Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark — Secret

JUL 01 1985 · 12:00

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark — Secret (1985) Director: Andy Morahan Era: Mid-Period Synth-Pop / New Wave Maturity (1985) - Peak commercial phase of British electronic pop, marked by sophisticated production, cinematic video ambition, and transatlantic crossover appeal during OMD's Crush album campaign. A formally distinctive mid-80s British pop promo that deploys archival footage collage and deliberate monochrome processing as expressive cinematic tools rather than mere aesthetic decoration. Documents an important transitional moment in both OMD's career and the evolution of the UK music video form, with early evidence of Andy Morahan's cinematic ambitions. High value for archives focusing on synth-pop visual culture, 1980s British film aesthetics, and the history of the music video as an art form. Context: Released in July 1985 as the second single from OMD's sixth studio album Crush, 'Secret' arrived at a moment when British synth-pop acts were navigating a commercial pivot toward American markets. The song charted at number 34 in the UK and reached number 63 on the US Billboard Hot 100, reflecting OMD's growing transatlantic audience. The promo video's formal strategy — weaving genuine vintage archival footage, including clips of The Beatles, into a newly-shot romantic narrative processed to resemble old home movies — positions memory and nostalgia as both subject and medium. This reflects a broader mid-80s tendency in British pop video-making toward literary and cinematic ambition, coinciding with the rapid maturation of the MTV-era promo as an art form. The video was used on television programmes in lieu of a Top of the Pops performance, demonstrating the increasing centrality of the promo clip as a promotional and artistic object. Director notes: Morahan directed the 'Secret' promo in 1985 during his formative period in British music video, prior to his breakthrough commercial successes. The video blends newly shot black-and-white footage — processed to simulate aged home-movie stock — with genuine vintage archival film clips. Colour performance footage provides contrast. The dramatic narrative was filmed on location at the seaside town of Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex. The technique of integrating real archival material with staged recreation was an ambitious and relatively unusual formal choice for a pop promo of this era, demonstrating Morahan's early interest in cinematic storytelling over pure performance.