The DUP conference of 2022 was a decidedly low-key outing.
Boris Johnson may have attended in the past when the party was flavour of the month with the Tories, but this time there were no such star turns.
It was a smaller event than in previous years, with around 250 chairs in the main hall generously spaced to take up more of the floor.
Read more: NI secretary wants to 'deliver enough pressure' to restore Stormont and fix Brexit Protocol
For DUP members who spent their Saturday last weekend tweeting about empty seats at the Ireland's Future conference in Dublin, the turnout was nothing to shout about.
But the mood at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in South Belfast was more buoyant than expected.
With Sinn Fein overtaking the DUP as the largest Stormont party in May, the event could easily have been a sombre affair.
Party members however were pleased to see the conference return for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Any lingering tensions from the DUP leadership turmoil last year over the ousting of Arlene Foster and her brief successor Edwin Poots appear to have been set aside.
In his first conference speech as party leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson received a sustained applause as he took to the stage to the sound of Greatest Day by Take That.
The warm welcome and standing ovation at the end were perhaps signs that Sir Jeffrey has succeeded in bringing warring party factions together.
The half-hour speech had a slightly delayed start, which critics may unkindly joke was because it was still being written by Jamie Bryson.
Sir Jeffrey is a solid speaker but will never set the world on fire, and there were no great surprises in his words.
The DUP leader remained defiant over his party blocking Stormont power-sharing in protest over Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol.
While talks resume between the UK and European Union to break the deadlock, Sir Jeffrey gave the impression of not giving an inch.
"Let me be clear: Either the Prime Minister delivers the provisions of the Protocol Bill by legislation or by negotiation and ensures that our place in the United Kingdom is restored - or there will be no basis to re-enter Stormont," he declared.
There was no hint of the DUP preparing its base for a compromise on the Irish Sea trade deal which could emerge from warming relations between London, Dublin and Brussels.
A big focus at the conference was on showcasing the party's councillors in preparation for local government elections in May next year.
In a video presentation the DUP also separately profiled Newry, Mourne and Down councillor Alan Lewis, who defected to the party from the Ulster Unionists during the summer.
The DUP also made clear it is ready for a snap Stormont election this winter, which the Secretary of State has threatened to call if there is no new Executive formed within three weeks.
"We do not fear the prospect of a fresh election, far from it," he told the party conference. "We have never been afraid to take our case to the people."
Polling would appear to support the DUP's confidence, with surveys suggesting its tougher protocol stance has won back support that drifted to the more hardline TUV.
Calling for unionist unity, Sir Jeffrey argued it was not nationalists or others but instead "splintered unionism" which caused the loss of Assembly seats in May.
The conference theme of "Moving Forward Together" can be seen as code for urging all unionists to row in behind the DUP.
Just weeks after some Census results showed a decline in British identity, Sir Jeffrey also made overtures towards a need to reach out and broaden support for the Union.
"We are unionists because we love the United Kingdom and its diversity," he told the conference.
"We can be Northern Irish and British. We can be Scottish or Welsh and British. And yes, we can be Irish and British."
However, whether the party acts on these sentiments has always appeared elusive.
"For me unionism should have no barriers to entry," he told party members. Perhaps a freelance journalist being temporarily barred from the conference earlier in the day was not the best way to demonstrate this.
This conference put to bed some tumultuous times for the party, but Sir Jeffrey warned colleagues that "in the coming weeks we may be tested as never before".
It will soon become clear whether the DUP has any of the answers.
READ NEXT:
- NI secretary wants to 'deliver enough pressure' to restore Stormont and fix Brexit Protocol
- Prime Minister Liz Truss says £2,500 cap on energy bills will apply in Northern Ireland
- 'Fairly obvious landing zone' to resolve Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol says Secretary of State
- Liz Truss: Seven challenges in Northern Ireland facing the new Prime Minister
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here. To sign up to our FREE newsletters, see here.
