Bassey's gala concert was the eisteddfod's headline event

The singer from Tiger Bay in Cardiff performed at the international musical eisteddfod's gala night in front of a packed house.

Dame Shirley's appearance was originally to have been one of two high-profile performances of the festival.

Luciano Pavarotti was originally to have appeared at the festival pavilion last week.

However, he pulled out of the concert less than a month beforehand, disappointing hundreds of fans.

I'm a great fan of Shirley Bassey and on this occasion my personal opinion has struck a chord with everybody else Gwyn L Williams, chief executive

The Llangollen International Eisteddfod is a major event in the music calendar, attracting 80,000 visitors each year.

The week-long festival generates more than �6m to the local economy.

But organisers hope to exceed that figure in 2003 with the "feel-good" factor generated by Dame Shirley's presence.

The gala concert is the first time that the Welsh artist has performed in north Wales - although she is gives regular concerts in her home city of Cardiff.

Tickets for Sunday evening's concert sold out within a few weeks of going on sale.

Luciano Pavarotti was due to perform at the eisteddfod

The eisteddfod's chief executive Gwyn L Williams said he had been delighted to welcome the famous diva to Llangollen.

"I'm a great fan of Shirley Bassey and on this occasion my personal opinion has struck a chord with everybody else," he said.

On Friday, Dame Shirley announced a gala charity sale of some of her glittering dresses to mark the 50th anniversary of her career in show business

She hopes to raise �50,000.

The auction will take place at Christie's in London on 18 September, and will raise funds for the Noah's Ark Appeal to build the first Welsh children's hospital in Cardiff.