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Mandela holds 90th birthday party for 46,664 special guests
Ellen Widdup06.05.08
Nelson Mandela will appear at a massive concert in Hyde Park to celebrate his 90th birthday. The former South African president will join a crowd of precisely 46,664 - his old prison number and now the name of his Aids charity - for the show next month.
The line-up includes Queen, Leona Lewis, Annie Lennox and the Soweto Gospel Choir. Dame Shirley Bassey, Simple Minds and Razorlight are also booked to perform alongside Sugababes, Andrea and Sharon Corr, Eddy Grant, Italian star Zucchero and Spanish group Amaral. Organisers have promised further stars on the bill with Eminem, U2, Amy Winehouse and the Spice Girls all expected to participate.
A spokesman said: "Several major artists are keeping silent about their involvement in order to take both Mr Mandela and the audience by surprise."
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mr Mandela says he is looking forward to the party. He said: "You all know that I am supposed to be retired. But my friends and the charitable organisations that bear my name want to use my 90th birthday year to raise funds to continue our work and so of course I want to help them.
"So, we have a bargain - I am going to London and they will host a concert in Hyde Park, which will raise awareness of our continuing work and much needed funds."
Lennox played a key part in the foundation of 46,664 in 2003. She also performed at a concert in 1988 celebrating Mr Mandela's 70th birthday. He was released two years later after 27 years incarceration.
Former US president Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US actors Robert De Niro and Forest Whitaker are among those attending on 27 June. Tickets are £65 each and go on sale this Friday. Those who register on the 46664 website before 6pm tonight will be able to buy pre-sale tickets from 9am tomorrow.
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