Forty years on, new life for Pearl & Dean jingle

Say the words Pearl & Dean to any filmgoer and the chances are that they will know the famous "pa-pa, pa-pa, pa-pa" signature tune.

Nearly 40 years after it became the musical ident of the most famous name in British cinema advertising, "Asteroid" was digitally rerecorded yesterday when Pete Moore, who wrote the piece in 1968, joined singers and a 30-piece orchestra at the Abbey Road studios in north London.

While cinemas will continue to use the original, the new recording will be made available to download from iTunes and as a mobile phone ring tone. Pearl & Dean also plans to license it for commercial use.

"Cinemagoers over the years have loved our theme tune, and we're now giving fans the chance to get their hands on it," said Kathryn Jacob at Pearl & Dean. "The massive popularity of our theme tune and brand is all part of cinema tradition and I'm delighted to see it's got as many fans today as it had in yesteryear."