LONDON (AFP).- Leicester Cathedral, now the home of king Richard III's remains which were found in a car park, is celebrating the English monarch's story with a new musical.

"The King in the Car Park" gets its premiere on Tuesday at Leicester Cathedral in central England, with a second performance on Wednesday at a church in nearby Loughborough.

The cantata will be performed by 300 schoolchildren along with cathedral choristers and a live band, the cathedral said.

The work comprises nine movements in a variety of styles including jazz, musical theatre and folk, and tells the story of Richard's life, death in battle, rediscovery and reburial.

The last English king to die in battle, Richard ruled from 1483 until his brutal death at the Battle of Bosworth near Leicester in 1485, aged 32.

Bosworth was the last major conflict in the Wars of the Roses and changed the course of English history as the Tudor dynasty captured the crown from the Plantagenets.

Richard's body was hastily buried by monks at Greyfriars monastery in Leicester, which was dissolved in 1538. His remains were discovered in 2012 under a car park on the site.

He was reburied in Leicester Cathedral with great fanfare in March.





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