Thousands of tickets for Sir Elton John's first concert in Sussex in 24 years were snapped up within hours of going on sale.

Just minutes after lines opened at 9am on Monday, 12,000 fans eager to see the pop legend perform at next summer's show had bought tickets.

By lunchtime, 10,000 of the 18,000 £40 and £60 seats for the open-air concert on June 25 at Sussex County Cricket Ground in Hove had been sold.

All the top hospitality packages at up to £295 each, promising Champagne, three-course dinners and seating in front of the stage, have been sold by the cricket club.

Only a few of the £155 packages are still available.

Some fans had managed to bag tickets by phoning the Ticketmaster hotline over the weekend and reserving them in advance.

Promoters of the concert were delighted with the response.

Ben Martin, of Marshall Arts, said: "This is by far the fastest-selling concert on the tour. There has been massive interest.

"I think it is because Sir Elton has not played Sussex for so long and there is a lot of interest in music in Sussex as can be seen by the quality of acts that play the Brighton Centre.

"We are very happy with the response so far. It looks as if all the 18,000 tickets and all hospitality packages will be sold but we never like to use the word sell-out."

He said fans who booked tickets would receive them a month or six weeks in advance of the show.

They would also receive detailed instructions on where to park and how to reach the venue by public transport.

The Argus is the official media partner for the concert.

Sir Elton is playing a set of ten dates across the country, including football grounds at Bournemouth and Oxford and cricket grounds at Durham, Worcester and Taunton.

He is due to perform continuously for two hours at the afternoon show in Hove.

Exact timings have not been worked out yet but it is thought the music will start at 3pm and finish by 7pm.

Mr Martin said: "We shall be building a spectacular set and it will be very impressive.

"Sir Elton will be singing two hours of hits from across three decades."

Sussex Cricket Club is taking advice from other grounds that have staged similar concerts on how to cover the pitch and wicket for the all-seated show.

The Ticketmaster hotline is on 0871 2302612, See Tickets is on 0870 4445556 and Ticketlinne o 0870 1612123.