Ronnie Scott and All That Jazz

A 1989 BBC Omnibus documentary on Ronnie Scott filmed on the 30th anniversary of the club he founded in Soho, London with tenor sax player Pete King.

The documentary features footage of Zoot Sims, Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald and interviews with Pete King, Stan Tracy, Mel Brooks and also a couple of young Westminster MPs called Ken Clarke and John Prescott. Both united here in order to show how jazz brings together people of opposing political views, however both claim in the interview is this is the closest is they have ever sat together.

Ronnie Scott often acted as club MC was famous for his repertoire of jokes and one-liners. "Our next guest is one of the finest musicians in the country. In the city, he's crap". Of the club he once said, "It's easy to make a million running a jazz club. Just start with two million". "I love this place, its just like home. Filthy and full of strangers" and "it was very quiet last night, we had the bouncers chucking people IN. A guy rang up and asked 'what time does the show start?' I said, what time can you get here? No but I really love this place, its made a very happy man old."

There is even a blog dedicated to Ronnie's humourous asides here The Ronnie Scott Jokes Page

After Ronnie's death in 1996, Pete King continued to run the club for a further nine years, before selling it in 2005.