Mark Savage
BBC Music correspondent

Coronation Sanctus - which we're now hearing - was originally comissioned for King Charles III's coronation in May this year. Tonight, we hear it in a new orchestral arrangement for the first time.

In the programme notes, composer Roxanna Panufnik explains that she was asked to write a piece that was "festive and glittering, in contrast to the more meditative Mass movements that appeared either side of it".

Mark Savage
BBC Music correspondent

As we listen to Sheku Kanneh-Mason's thoughtful, evocative rendition of Max Bruch's Kol Nidrei, here's a brief history of the piece.

Subtitled "Adagio on Two Hebrew Melodies", it was composed specifically for Liverpool's Jewish community, drawing on two traditional Hebrew songs whose haunting melodies proved extraordinarily moving to the Protestant composer.

The first, Kol Nidre ("all vows") is a haunting prayer sung in synagogue on the eve of Yom Kippur, while the second is an interpolation of Isaac Nathan's arrangement of O Weep for Those that Wept on Babel's Stream.

Melancholy and introspective, it's a chance for Kanneh-Mason to showcase the tender humanity he's become known for.

The crowd in the Royal Albert Hall are now hearing from star cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, the 24-year-old making his debut at the Last Night.

He's playing Kol Nidrei by Max Bruch.

Two specially-selected audience members just put a chaplet of laurel leaves on a bust of Sir Henry Wood. But who was he?

Well, the Proms is in fact an abbreviation of the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts.

Wood was a legendary Proms conductor who in 1895 was offered conductorship of the first ever season of the concerts.

He remained in his post for a phenomenal 50 years until 1944 - the year of his death. Wood is remembered every year at the Proms with that bronze bust prominently displayed at the back of the Royal Albert Hall’s stage.

Once the Proms have finished, the chaplet is taken from Wood’s bust to St Sepulchre’s Church and a service is held in his memory.

Chidima Obiakor
Live at the Royal Albert Hall

This is my first time at the proms - and it is beyond anything I had expected.

As I entered the hall, I was delighted to see first time prommers and returning prommers coming together to wave their flags and celebrate the end of summer.

I have just spoken with Kieron and Wanda, also first time prommers.

They have been told about the proms before - but are excited to explore the world of classical music for themselves.

The show has started, the hall is packed, and the music is absolutely phenomenal.

Malu Cursino
Live at the Royal Albert Hall

A packed - and rather warm - Royal Albert Hall welcomes this year’s Last Night of the Proms.

As a reminder - Saturday has provisionally been the hottest day of the year so far in the UK, with temperatures around 33C (91F).

This is my view of the rendition of Don Juan:

Coming up first this evening, the performers will give us their rendition of Richard Strauss' Don Juan.

Malu Cursino
Live at the Royal Albert Hall

With the start just moments away, we've just spoken to BBC Proms director David Pickard who says "this year is, in a way, even more special because we haven't had a really full last night since 2019" (because of Covid and the Queen's death last year).

Pickard says he "always loves hearing the new pieces because we're all hearing those pieces for the first time".

"Everybody, including me, is going to be hearing them for the first time here in the hall."

The Proms director adds that the highlight will be to see the two soloists - Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Lise Davidsen - take the stage.

They both made their debuts at the Proms in the same year, 2017, Pickard says, "and here they are in the Last Night".

"It's a lovely thing that at the Proms we can help nurture that talent and grow people's careers - and that's what this big showcase event will do for them."

We're almost there - the Last Night of the Proms is due to start at 19:00 BST.

Our audiences in the UK can watch the concert live via a streaming link at the top of this page. Just click the Play button.

Meanwhile, audiences both domestic and international can listen to every note of the Last Night of The Proms live on BBC Radio 3 here, or by clicking the relevant link at the top of the page.

And if you want to catch up on previous concerts:

• You can listen to Proms concerts from across the season here on BBC Sounds
• Or watch 20 fantastic Proms from Bach to Beethoven to Bollywood here on BBC iPlayer

The 2022 Last Night of the Proms was due to be held on 10 September, with performances from cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, opera singer Lise Davidsen and conductor Dalia Stasevska.

But organisers cancelled the event “as a mark of respect” following the death of Queen Elizabeth II earlier that week.

Soprano Lise Davidsen, who’s back at the Royal Albert Hall this year, told the BBC that musicians had been deep into rehearsing Rule, Britannia! when the news came through.

“You couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed,” she said.

This was not the only occasion in modern history when the event had to adapt.

Late changes were made in 1997, following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and after 9/11 in 2001. In 2020, the concert happened in an empty hall owing to Covid restrictions.

Image source, Getty Images

Since at least the Second World War, people have flown the Union Jack at the Last Night of the Proms.

After the UK decided to leave the European Union, plenty of people have also brought the blue and yellow flag of the EU.

The referendum was in 2016 - and the UK left in January 2020 - but the trend is not going away, as these pictures from tonight show...

Image source, Getty Images

World-renowned Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen will also play a starring role tonight.

She’s gained plaudits and prizes for performances in opera houses around the world.

Earlier this week, she described the disappointment of missing her chance to play at the Last Night in 2022 - though said she “totally understood” organisers’ decision to cancel the event in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.

She told our music correspondent Mark Savage that she was looking forward to seeing people dressed up, waving flags - and to “the sheer joy” of singing along together.

“It’s the closest I’ll get to being at a sports event,” she joked.

Superstar cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason will tonight take centre stage at the Last Night of the Proms.

Nottingham-born Kanneh-Mason won the BBC’s 2016 Young Musician of the Year contest and later played at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Earlier this week, he told the Radio Times of his “pretty constant” experience of prejudice during his childhood, and reflected on a racist message on social media aimed at his sister, who also performed during this year’s Proms.

Mark Savage
BBC Music correspondent

Earlier this year, Cate Blanchett was nominated for her role in Tár - Todd Hayne’s critically-acclaimed drama about an acclaimed, but narcissistic, conductor who manipulates, bullies and humiliates her colleagues.

Although the character is a fictional creation, many critics noticed biographical similarities between Lydia Tár and tonight’s Proms conductor Marin Alsop.

Both are students of Leonard Bernstein, who teach at a major music conservatory and lead a prominent American orchestra. They are also both in a long-term relationship with a female musician, with whom they have a son.

On the other hand, Alsop has never been accused of misconduct, and is overwhelmingly supportive of (and liked by) the musicians she plays with.

Image source, Focus Features

When she saw the film, she was not impressed, calling it “anti-woman”.

“So many superficial aspects of Tár seemed to align with my own personal life," she told the Times, external. “But once I saw it I was no longer concerned, I was offended: I was offended as a woman, I was offended as a conductor, I was offended as a lesbian.”

“To have an opportunity to portray a woman in that role and to make her an abuser – for me that was heartbreaking."

For her part, Blanchett said the film was a “mediation on power” and that “power is genderless”, while insisting that the character was not inspired by Alsop.

The conductor was unmoved.

“There are so many men - actual, documented men - this film could have been based on but, instead, it puts a woman in the role but gives her all the attributes of those men,” she said.

What we like to listen to says a lot about our personality… or at least that’s the theory.

BBC Arts has designed this light-hearted quiz to work out which composer is your natural soulmate - and to get you in the mood for an evening of musical drama and tranquil interludes.

Are you most akin to a Beethoven, a Bach, a Mahler or a Mozart? This simple quiz uses your summer holiday preferences to find your musical match.

Don’t worry, classical music knowledge is not required!

Malu Cursino
Live at the Royal Albert Hall

Now let's return to the Royal Albert Hall, where prommers have been queuing from 17:00 - and some even earlier.

Standing next to each other are Bob and Caroline - who bring two different perspectives to tonight's concert.

"It's my 52nd Prom," Bob tells me.

It's his first Last Night since 2018, but he has been to many before.

"It's just a party," he says, when asked what he most enjoys. "It's an end of season party."

And standing next to Bob is Caroline - who is about to experience her first Last Night of the Proms.

She moved from Belgium to London just two years ago and the "extraordinary" line-up is what brought her here.

"I am looking forward to Lise Davidsen in particular, but also because it is very iconic in the British cultural landscape."

Katie Derham
BBC Proms presenter

There’s nothing quite like The Last Night of the Proms. It’s the biggest party in the classical music calendar, when millions of people around the country come together in celebration, just as Henry Wood intended.

He co-founded the Proms with Robert Newman to bring the best music to as many people as possible, and that’s exactly what we continue to do to this day. Tonight, I cannot wait to see Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Lise Davidsen take to the stage.

They’re two incredible soloists who sell out concert halls around the world, so to have them both here tonight is a real treat.

We have Marin Alsop, one of our greatest conductors, leading the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the BBC Singers. What more could you possibly ask for?!

Every note will be broadcast live on Radio 3, BBC Two and, from 9pm on BBC One. And you can watch it all here, on iPlayer and listen on BBC Sounds too. However you choose to watch or listen, I hope you have a fantastic evening.

The Proms season started eight weeks ago with a joyous rendition of Verdi’s Requiem, marking a return to large-scale choral and orchestral work after the Covid-enforced restrictions of the previous two seasons.

Since then, the highlights have come thick and fast.

• Mariza sings Fado: A passionate and fiery evening of Fado music, otherwise known as the“Portuguese blues”. The concert was fronted by Fado legend Mariza, whose agile vocals and sparkling charisma lit up the Royal Albert Hall.
• Simon Rattle’s farewell: One of the year’s most emotional Proms, as Sir Simon Rattle bowed out as as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra. He chose to depart with Mahler’s valedictory Symphony No 9. When it ended, the hall sat in silence for 30 seconds. The end of an era.
• Chineke! blow the roof off:The Chineke! orchestra's youthful energy brings a whole new energy to well-loved classics. This year, the ensemble played Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony and Haydn’s exuberant Trumpet Concerto. Keep an eye out for soloist Aaron Azunda Akugbo, who tackles the piece with unmissable flair.
• A night of Northern Soul: "Orchestral versions of pop music can feel a little bit contrived,” admitted BBC 6 Music’s Stuart Maconie, who co-curated this second concert of the Proms. "Northern Soul, absolutely not, because so many of the original records feature orchestration, so its in the vocabulary already."

And here's one of the Northern Soul highlights: Vula Malinga performing Tainted Love. Originally a B-side on a 1965 Gloria Jones single, later a classic Northern Soul track at Va Va’s in Bolton and Wigan Casino.

The night kicks off after 19:00 BST with Richard Strauss’s swashbuckling Don Juan, and proceeds with works by other classical greats including Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi and Max Bruch.

There’ll also be a world premiere of a piece by James B Wilson, which was commissioned to mark 100 years of the BBC.

The second half starts with another world premiere - of Laura Karpman’s main theme from the upcoming Marvels superhero film.

Later, a number of British sea-songs will be sung, according to tradition - as will Rule, Britannia!, Land of Hope and Glory, Jerusalem, the National Anthem and Auld Lang Syne.

You can see the full programme here.

Malu Cursino
Live at the Royal Albert Hall

I am here with the wonderful Joanna Mills, BBC Proms team member, who has been here for the entirety of the Proms season!

Joanna says the highlight has been working with people she has always admired - listening to repertoire she truly adores.