Olympic closing ceremony will be ‘world’s greatest after-party’ says organiser

But he's staying tight-lipped about who will perform

The musical director of the Olympic closing ceremony has promised that Sunday’s extravaganza will be the “greatest after-party in the world”.

Speaking about organising the event on Sunday, where more than 20 British artists are set to perform around 30 pieces of music, David Arnold – who has composed soundtracks for five Bond films, as well as TV shows Little Britain and Sherlock – tells The Telegraph “it’s like spinning plates and they’re all on fire”.

To me, this should be the greatest after-party in the world. It will wrap up the spirit of what these Games have been, which is slightly anarchic, slightly mischievous, funny, heart-warming, emotional, inspiring, and uniquely British.

The two-and-a-half hour production, titled ‘A Symphony Of British Music’ will be a celebration of British music from the last 50 years. All tracks have been pre-recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, with only the vocals performed live.

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The line-up for the event is a closely guarded secret: “I’m always disappointed when something leaks,” Arnold says. “It’s like telling someone what they’re going to get for Christmas. You might be excited when you hear about it, but when it comes to opening the present you’ve already moved on.”

But public appetite to find out has been ravenous, and certain acts ended up being revealed. Earlier this week, it emerged that Muse will be playing the ceremony. George Michael and Ed Sheeran have also announced that they will be performing. Rumours were also sparked this week that Kate Bush could make a rare appearance after a remix track of ‘Running Up That Hill’ was posted, and subsequently deleted, from Amazon to be released shortly after the event.

Other rumoured performances include The Kinks’ Ray Davies singing ‘Waterloo Sunset’, Paul McCartney, the Spice Girls, Adele, Beady Eye, Take That, Queen, Paul Weller, One Direction, and Elton John.

‘A Symphony Of British Music: Music For The Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games’, an album containing music performed on the night, will be released digitally on August 12.

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