The King Biscuit Blues Festival, founded in 1986 and named after a local brand of flour, attracts six-figure crowds over four days.

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Thousands of people, many of them young, turned up for a street festival last month marking the end of the king's silver jubilee year.

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The chapel at King's College is the venue for the Christmas Eve service, A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, which is broadcast to millions around the world.

BBC: King's College and chapel

Saudi sources told CNN that the king's pardon was not related to the beginning of the Hajj nor the Eid al-Adha festival that follows, which is normally when the Saudi monarch issues amnesty for prisoners.

CNN: King pardons Saudi rape victim