THE widow of the famed Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt is hoping people in the Tyne Valley will be Rockin All Over the World next month.

Lyndsay Parfitt, who was married to the world-renowned musician, is helping promote tribute act the Quo Experience after being bowled over by the likeness of the impersonators. The five-piece will perform at Hexham’s Queen’s Hall on April 18.

Rick was a big part of Status Quo after joining the band in the 1960s, serving Status Quo for close to 50 years until 2016 due to ill health. His death from sepsis in December that year shocked the world, especially his wife and their twin children.

Mrs Parfitt was then invited to watch the Quo Performance, with Dave Crawte performing as her late husband, at the Apex in Bury St Edmund’s, which she accepted with great reluctance.

She explained: “I was worried about whether I should have gone or not, because Rick’s death was still raw.

“I was worried about going to watch somebody impersonate the band, but we were really happy at what we saw and I felt like it was a fitting tribute to Rick.

“It was very emotive but, since then, I’ve become friends with the band and I recently started promoting them.”

The Quo Experience sees Crawte joined in the line-up by David Wood, impersonating Status Quo frontman Francis Rossi, and Graham Partridge performing as Andy Bown. Bassist Del Fletcher and drummer Ian ‘Jasper’ Woodthorpe add to the experience.

The band are touring parts of the UK, with a stop at Hexham on the list.

And Mrs Parfitt is hoping the people of Tynedale will get out and support a band very close to her heart.

“I wouldn’t have put my name to the band if I didn’t think they were that good, because it is such an emotive subject for me,” she said.

“Dave who plays the part of Rick has obviously studied video footage of the band very closely as he has got the moves and the riffs down to perfection. He has the mannerisms and personality.

“I haven’t seen Status Quo perform since Rick died and I would say the Quo Experience is more like the original Quo than the actual band!

“It’s so nice to see somebody impersonate Rick and keep his memory alive, and I’m only too pleased to support that. You have got to grasp the positive out of tragedy.

“In fact, it’s great that these guys are keeping the Quo spirit alive.”

Music fans are promised a memorable evening during the Quo Experience’s performance, which is so authentic that it comes complete with replica guitars and guitar picks, and even the trademark white socks.

Mrs Parfitt said: “The band cover all the big hits from Status Quo, and they will get people up in the aisles.

“Status Quo used to always get people up dancing, and this is as near as you can get to the real thing.

“People can expect a really enjoyable evening in the true spirit of the Quo.

“They are a very nice bunch of guys, and they are working hard even though most of them are doing other work.

“But they’re doing things above and beyond their other duties, and I feel very privileged to be helping them out.”