UNION flags were waved and picnics were shared as hundreds of people descended on a North-East park for an afternoon of classical music.

There had been fears over the weather leading up to the Proms in the Park concert, in Darlington, on Sunday (June 28) afternoon.

An indoor venue had been put on standby in the event of rain, as opposed to shine.

In the event, such fears proved unfounded and the popular free event could go ahead in Darlington's beautiful South Park as planned.

The event, sponsored by Darlington-based company Modus Seabed Intervention, was enjoyed by young and old, by fans of the BBC Proms and by more recent converts to this genre of music.

Organised to coincide with Armed Forces Day, the programme of music included performances by the Royal Signals (Northern) Band, Hurworth Concert Band and 102 Battalion REME Pipes and Drums, among others.

There were guest vocalist slots for Val MacConachie and John Rowland.

The event opened with the National Anthem and included a rendition of the Radetsky March, elements of Gershwin, a tribute to stage and screen featuring young performers from Stagecoach Darlington, a sing-along of Disney's Frozen and a dash of Sinatra for good measure.

It closed with a Last Night of the Proms-style flourish that included Rule Brittania and Jerusalem.

Alan Charlton, chairman of the Northern Military Music Group, said: "Behind the scenes, many people work to make an event like this happen, and we would like to say thank you to them all."

There was a bucket collection in aid of ABF, the Soldiers' Charity.

:: See more of photographer Chris Booth's pictures of the concert in our online gallery.