Tuesday 30 April 2013

Beyonce arrives at the O2 by helicopter and then zip wire

Who runs the world? Diva Beyoncé demands biggest dressing rooms at O2 after arriving for concert by private helicopter

PUBLISHED: 17:54, 30 April 2013 | UPDATED: 20:05, 30 April 2013

If you live in London, there was no escaping the fact that Beyoncé was performing the first of her O2 dates on Monday night.

And the superstar certainly made her presence known, by reportedly arriving at the venue by private helicopter and demanding the biggest dressing rooms in the arena.

The enormous rooms, which are usually reserved for entire sports teams, have been decked out especially for the star, a source told The Evening Standard.

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Diva demands? Beyoncé reportedly arrived by private helicopter for her concert at London's O2 on Monday night, before demanding the arena's largest dressing room

Despite being the first performer to be offered the use of the O2's newly refurbished rooms, the 31-year-old opted for the larger set which are in a quieter part of the arena.

'The new dressing rooms are superb — it’s like you’ve stepped into a luxury apartment. But she surprised everyone by turning them down, going for the larger ones that are used by sports teams when they play at the 02,' revealed the source.

'They are much bigger though, and she was given free rein to refurbish them to her own taste. They’re also in a quieter part of the backstage area, which gives her a better atmosphere to get focused for her shows.'

Flying high: The superstar, who whizzed across the arena on a zip wire at one point in her show, has decked out the dressing room herself

Star power: The mother-of-one clearly made sure that everything was just the way she wanted it for the British leg of her tour

In charge: Beyoncé, who wowed during the first night at the arena, reportedly turned down the newly refurbished backstage rooms

Even though she's only there for a few nights, the artist has reportedly brought in her own curtains, sofas and rugs to make herself feel at home.

And instead of staying in London during her six nights of shows, the Crazy In Love singer is holed up in Berkshire at a country hotel, along with husband Jay-Z and daughter Blue Ivy.

She opted not to copy Rihanna and catch the Tube to the arena for her sell-out show, proving that she's still a diva by hitching a ride on her own private helicopter.

Biggest rooms: The star posted snaps of herself in her dressing room, which are the ones usually reserved for entire sports teams

Little touches: The singer posted a picture of specially embossed towels in her dressing room

Wowing the crowd: Impressing the 20,000 strong audience, the star had a number of costume changes, captured by her own photographer

But despite her backstage demands, it seems that the star well and truly rocked the arena, as fans and bloggers flooded Twitter with pictures, even though the singer had censured photographs of her on stage.

Queen Bey simply dazzled onstage and in the eight 'official' pictures released, fans don't quite get the impressive energy behind her dance-led show.

Flattering shots: Beyoncé, who banned photography agencies from the arena, approved the shots she released

Who runs the world? The artist seemed to be completely in control of her Mrs Carter tour, making sure that every aspect was pre-approved

High energy: Performing a number of her best known tracks to energetic routines, the singer didn't disappoint

Intimate snap: The star was happy to post a series of backstage snaps onto her website, giving fans a glimpse of what goes on

The photo censure follows the headlines that the 31-year-old is travelling the world on her Mrs. Carter Show tour with her own snapper in tow -- along with imposing an explicit ban on unapproved photographers.

On Monday evening no pictures were released of the Halo star performing in a dazzling blue catsuit - something fans highlighted as a hit of the show.

Raucous crowd: The audience were pictured going wild as their idol performed in front of them

Leather clad: At one point the Crazy In Love singer changed into a short black jacket and thigh high boots

Last minute: Beyoncé's photographer captured her dancers rehearsing backstage ahead of the show

Adjustments: One of the costume designers put finishing touches to a dancer's outfit, making sure that everything was perfect

Warming up: She posted an intimate snap of her dancers limbering up before stepping out on stage

Backstage rituals? The dancers made sure that they were on top form as they all geared up for the show

But bloggers and fans took to Twitter to share their own pictures with the social networking site effectively acting as an entertainment news agency, providing a full round up of the show.

The 65-gig tour will roll through the UK starting on Friday and then makes its way over to the U.S. in June.

Her choice to curate her media coverage comes after it was widely reported back in February that the singer's publicist had asked agencies or websites to remove 'unflattering' photos of the star during her energetic performance at the Super Bowl.

Wild child: At one point during her Paris show on Friday, the star was blindfolded by one of her dancers

Getting racy: She performed Grown Woman during her show in Paris last week, with dancer Laurent Bourgeois

Attention-grabbing: The star proved that she certainty didn't do things by halves when it come to her on-stage looks

After publishing the shots, Beyoncé’s US publicist wrote to one website respectfully asking them to 'change' their article.

'I am certain you will be able to find some better photos,' she was quoted.

However, bloggers fear that the move by the diva's camp may backfire, with publications and websites instead buying in pictures from fans and amateurs.

Beautiful in white: Beyoncé wowed fans with her show at the O2, with many tweeting that she simply brought the house down

All the single ladies: There is no denying the mother-of-one looks perfect onstage. Pictured in a white Ralph & Russo creation

She nailed it! In her white outfit, surrounded by dancers Beyoncé looked the business

How did that one get through? Beyoncé looks amazing onstage at the O2 in London - but the stationary poses sent through by the one official snapper don't touch on the energy from the show

Silhouette: Beyoncé needn't have worried as fans flooded Twitter with gorgeous snaps of her performing

But on Friday's performance, photographers from other known organizations such as WENN were able to sneak into the arena, providing a more-action packed recap of her show.

No photo credentials are to be granted for her concerts, her UK publicist has confirmed.

Fstoppers.com revealed Beyoncé's company Parkwood Entertainment is only giving out three to five pre-approved images to media after the show, and this recent snap is part of the bunch.