Weather warning for Osmond fans

The singer discovered his ancestors came from Merthyr

With weekend events affected by poor weather, fans attending Donny Osmond's Merthyr Tydfil gig have been urged to prepare for rain on Saturday night.

The Met Office forecast heavy showers overnight for many parts of Wales.

A sponsored hike in the Brecon Beacons and an open day at a nature reserve in Monmouthshire were postponed.

Earlier, drivers on the M4 were advised to slow down between junctions 23 and 29 and between junctions 34 to 49 because of rain and surface water.

Meanwhile, 10 Welsh firefighters have been sent to south Yorkshire to provide relief crewing in flood-hit areas.

A clown braves the rain at the annual carnival at Creigiau

Around 15,000 fans were expected to attend Donny Osmond's open-air home-coming concert at Cyfarthfa Castle.

In 2005, Osmond traced his ancestors to the area, where he found his family had lived in Merthyr for hundreds of years before fleeing from mid-19th Century cholera outbreaks for the United States.

Although heavy rain was forecast for the Merthyr area, concert organiser Emyr Afan dismissed any fears that the performance would be cancelled and said they were prepared for any bad weather.

"We have taken precautions on the site and it's looking pretty good at the moment," he said.

"But people should come prepared. Wear something waterproof, put some comfortable, sensible shoes on and bring a weatherproof sheet to sit on."

Home coming

Police were also asking people attending the Osmond concert to leave plenty of time for their journey to and from the concert and to make clear plans for how they will get home afterwards.

The singer was expected to perform hits from his 44-year career as a solo artist and as part of his brothers' band The Osmonds, including Puppy Love, Crazy Horses and Love Me For A Reason.

The gates opened at 1730 BST and the concert was due to finish at 2300 BST.

Park and ride facilities were being provided at the college car park in Merthyr and the Hoover factory in Pentre Bach, which will be signposted from the main roads.

There will be limited car parking spaces at the castle site and these are expected to fill up early. Any cars found to be causing an obstruction will be towed, said police.

Traffic restrictions will be in place from 2200 BST until 0100 BST on Sunday at Brecon Road, the junction of Gwaelod Y Garth and the junction of Gurnos Road.

The young Donny found solo fame with ballads like Puppy Love

This will effectively close the route to all traffic except emergency vehicles.

Fans have also been warned that the last train leaving Merthyr is at 2300 BST, so concert-goers travelling by rail will either have to leave the gig early to catch it, or make alternative arrangements to get home.

Meanwhile, the weather forecast has already meant an open day at Magor Marsh nature reserve in Monmouthshire, due to take place on Saturday, has been postponed until September.

There were worries over floods, cars getting stuck in the parking field and damage to the site.

And a sponsored walk to the top of Pen Y Fan by 60 members of the diocese of Swansea has also been held up by the weather until September.

The walk is set to raise funds for a poverty-stricken region of Brazil.

A fairtrade picnic, planned for Porthcawl, was also postponed.

The BBC's digital viewers can watch the Donny Osmond concert live on BBCi by pressing the red button, or online at bbc.co.uk/donnycomeshome from 2115 BST, or they can listen live on Radio Wales from 2030 BST.