We weren't on a mission to still be doing shows 10 years later

THE first conversation between Radio 1 presenter and superstar club DJ Pete Tong and conductor and composer Jules Buckley was “kind of a bit of a blind date”

- HANNAH ROBERTS and KERRI-ANN ROPER talk to

That’s how dance-music pioneer Pete, 64, recalls their phone call 10 years ago.

The brief at the time had been to merge classic and electronic music for a BBC Prom at the Royal Albert Hall, to celebrate BBC Radio 1's 20-year association with Ibiza.

The result was a resounding succession of hits including Fatboy Slim’s Right Here, Right Now, Eric Prydz's Pjanoo and Lola's Theme from The Shapeshifters, all re-imagined with Jules conducting and Pete on the decks.

Now, to celebrate that night a decade on, Pete’s Ibiza Classics returns to the Royal Albert Hall for four dates (three in May and one in June).

"I never got to hear what he [Jules] could do because I was sending him the music that I wanted us to perform, and he was obviously writing the score for all the parts in the orchestra,” recounts Pete. “But it was literally not until a couple of days before the show that I’m actually in the room with the players. So it’s fascinating, I learned a hell of a lot.

"The first show was an appointment, we weren't on a mission to still be doing shows 10 years later. We just thought this was fun.”