THE people of Middlesbrough joined in the birthday celebrations of a South Pacific king yesterday.
For the past week, the people of the Tonga islands have been celebrating the 82nd birthday of their king, Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, and the organisers of this year's Proms in the Park festival decided to join in the celebrations.
A spokeswoman for the Middlesbrough concert, which takes place in August, said: "You might ask why the people of Middlesbrough should care about his birthday.
"The answer, of course, is that historical ties between Middlesbrough and Tonga are strong thanks to Captain Cook, a son of Marton and regular visitor to Tonga's shores during his travels in the South Pacific.
"Proms organisers are keen to extend the hand of friendship around the world, and so Magic 1170 disc jockey Bruce Edwards appeared in Stewart Park yesterday as an emissary of the king, where he received an official invitation to the event from the people of Middlesbrough, represented by Captain Cook."
The ceremony took place to advertise the Proms in the Park classical music concert, which starts at 6pm on August 26.
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