Deirdre Cartwright & Alison Rayner are celebrating 50 years of making music together!

“We met in that long hot Summer of 1976 and now as we reach the end of another long hot summer in 2026, we want to pack out Ronnie Scott’s with all the wonderful people we’ve known for the past five decades.

This will be a totally unique gig, never to be repeated and tickets are already flying. We hope you’ll be able to be part of this epic celebration with us.”

Performances from ARQ, PICNIC with Annie Whitehead and a special set from ✰ The Guest Stars ✰

Alison Rayner and Deirdre Cartwright met in a shed in Peckham in 1976. They went on to become multi award winning musicians, composers, promoters and record producers.
Join them as they celebrate 50 years of musical partnership. 1976-2026

In this special lunchtime concert, these trailblazing women will be joined by members of the Guest Stars, ARQ and trombonist Annie Whitehead to play the music they love: African and Latin-influenced originals, acapella vocals, exciting small group jazz grooves and everyone on stage for an amazing finale.

Over the past fifty years they have performed together in numerous influential groups and projects including Jam Today, Sisterhood of Spit, The Guest Stars, The Happening, Lydia D’Ustebyn, The Emma Peel Fan Club, The Electric Landladies, the Deirdre Cartwright Group and Alison Rayner Quintet (ARQ), while co-founding Blow the Fuse in 1989.