Sir Tom Jones wowed the crowds at London’s Kenwood House last night (24.06.11) as he kicked off the 2011 English Heritage Picnic Concerts.

Thousands of fans braved torrential rain to cheer on the music legend, who combined the gospel tracks from his latest album ‘Praise & Blame’ with his more well-known hits, including ‘Delilah’, It’s Not Unusual’, ‘The Green, Green Grass of Home’, ‘Kiss’ and ‘You Can Leave Your Hat On’.

Despite the wet weather, the singer was on good form, telling the crowd – who descended onto the expansive grounds with picnic blankets and hampers in hand – stories of his friendships with Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis.

One fan said: “It was really wet, but Tom made it all worthwhile. We forgot about the rain as soon as he started singing.”

English Heritage Picnic Concerts unite world-class music and breath-taking locations for a wonderful celebration of the British Picnic tradition and guests can choose to bring their own picnics or enjoy the delicious pre-prepared picnic hampers by Carluccio’s. The Picnic Concerts allow guests to feast on some of the finest food and music in the most enchanting settings in the UK.

Tickets are available at www.picnicconcerts.com, while Carluccio’s deluxe picnics can be ordered from www.carluccios.com/picnics.