THIS weekend’s Battle Proms concert programme will commemorate the centenary of the start of the First World War.

The summer celebration will return tomorrow as the Battle Proms Picnic Concert makes its 14th annual appearance in the grounds of Highclere Castle.

The cavalry displays will be carried out in First World War regalia, before The Rockabellas take to the stage with a medley of songs popularised during the war.

To herald the start of the concert there will be a gun salute by an original First World War 13- pounder field gun that is taking part in the commemorative war horse ride this month.

This epic ride, sponsored in part by the Battle Proms, will see horses and riders making the 100- mile, five-day journey from Maroilles to Néry that was made 100 years ago in the opening weeks of the war by British and French cavalry troops in retreat of the German advance.

There will be an orchestral performance of Lest We Forget, a short work composed especially for the 2014 Battle Proms, in memory of those who made the supreme sacrifice in the war.

Opening with a solo trumpet fanfare (The Rouse) and incorporating iconic songs from the era, Lest We Forget takes in It’s A Long Way To Tipperary, What A Friend We Have In Jesus (the tune used by soldiers for When This Bloody War Is Over) and Mademoiselle from Armentières, recognisable to most of us as the tune to Hinky Dinky Parlez-Vous, before ending with the emotive solo trumpet performance of The Last Post.

For tickets go to battle proms.com or call 01432 355416.