I ROLLING STONES, FOLLIE PER HYDE PARK

The Rolling Stones are preparing for their forthcoming Hyde Park concerts by having trees installed.

Huge model oak trees have been planted on top of the stage, while bushes have been installing on the sound desk and other equipment. They want to recreate the first time they played in the Royal park in 1969.

A source told The Sun: “When Mick and the band looked out from the stage back in the Sixties all they could see was a sea of people and a load of trees, but many of those have been cleared or replanted since. So they want to recreate the woodland. The two oak trees either side of the stage are absolutely massive. They want it to look as authentic as possible.”

The oaks are more than 70ft high and around 10,000 branches have been attached to make the stage blend in. This Saturday’s Barclaycard British Summer Time gig is the first of two concerts at Hyde Park — almost exactly to the day that the band, then featuring Mick Taylor in the line-up after the death of Brian Jones. The set began with a poetry recital by Mick Jagger, who read a Shelley poem before 2,000 white butterflies were released.