LIVE8 organisers were last night making the final preparations for the biggest music event the world has ever seen.

Crews were working through the night to turn London's Hyde Park into a concert arena for 150,000 people.

On a smaller scale, screens were being erected at the Gateshead International Stadium, where 3,000 will see the concert beamed from London.

The concert kicks off at about 2pm today and will be watched by about two billion people worldwide. Concerts are also being staged in Philadelphia, Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, Rome, Johannesburg, Moscow and Barrie, Canada.

Meanwhile, a series of events were staged yesterday ahead of the Live8 shows and the G8 conference of world leaders in Edinburgh.

Youngsters in Durham wrapped their school in a white chain of recycled paper as they joined in calling for an end to poverty.

The pupils from Durham Blue Coat CE Junior School, in Durham City, inscribed each link of the 220m-long chain with Make Poverty History as they marked Global White Band Day.

North Durham MP Kevan Jones visited Ouston Infant School, near Chester-le-Street, where pupils formed a living white band.

Volunteers and supporters of Durham's Oxfam shop took to the streets, forming a white band at sites in the city centre including Durham Cathedral and the Market Place.

The Durham Singers' concert tonight will be partly in aid of Save the Children, which is part of the Make Poverty History campaign.

The concert, including folk songs, starts at 7.30pm in Elvet Methodist Church, Old Elvet, Durham City. Tickets cost £10 and £8 and are available from the Gala Theatre, Millennium Place, Claypath.

More than 500 people of all ages encircled Penshaw Monument, near Sunderland, to show their support. Respect Party leader George Galloway joined North-East MPs Chris Mullin, Fraser Kemp and Sharon Hodgson at the event.