BBC to premiere Pet Shop Boys’ A man from the future
August 28, 2026



This autumn, the BBC will exclusively broadcast Pet Shop Boys’ new recording of A man from the future. The composition explores the life, death and influence of pioneering mathematician and cryptanalyst Alan Turing and is created in collaboration with Turing’s biographer, Professor Andrew Hodges.

Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe debuted the original work at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the BBC Proms in 2014, accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra and the BBC Singers. In this new version both the text and the music have been revised.


BBC Radio 6 Music will broadcast the 2026 edition of A man from the future on October 4th within Stuart Maconie’s Freak Zone (8pm-10pm), and Stuart will also hear from the Pet Shop Boys and Andrew Hodges about the creative process behind the reworking, and their interest in blending electronic and orchestral music.

The piece will then be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 later that evening within Unclassified (11.30pm-12.30am) as the Pet Shop Boys and Hodges join presenter Elizabeth Alker in the studio to reflect on the original performance and its 2026 evolution.

Both programmes will be available on BBC Sounds for 30 days after transmission.

The Pet Shop Boys commented: “Our motive in creating this work was to make a musical memorial to Alan Turing who gave so much to his country and the world and was rewarded for it by being prosecuted for his sexuality. Alan made a massive contribution to the defeat of Germany in World War Two and was a pioneer of computing, imagining a world with intelligent computers. He also looked forward to a time when being gay would be accepted as normal. In both his professional and private lives, he was ahead of his time.”

Lorna Clarke, BBC Director of Music, added: “When Pet Shop Boys debuted A man from the future at the BBC Proms twelve years ago, audiences were treated to an ambitious and moving tribute to the life and legacy of Alan Turing, whose work shaped the modern world. I’m delighted that this October, the BBC will be the first to share their new interpretation with audiences across the UK on 6 Music and Radio 3.”