ORCHESTRAL Manoeuvres In The Dark will share the stage with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra later this year.

The group’s Wirral-born founding members Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys will perform their greatest hits and their music and video installation, The Energy Suite, during the show at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on Saturday, June 20. Conducting the orchestra will be Clark Rundell.

Looking ahead to the show, Andy told the Globe: “It’s a big screen with a 75-piece orchestra and a wonderful opportunity to perform at the Philharmonic Hall.

"Playing with the Liverpool Phil is something that is so far removed from where we started out and it’s a terribly exciting prospect.”

The former Calday Grange Grammar Schoolboy - who still lives in Wirral - continued: “Paul and me started our music careers in the back room of his mum’s house in Meols and now here we are, two lads who couldn’t even stick it out in the recorder class in school, getting the chance to play with the Liverpool Philharmonic.”

During the show, they will play their many hits including Enola Gay, Souvenir, Joan of Arc, Sailing on the Seven Seas and Electricity with specially written arrangements by Gary Carpenter and Ian Stephens.

The Energy Suite - which ended its run at FACT in Wood Street, Liverpool on Saturday - captured the architecture and sounds of five electricity generating power stations.

For the project, Andy teamed up with internationally renowned designer Peter Saville and Liverpool-based video artist Hambi Haralambous, who made the 26 films that were used during the group’s Architecture & Morality tour last year.

OMD have had a long association with Peter and the show fufilled an early ambition of Andy and Peter’s to create what was originally going to be a work based on Stanlow Oil Refinery, the subject of one of the band’s songs from 1980 that used sounds recorded at the Ellesmere Port site.

Andy said: “The Energy Suite was really well received at FACT. Having the orchestra involved this time round should make it an incredible combination.

They will be accompanied by a computer playing sounds of the turbines.”

Featured in the new artwork were Heysham Nuclear Power Site, North Hoyle Bank Wind Turbine, Fiddler’s Ferry Coal Fired Power Station, Point of Ayr Gas Station and Connah’s Grid.

The installation was part of “Ding Dong”, a major exhibition of sound, design music and interaction that formed part of Liverpool's Capital of Culture celebrations.

Tickets for the June 20 show, which starts at 7.30pm, are from the box office on 0151 709 3789.