RICHARD Thompson is known as one of the country’s greatest songwriters and most distinctive guitar virtuosos.

Having co-founded the groundbreaking group, Fairport Convention as a teenager in the ‘60s, Richard and his mates virtually invented British Folk Rock.

By the age of 21 he left Fairport to pursue his own career, followed by a decade long musical partnership with his then-wife Linda, to over 30 years as a highly successful solo artist who tours both solo acoustic and with his electric trio.

Today, fifty years later Richard is still performing and will be heading to Lighthouse, Poole’s Centre for the Arts at 7.30pm on Friday, October 13.

Named by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the Top 20 Guitarists of All Time, Richard is also one of the world’s most critically acclaimed and prolific songwriters.

He has received Lifetime Achievement Awards for Songwriting on both sides of the Atlantic and an OBE for services to music.

He has been described as being capable of creating “breathtaking drama and sublime delicacy” which prompted Rolling Stone to hail him as “a perennial dark-horse contender for the title of greatest living rock guitarist”.

Richard’s songs have been covered by many big names in the music business from Alison Krauss to Robert Plant. He continues to write and record new material regularly and frequently performs live at venues throughout the world.

During the summer, he released a second Acoustic Classics album coupled with Acoustic Rarities and it will be from these albums amongst others that he will draw his live set at the Lighthouse.

The award-winning duo Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker, will join Richard as his special guests. To book, call 01202 280000 or book online at lighthousepoole.co.uk