LONGLEAT bosses are looking forward to Sunday's sold out Elton John concert and are confident it will not be a repeat of the Red Bull Air Race fiasco, which caused traffic chaos across Wiltshire in 2006.

The estate is just days away from staging its first major music concert since 1964, when the Rolling Stones brought a dose of Brown Sugar to the safari park.

In 2006, when Longleat was forced to cancel the Air Race due to bad weather, the estate came under fire for the gridlock which ensued – but that will not be happening again according to CEO Bob Montgomery, who cannot wait to welcome the music legend to the park.

He said: “Elton John jumped out at us straight away, especially as he has the Lion King link. The synergy was too good to pass up.

“It’s great to see it all coming together after a year of planning. It's going to be a very exciting learning curve for everyone involved.

"We have a very tight plan in place to ensure traffic isn’t a problem. Residents have raised concerns about the Red Bull Air Race but this concert will give them confidence that we have moved on.

“The team has worked hard to identify extra parking spaces and we will have a team on the night to ensure arrival and departure is a smooth process. I’m not anxious about it at all.”

With 15,000 people descending on the estate to see the icon, who has more than 50 Top 40 hits under his belt, concerns were raised about noise pollution and animal welfare, but these have been taken care of by the estate.

A Longleat spokesperson said: “Animals located close to the concert will be kept safely inside night time facilities and away from any potential noise throughout the duration of the concert and extra precautions and keepers will also be in place to monitor all the animals while the concert is taking place.

“Residents have been notified of the event and will be provided with an event contact e-mail and phone number on the day of the concert should they have any queries.”

Tickets for Sir Elton, who will take to the stage at around 7pm after support from rising star Foy Vance, sold out in May but there are several pairs of tickets being sold on eBay, Stub Hub and Get Me In, including one pair on eBay going for £250 with 22 bids.

Event orgnanisers are advising people not to buy tickets from any potential ticket touts outside the venue.

Over 100 trucks have been transporting equipment to and from the estate in the week building up to the concert and on Monday Longleat’s own team of staff will be supported by a specialist event waste company to ensure the estate returns to normal.

To follow the event on social media, use the hashtag #EltonAtLongleat

GETTING THERE:

Longleat’s attraction for the day will close at 3.30pm and entrance for the concert will commence at 4pm.

Organisers are advising that concert-goers make their way to their designated concert car park by 4pm to avoid disappointment.

There will be two on-site car parks located at the estate a short walk from the arena as well as a park and ride car park at the Frome show field, about a 10 minute bus journey from the arena.

No road closures are in place in the area but organisers are advising that the roads will be busy as 15,000 Elton fans descend on the estate.

A drop off and pick up location will be signposted for people who are being dropped off at the concert and the nearest train station is Warminster, about five miles from Longleat.

Taxi companies advised from Westbury and Warminster are Starline Taxis, who can be contacted on 01985 212215, AAA Taxis (01985 846674) and DJ’s Taxis (01985 215151).