On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. “We thought it sounded like an English rap group”.
The Pet Shop Boys make it into The Observer’s readers’ poll of the 100 greatest singles of all time, with ‘West End Girls’ placing at #70.
The Boys compose a one-minute ‘classical’ piece (‘Particle’) that will later be performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra for its upcoming ‘Music and Chance’ project. As Neil later says, ‘Chris basically wrote it and I added a couple of parts.’
Frances Barber is nominated for the Off West End ‘Best Lead Performance’ Award for her role as Billie Trix in the stage show Musik, with songs composed by Neil and Chris.