Give the girl her due: she certainly knows how to put on a show. Bringing her Red world tour to the UK for the first time, Taylor Swift delivered a two-hour blockbuster set that delighted her audience of young girls (and their mums and dads) and set new standards for an arena pop concert.

In an age when fellow pop princesses Miley Cyrus and Lady Gaga are resorting to increasingly provocative videos and raunchy routines, Swift is a throwback to more innocent times. Sexy without being salacious, she is the consummate show-woman.

Arriving on stage in shorts and a white top, Swift was greeted by a kaleidoscope of colour and noise. Fans sported home-made T-shirts, and waved banners bearing slogans like ‘Red’ (the title of her last album), ‘13’ (her lucky number) and ‘Like, Ever’ (kiss-off line to her hit single We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together).

Seven-time Grammy winner Taylor Swift at London’s O2 Arena. In an age when fellow pop princesses Miley Cyrus and Lady Gaga are resorting to increasingly provocative videos and raunchy routines, Swift is a throwback to more innocent times

The concert itself was spectacular. Staged across two split-level platforms that afforded a decent view for every fan, it cast Taylor as a Thirties screen goddess, a Grand Ole Opry cowgirl and a circus ringmaster. On You Belong With Me, she lined up alongside her four backing vocalists in a move reminiscent of Sixties girl-group The Chantels.

S  wift is an all-American success story. Raised on a farm in Pennsylvania, she moved with her parents to Nashville at 14 to further her musical ambitions on the country circuit.

She has since sold 26 million albums, become a poster girl for sensitive teens and sung at a royal charity ball with Prince William and Jon Bon Jovi.

She has also moved on ambitiously from her country roots. Some of the songs played at the O2, including State Of Grace and Treacherous, were band-led arena-rockers in the style of Coldplay and U2, while parts of the Red album were crafted by Swedish pop alchemist Max Martin, who also writes for Katy Perry and Britney Spears.

But Swift’s real appeal lies in her knack of articulating the hopes and fears of her young fans. On Mean, she bites back at the playground bullies who made her teenage years miserable. Former boyfriends John Mayer, Jake Gyllenhaal and Joe Jonas have also been on the receiving end of stinging rebukes in song.

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The concert itself was spectacular. Staged across two split-level platforms that afforded a decent view for every fan, it cast Taylor as a Thirties screen goddess, a Grand Ole Opry cowgirl and a circus ringmaster

She also talked — a lot — between songs. Addressing her audience like a cool big sister, the 24-year-old held forth about ‘love, hate, passion and jealousy — all those intense feelings’, and advised anyone suffering from teenage heartache to ‘grab a banjo and write a song about it’.

Admittedly, it all got a bit cheesy at times, but Swift’s fans lapped it up. And when a star can communicate so powerfully with her fans, there is no need for twerking.

Having paid her dues in Nashville, she’s also an accomplished guitar player and pianist — so no mere pop puppet.

There was a brief guest appearance, with the singer joined by Danny O’Donoghue of The Script for a duet. As the Stones showed when they summoned Eric Clapton, Florence Welch and Mary J. Blige on stage at the same venue, it is a crowd-pleasing ploy that works a treat at the O2.

In an age when fellow pop princesses Miley Cyrus and Lady Gaga are resorting to increasingly provocative videos and raunchy routines, Swift is a throwback to more innocent times

In an echo of her show- stealing performance at last year’s Brits, she rounded off the evening with I Knew You Were Trouble, whipping off a white ball gown to reveal a gold-embroidered jumpsuit, before raising the roof with a high-octane We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.

So, have we finally found a pop princess we can be proud of? On the evidence of this fiercely energetic show — and the rapturous reaction of the 15,000 fans who braved the deluge and London’s Tube strike to witness it — it is hard to think of a better role model.