The Orb on Doctor Who

A seven-minute reworking of the Doctor Who theme commissioned by the BBC and recorded by The Orb is to get its first public performance in Portsmouth (Hampshire, England) on Saturday 16 April. It is to be played at a gig by Portsmouth-based band The Autons, who took their name from the Doctor Who monsters. The three-piece band (website), who are well-known Doctor Who enthusiasts, will be performing at the Third Floor Arts Centre, in the city's Central Library, at 8pm (BST), using The Orb's rendition of the theme as their walk-on music. According to Autons band member Tony Rollinson,The Orbwere granted access to the original tapes from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. He added that The Autons were offered the debut airing through cult Portsmouth band Ronaldo And The Loaf, who are friends of Orb member Alex Paterson. He added that the Orb track was being biked down especially - and that security measures would be in place to stop anyone recording it. Tickets to the gig apparently cost ú4 (with eyeliner) and ú5 (without eyeliner). Call the box office on 023 9268 8070 (website). Portsmouth (plus the Isle of Wight and the Solent) was used extensively for the location filming of The Sea Devils in October 1971. (Thanks to John Bowman)