Thirty years have passed since Dire Straits disbanded, leaving behind a catalog of some of the finest compositions and musical performances that rock’s heyday ever produced. If anything, their reputation has only grown with time. Record sales of more than 120 million albums continue to rise as new young fans discover the music and join the band’s large global following.

Amid a more than two-decade hiatus – and a growing demand to hear one of rock’s most dramatic songbooks live again – former Dire Straits members Alan Clark, Chris White and Phil Palmer formed The Straits in 2011 for a charity show at the Royal Albert Hall. With the prolific Mark Knopfler pursuing an incredibly successful solo career, Alan Clark asked singer-songwriter Terence Reis to front the band in his absence. When The Straits disbanded three and a half years later, the band had played more than 150 concerts in 25 countries around the world.

An invitation to a series of concerts in New Zealand and Australia led Chris White and Terence Reis to collaborate again for the Dire Straits Experience. They are supported by a top-class band with some of the best professional musicians the UK has to offer.

Together they have compiled an enviable list of rock greats including Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, Sam Brown, Elton John, Joe Cocker, Nik Kershaw, George Michael, Jamiroquai, The Killers, The Waterboys, Mick Jagger, These include Tina Turner, Midge Ure, Albert Lee and Tom Jones.

Chris White, who worked on film music with Mark Knopfler in the early 80s, accompanied Dire Straits on their record-breaking Brothers In Arms world tour in 1985. This included their appearance at Live Aid and later at Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday concert in 1988, after which he played on the final Dire Straits album On Every Street and was again part of the two-year world tour that spawned the live album and DVD On The Night. Having experienced the audience reaction to a Dire Straits live show at the height of the band’s popularity, he now speaks fondly of the fans:

“I’m truly amazed and, frankly, humbled by the reaction of the fans when we hear these songs again. Dire Straits have an incredibly loyal fan base. It’s been great to catch up with the people I last saw in 1992 and see that they still get so much out of this music. It’s also fantastic to make new friends among the many young people who are now discovering Mark and Dire Straits. So many people still want to see it live.”