THE sun was shining and some of the country’s best known bands were singing at a North-East music festival yesterday.

Nearly 50,000 people attended the tenth annual Middlesbrough Music Live event.

Among the bands performing were The Zutons, Noah and the Whale and The Sunshine Underground.

As well as the chart-toppers, an array of up-and-coming bands took to the stage. Among the local bands playing on their home turf were the Chapman Family.

One of the most hotly tipped bands of this year, Detroit Social Club, played a set on the Ten Feet Tall stage, at the Empire.

Judith Croft, festivals and events organiser for Middlesbrough Council, said: “This is the first year we’ve had a warm up event – the Middlesbrough Fringe.

“That was a fantastic lead up to the main event. At 7pm we had counted about 35,000 people and that number was increasing.”