Mike Oldfield’s soundtrack for 1979’s The Space Movie is to be released as an album for the first time.
It’s to be launched on October 16, along with a director’s cut edition of the film on a bonus DVD.
Oldfield was brought in by producer Tony Palmer after NASA made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. Palmer recalls: “In 1978 I was shown the mountain of film collected from John Glenn, the first astronaut to orbit the Earth, until Apollo 17. Use whatever I wanted, I was told.
“From the beginning, I wanted Mike to write the music. The soundtrack that emerged is an inspiring match for the images.”
Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the Moon, said at a screening in 2008: “I still get a chill hearing some of the talk-back which, like the footage, NASA had provided for Tony to use.”
A screening of the restored version of The Space Movie takes place at the Barbican, London, on November 15. Oldfield’s soundtrack album is available for pre-order now.
