I ironed on all the pictures and I got someone to sew on the tassels,” she said.
Becky Fergusson
Becky has been a Swiftie for years, adding: “I’ve been a fan since the very first album.”
She has managed to pass the love for Swift down to her daughter.
“My daughter is seven, and she just can’t wait — last night was like Christmas Eve, she woke up so early this morning,” she said.
Becky previously saw Swift performing in Dublin in 2018.
“I previously went to see Reputation with my friend Jane and we had the best time so I can’t wait to see her again,” she said.
This time Becky didn’t originally get tickets for the concert but she was able to purchase some resale tickets.
Watch: Swifties on their way to the Eras Tour in Dublin
“We got pretty lucky, the ones we got for today, we got on resale so we just kept an eye on Ticketmaster and got lucky,” she said.
Becky is excited to see what surprise song Swift plays tonight.
“‘Mirrorball’ would be amazing, ‘I did something bad’ from Rep hasn’t been played yet and that would be pretty special and my daughter would love ‘All you had to do was stay’,” she said.
Lauren Swann (20), from Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, is going to the concert with her mum.
“We are both big fans, I’d say my mum is a bigger Swiftie than me but we have both been waiting for a long time,” she said.
Lauren Swann
Lauren’s cousin Ben was the first person who introduced Swift’s music to her.
“I just soaked it all up, the first album I listened to was 1989 so I would have been 12 and then I went and listened to the rest,” she said.
Lauren was one of the lucky few able to get pre-sale tickets, “I ended up getting six so my friends are going as well and my cousin so I fought the great war for all of them but it was worth it,” she said.
Lauren decided to dress as in the Reputation Era, adding: “I’m always in my Reputation Era, it’s my favourite album — I like them all but it’s my favourite.”
Oliver Bingham (16) from Lurgan is attending the concert with his friend and sister.
“I’m excited but nervous, I’ve been to many concerts but I’m just nervous for this one because it’s massive,” he said.
Oliver Bingham
He admits his sister inspired his interest in Swift, adding: “I started listening to her with my sister Beth in our living room, I actually have quite fond memories of that.”
Despite not dressing as an Era, Oliver has a firm favourite.
“My favourite song is from my favourite album, it’s ‘Forever Winter’ from Red — it was the first one I actually got into,” he said.
Jamie Murphy (35), from Belfast, is attending the concert with her daughter, Róise, who is 10 and niece, Eabh Curley (10).
“I’m so excited, I’m so excited for the kids but I’ll probably be singing more than them,” she said.
The Eras Tour marks Róise and Eabh’s first train ride and concert.
“It’s great for the girls to get out — it’s a big day for them,” Jamie said.
Róise and Eabh have made some friendship bracelets with their mums’ help.
They hope to trade the bracelets with other Swifties at the concert and use them as a way to make friends with other fans.
Roise Murphy
“They have all Eras and songs on them,” Róise said.
“I’m really excited to swap bracelets, you make loads and then you get to trade them with other people there,” Eabh said.
Jamie chose to dress as the Debut Era, Róise dressed in the Red Era while Eabh dressed as the Lover Era.
“It was so hard to pick an era, the kids were doing Lover and Red so I decided to just do the Debut Era,” Jamie said.
All three girls put a lot of effort into their outfits, with Jamie making Róise her own ‘22’ themed t-shirt and Eabh getting special Lover’s style false nails.
“I got my mummy to do my nails for me,” Eabh said.
Róise thinks the surprise song for Swift’s first night in Dublin will be ’22’, Eabh thinks it will be ‘Bejewelled’ while Jamie thinks Swift will bring a surprise guest on stage, “I’m waiting for Stevie Nicks. Stevie Nicks is in Dublin so I’m waiting on a surprise song with Stevie Nicks,” she said.
