Harry Styles had a surprise for someone very special to him, as he performed the first of two huge homecoming gigs in Manchester, U.K. on Wednesday.
ET Canada was in the crowd of around 74,000 very excited fans as the One Direction hitmaker paused the Emirates Old Trafford Stadium “Love On Tour” show to find his “first ever school teacher Mrs. Vernon.”
Styles, who grew up in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, which isn’t far from Manchester, managed to pinpoint his kindergarten teacher and she had her moment of glory up on the screen.
This is so sweet. Harry Styles to his first teacher Mrs Vernon #HarryStyles #teaching #teacher https://t.co/6fVjuDROu5
— Broughton Languages (@BroughtonML) June 16, 2022
harry styles’ first teacher being there to see him perform in a big crowd, she must be so proud of him pic.twitter.com/5mUPhe53Ga
— ouma (@kissyIhh) June 15, 2022
The musician asked, “How are you? I heard you’re retiring.”
He added, “I’d just like to thank you for everything in those formative years. Thank you so much.
“It means a lot to me that’s you’re here tonight, you were truly a wonderful teacher. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and it means a lot that you’re here and I’m dedicating this next song to you.”
.@Harry_Styles had a surprise for someone *very* special to him, as he performed the first of two huge homecoming gigs in Manchester, U.K. last night 🥺https://t.co/sZ9mN4h8Z0 #LoveOnTourManchester pic.twitter.com/ol2oKsPT1e
— ET Canada (@ETCanada) June 16, 2022
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Before performing the Harry’s House track “Canyon Moon”, the singer joked, “Can you imagine dealing with me when I was 4?” adding: “I was very fun.”
Styles addressing his teacher was one of many emotional moments during Wednesday’s show.
He told the audience, “This is an absolute pleasure to be here at my home show, I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me to play here tonight and all of you for coming.”
READ MORE: Harry Styles Says A One Direction Reunion Sounds ‘Really Nice’
Styles gushed, “Some of the happiest times of my entire life have been making these last couple of albums, and some of the happiest times of my life have been right around the corner from here. So it feels pretty perfect to me playing these songs to you here tonight.”
The star kicked off the gig by belting out “Music For a Sushi Restaurant”, before launching into more Harry’s House tracks including “Daylight”, “Boyfriends”, “Cinema”, “Keep Driving” and the much-loved “As It Was”, with the latter being part of the hit-filled encore.
Other stand-out moments included Harry singing his debut solo single “Sign of the Times”, surrounded by fans shining their lights in the audience, as well as “Watermelon Sugar” and the One Direction hit “What Makes You Beautiful”. He ended the jam-packed show on a high with “Kiwi”.
There was certainly no shortage of feather boas, cowboy hats and Pride flags at the gig, and Styles constantly encouraging fans to be whoever they want to be just made the concert more special.
“Feel free to be whatever you want to be tonight,” Styles, who got the audience holding hands at one point, urged fans, adding: “Be kind to yourself as much as other people.”
Canadian fans can catch Styles at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena on Aug. 15 and 16.
