by Adam Williams

A guitarist will step into the shoes of one of his idols this spring.

At the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday, May 22, Terence Reis will realise a lifelong dream, playing the greatest hits of Dire Straits before thousands of fans. For the first time in 20 years, the band will play a live show, but without one key member, guitar legend and lead vocalist Mark Knopfler.

Terence, 48, frontman of popular Kent band will take Knopfler’s place and share the stage with legends and former members Alan Clark, Phil Palmer and Chris White. The band, called The Straits, will play a one-off charity show supporting Eric Clapton.

Born in Mozambique and educated in South Africa, Terence moved back to Johannesburg last year after seven years living in Canterbury. Wife Joanna, 41, a former occupational therapist at Kent & Canterbury Hospital and two-year-old son Junot had not long returned to South Africa when a life-changing phone call came at the end of last year.

He said: “A man rang up one day, asked me a few questions to work out he was speaking to the right person and said, 'I’m Alan Clark, keyboardist for Dire Straits, I’ve heard your music, would you like to be part of the comeback?”

Terence, who used to live in King Street and Wincheap, grew up listening to English bands and guitar players with the same critical acclaim as Mark Knopfler. The link to Dire Straits stretches further as Joanna is a fellow Geordie like Knopfler. In less than two months, Terence will perform iconic hits including Sultans of Swing, Brothers in Arms, Money for Nothing and Romeo and Juliet.

He added: “There was a rich tradition of lively guitarists around me when I was growing up, like Jethro Tull and Jeff Beck. The finger-picking style Mark Knopfler is so distinctive for was a huge part of my musical education.

“When I was younger, there was a lot of pressure on me to play Dire Straits songs as people would say I mimicked Mark so closely. But, it’s a huge opportunity for me, I can’t believe it.

“Mark Knopfler would probably scream if people told him he was a genius, but he certainly is in my mind.”

Between now and May, Terence will be busy travelling between two continents rehearsing with The Straits and also putting the final touches on Waterhorse’s album. He admits nerves are already jangling ahead of his big night.

“I’m trying not to think about it at the moment,” added Terence.

“I sometimes wake up in the middle of the night screaming in a cold sweat, but it’s difficult to picture the moment before it actually happens. I’m probably going to have a heartbeat of 200 when I step on stage, but I just want to go out there and enjoy myself.

“Some of the best advice I’ve had so far is just to prepare everything really well. There’s such a lively buzz in every rehearsal, it’s really helping me and the rest of the band are really good guys who are so down to earth.

“There’s such a huge reaction around the world to see this music played on stage again. It still gets people going and so many generations love to hear it.”