A DANCE act is using one of the most memorable TV comedy moments of last year as inspiration for a raid on the pop charts.

North-East recording act Da Boss have sampled boss from hell David Brent from BBC sitcom The Office, to come up with The Office Dance.

And the star and writer of the hit series, Ricky Gervais, has given his full approval for the track to be released.

The tune is based around David Brent's grunts as he carries out a bizarre disco dance routine in a now-famous episode of the show screened last year.

The pair behind the record are Gareth Wood and Tamsin O'Farrell. Mr Wood, 25, of Ryton, Gateshead, said he had forgotten about the record until he bumped into his friend Dean Maynard.

He said: "I wrote it more than a year ago with my fiancee, Tamsin, after I saw the episode on TV.

"I forgot about it until I met Dean on New Year's Eve. After a few drinks, he persuaded me to take another look at it.

"I sent a copy to Ricky Gervais' agent, who passed it on to him. He said he liked it and gave us full permission to go ahead.

"To get approval from Ricky Gervais himself, and to think that he found it funny, is a huge compliment."

Copies of the track have been sent out to regional radio stations and Radio One DJ Judge Jules has also expressed an interest.

Mr Maynard, who is also part of Da Boss, said: "All we need now is a record company to come in and we are convinced this can be a top ten hit.

"We are huge fans of The Office. To be honest, if all we get out of this is to meet Ricky Gervais, we would both be happy."

Published: 16/01/2004