THE sounds and songs of Roy Orbison and Buddy Holly will be brought to life at Malvern Theatres next weekend.

This Lonely Heart, The Musical Biography of Roy Orbison pays tribute to the man who brought classics such as Crying, Only the Lonely and Pretty Woman to the ears of millions. These tracks and more will be performed by Canadian Larry Branson, the original star of the West End musical The Roy Orbison Story.

He will be joined by American John Mueller as Buddy Holly, who performed with Larry on his last UK tour in 2001.

Larry Branson got into the music scene after singing along to Roy Orbison records spun on a player bought for him by his parents at their Vancouver home.

"At the time I wasn't trying to sound like Roy Orbison," he said. "I thought, if I was going to learn how to sing, I'm going to let Roy be my teacher."

His big break came years later at work when he was asked by a co-worker to manage his brother's band. Larry jumped in to provide the vocals for a version of Pretty Woman and was soon asked to front the band, which he did for the next five years before going solo.

Following the death of Orbison in 1988, Larry decided to perform a tribute and starred for four years in the Legends of Rock and Roll show, before moving to Britain for The Roy Orbison Story.

John Mueller grew up in Wichita, Kansas and grew up listening to the music of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis, teaching himself to play in their style.

Despite a successful acting career, his real passion remained with rock and roll, and he starred as Buddy Holly in the world premier of Be Bop A Lula in Hollywood. Since then he has received praise from Buddy's widow and brothers and performed with several members of his original band.

The show is on Saturday, November 9 at 7.30pm. Tickets start at £13, available from the box office on 01684 892277.