In the 1970s this would have been called a supergroup: Roxy Music’s Phil Manzanera on guitar, Pink Floyd’s Richard Wright on keyboards, David Crosby and Graham Nash on backing vocals, Robert Wyatt guesting on cornet, David Bowie sauntering on to sing two songs in the encore.

If David Gilmour – credited on the ticket as the “voice and guitar of Pink Floyd” – wanted to make Roger Waters feel redundant, here was a line-up stellar enough to do so.

The first half of the show was devoted to Gilmour’s new album On an Island, a surprisingly gentle affair on which the chilly grandeur of his guitar-playing sounds untypically warm and contemplative. Crosby and Nash sang harmonies on the title track, Wyatt joined him on “Then I Close My Eyes”, Gilmour picking out liquid melodies on his guitar.

“Take a Breath”, the closest his new songs get to rocking out, was the pick of this section. Spectacular lighting accompanied Gilmour’s ominous guitar-work while his vocals made a desperate appeal for calm. It was dramatic but not overblown, unlike Pink Floyd in their otiose later years.

Gilmour’s back catalogue was the subject of the second half, which included a ponderous trio of songs from Pink Floyd’s dismal last album The Division Bell, though there were a number of gems too. Crosby and Nash reappeared to sing on “Shine on You Crazy Diamond”, and Bowie made his appearance – his first in the UK since his heart operation – to sing Pink Floyd’s jaunty first single “Arnold Layne” and their anaesthetised epic “Comfortably Numb”. This coup de théâtre set the seal on a triumphant evening. ★★★★☆