91Èȱ¬

West End and Broadway star Kerry Ellis and legendary Queen guitarist Brian May are to perform at this year's 91Èȱ¬ Proms In The Park in Hyde Park – the annual Last Night Of The Proms extravaganza broadcast live on 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2.

Kerry and Brian join a star-studded line-up that includes the award-winning soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, who will perform with the winner of the Radio 2 Kiri Prize, the station's opera initiative. The event also sees the return of José Carreras, and the 91Èȱ¬ Concert Orchestra under the baton of Martin Yates. Further acts are still to be announced.

Now an integral part of the UK's musical calendar, Proms In The Park in Hyde Park celebrates its 15th anniversary in 2010 and is once again hosted by Sir Terry Wogan. The event is one of five major Last Night Of The Proms celebrations staged across the UK by the 91Èȱ¬ on Saturday 11 September.

The event culminates in a live video link-up with the Royal Albert Hall and a nationwide sing-along to favourites including the Bridal Chorus from Wagner's Lohengrin and the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic You'll Never Walk Alone. As ever, crowds are encouraged to bring picnics and flags, to sing along and enjoy the music and firework finale.

Acclaimed ABBA tribute band Björn Again, Nell Bryden, Serpentine Fire and the cast of the renowned West End musical Jersey Boys start the entertainment in the afternoon's warm-up events, hosted by Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce. This year's Proms In The Park follows the success of last year's event, which featured Barry Manilow, Katherine Jenkins and Garðar Thór Cortes.

Now in its 15th year, Proms In The Park has become Britain's largest outdoor classical music event and is once again expected to attract around 40,000 music lovers to join the fun and the magic of the nationwide Last Night Of The Proms celebrations.

Brian May is widely regarded as one of the world's greatest guitarists. He enjoyed global success as part of the rock group Queen, with hits including Bohemian Rhapsody, We Are The Champions, We Will Rock You and Don't Stop Me Now. His career has gone from strength to strength over more than four decades and Brian continues to record and tour internationally.

West End leading light Kerry Ellis has starred in musicals including Wicked, Les Misérables and We Will Rock You, in which she was cast after Brian May discovered her "voice in a million".

He describes her as "the most exciting singer to emerge from England in a very long time". Brian and Kerry's creative relationship blossomed during Kerry's spell in We Will Rock You and they have continued to work together extensively, merging their respective West End and rock influences.

In 2004, the pair recorded an orchestral version of the song No-One But You (Only The Good Die Young) – originally a Queen track. Their joint performance of the Wicked number Defying Gravity, at the Royal Variety Show in 2008, cemented their position as two of the UK's most innovative collaborators.

Kerry is currently starring in Oliver! and her debut album, Anthems, is produced by Brian.

Proms In The Park fans across the UK are able to tune in to the concert live on Radio 2, by pressing the Red Button during the Last Night Of The Proms on 91Èȱ¬ TV, or by catching up on 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer for seven days after the event.

The other concerts will be held in County Down, Dundee, Swansea and Salford, bringing the magic of the Last Night Of The Proms to thousands of music lovers around the UK.

Audiences can also join the Last Night Of The Proms celebrations via one of the 91Èȱ¬ Big Screens around the country – and there are more than ever in 2010, in Birmingham (Victoria Square); Bradford (Centenary Square); Bristol (Millennium Square); Cardiff (The Hayes); Derby (Market Place); Dover (Market Square); Edinburgh (Festival Square); Leeds (Millennium Square); Leicester (Humberstone Gate); Liverpool (Clayton Square); Manchester (Exchange Square); Middlesbrough (Centre Square); Norwich (Chapelfield Plain); Plymouth (Armada Way); Portsmouth (Guildhall Square); Swindon (Wharf Green); Waltham Forest (Walthamstow Town Square); and Woolwich (General Gordon Place).

Notes to Editors

Gates open at 4pm and entertainment begins on stage from 5.30pm.

Tickets cost £30 (under-threes free), and are available by telephone booking on 0844 412 4630 (a transaction fee of £2, plus a booking fee of £1.25 per ticket applies), from the Royal Albert Hall on 0845 401 5040 (a transaction fee of 2 per cent of the total value, plus £2.10 per ticket applies), or online at bbc.co.uk/proms (transaction fees vary, see website for details).

This year's 91Èȱ¬ Last Night of the Proms celebrations are broadcast live on 91Èȱ¬ Radio and Television; 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2 broadcasts live from London's Hyde Park; 91Èȱ¬ Radio Manchester, 91Èȱ¬ Radio Ulster, 91Èȱ¬ Radio Scotland and 91Èȱ¬ Radio Wales broadcast their events from Salford, County Down, Dundee and Swansea.

Highlights of all five concerts are shown as part of 91Èȱ¬ One, 91Èȱ¬ Two and 91Èȱ¬ HD live coverage of the Last Night of the Proms. Digital TV viewers can press the red button to watch a selection of Proms in the Park coverage from around the UK.

For full listings of all events please go to bbc.co.uk/proms

MC5