BBC Northern Soul orchestra tour takes to the stage

The tour was inspired by the hit show at the Royal Albert Hall

A show featuring orchestrated versions of Northern Soul classics is set to start its tour taking in some "heartlands" of the music scene.

The BBC Concert Orchestra tour will open at The Halls in Wolverhampton on Wednesday evening, before playing in London, Manchester, Sheffield and Gateshead during April and May.

Host Stuart Maconie said Northern Soul Orchestrated was created after the success of the BBC's Northern Soul at the Proms in July 2023.

The writer and broadcaster said it had been a "night to remember" and an extraordinary event, which had also been watched by millions since on BBC iPlayer.

Stuart Maconie said the show may go to more venues if the tour is successful

He told BBC Breakfast: "People said 'you look like you were quite emotional' and I was - towards the end when I realised the whole of the Royal Albert Hall was on their feet, I mean really the whole of it, was on their feet."

The BBC Radio 6 Music presenter said the audience had included people who loved Northern Soul as well as people who did not know the music.

"And I just thought the collective sense of joy in the room was amazing," he said.

Northern Soul fans marked the 50th anniversary of the Wigan Casino nightclub's first soul all-nighter in Blackpool last September

He said the live shows would feature 36 songs which captured "the drama of being alive", covering themes such romance, heartbreak and hard times.

Mr Maconie added that they originated in black working-class communities in the US, becoming popular in northern England and the Midlands.

He said Wolverhampton was among the heartlands of this music scene and had been the home of the legendary Northern Soul club The Catacombs.

He added that it could be extended if successful.