ABOUT 8,000 music lovers celebrated the tenth year of the Proms at Castle Howard on Saturday.

The al-fresco audience was stunned by ten-year-old child prodigy Shane Thomas. The grade eight piano player, who composes his own music, is hotly tipped to win a Classical Brit this year.

The Great British Proms Spectacular, featuring the English National Orchestra, led by conductor Jae Alexander, performed favourites such as Cavalleria Rusticana, the Adagio from Spartacus and O Mio Babbino Caro.

Organiser Rachel Deighton said they were also delighted to secure the event’s usual flyover in a Spitfire in the 11th hour. Charlie Brown, a Spitfire pilot from Duxford, Northampton, looked to be fully booked until only weeks before the event.

She said: “A lot of the public were really disappointed there wasn’t going to be a Spitfire there so we really tried to make it happen.”

Ms Deighton said it was especially significant this year as the country commemorated the 70th anniversary of the Battle Of Britain.

The evening concluded with Elgar’s Nimrod and Walton’s Crown Imperial accompanying special effects lighting up the sky as darkness fell and closed with its biggest fireworks finale.

Helen Leeming, 26, from the Leeman Road area of York, said: “There was such a good atmosphere you couldn’t help but be singing by the end of it.”