In a terrific 12 minute spell five second half goals were scored, with the First Division outfit twice regaining their lead through Paul Burns and Sean O'Connor and Aberdeen levelling on both occasions through Barry Nicholson and then Andrew Considine.

And in the 60th minute the First Division team ended the goal feast when they took the lead for the fourth and final time through another former Don, John Stewart to clinch the famous victory in front of a crowd of 24,008.

"To see the joy on the face of the chairman was just a delight. It is history in the making," boss Gordon Chisholm beamed afterwards.

"It has taken 58 years for the club to reach a second Scottish Cup semi-final, and now we are coming back to Hampden next month. I don't think I will ever top this achievement, although if we won the final that would. Just to think that this club is one that has tended to be languishing at the foot of the First Division or in the Second Division and now we have come this far in our first season of full-time football."

Queens will be back at Hampden on May 24 where their cup final opponents will be the winner of next weekend's semi-final, with St Johnstone waiting to play the winner of today's Partick Thistle v Rangers quarter-final replay.