The Queen's Golden oldies

The Queen gets what The Queen wants. And when our monarch throws a pop concert at Buckingham Palace to celebrate her Golden Jubilee, she chooses who she wants to play. That might explain why Her Majesty, at 75, has hired a line-up of rock dinosaurs - with an average age of 57.

The line-up for the Party at the Palace concert on 3 June does, however, read like a Who's Who of rock. It includes Sir Paul McCartney, 59, Eric Clapton, 56, Phil Collins, 51, Aretha Franklin, 59, Sir Elton John, 54, Tom Jones, 61, and Brian Wilson, 59, of The Beach Boys.

But the concert - which is planned to showcase talent from the 50 years of the Queen's reign - will also have rather more contemporary acts, in Pop Idol winner Will Young, SClub7 and Atomic Kitten. More acts are expected to be revealed nearer the time. The event will be hosted by comics Ben Elton and Lenny Henry.

News of the concert starts a big week for Will Young. Today, figures will show that his debut single, Anything Is Possible/ Evergreen, will be the biggest-selling single of all time, eclipsing Elton John's tribute to Diana, Candle in the Wind.

Some 250,000 copies flew off the shelves yesterday alone. Evening Standard also revealed last week that Young is expected to earn some £5 million in his first year. But that's nothing compared to what the Queen's line-up has already earned. The combined wealth of the seven veterans, who have between them sold some 500 million records worldwide, is in the region of £1.2 billion, which pips Her Majesty's wealth at £1.1 billion.

The Jubilee event is under the creative guidance of Beatles' producer Sir George Martin and respected music producer Phil Ramone, and the musical directorship of acclaimed musician and composer Michael Kamen. It will end with a massive fireworks display, followed by the Queen leaving Buckingham Palace to light the first in a chain of beacons across Britain.

Other events will include a royal military review at Portsmouth on 27 June, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies of the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.

But London will be the centre of the greatest pageantry during a four-day weekend from 1-4 June, when public holidays have been declared for the Monday and Tuesday.

The pop concert line-up was revealed at Buckingham Palace today along with details of another classical concert in the grounds of the Palace over the same weekend. The BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, under the baton of their Conductor Laureate Sir Andrew Davis, will form the backbone of the classical concert, Prom at the Palace, on Saturday 1 June.

This two-hour feast of music will include a rare performance by Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, and soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa. British baritone Sir Thomas Allen will also perform, and opera's hottest duo, Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu, will make a special appearance. The repertoire has been chosen to reflect the centuriesstrong link between music and the monarchy.

Some 12,000 fans, chosen by ballot, will be invited to each of the concerts which will be accompanied by champagne picnics prepared by royal chefs. Everyone is invited to apply for an invitation by telephoning 0900 1952 2002. Calls will cost no more than £1, except from mobiles when costs may vary. The proceeds will go to The Queen's Golden Jubilee Charity.

Lines will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, from today until midnight on Sunday 17 March.

Invitations will be allocated according to the broad spread of population across England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Isles and the Isle of Man. Everyone can apply for two tickets and successful applicants will be contacted by 19 April.