There are worse ways to spend one of the final evenings before Christmas than sitting down with a freshly made pizza and a live jazz band.
Pizza & Jazz with Jazz Not Jazz returns to Rugby School this December for a special Christmas edition, combining live music from one of Rugby’s established bands with food from PizzaExpress in the historic surroundings of Old Big School.
The evening is presented by Macready Theatre, PizzaExpress and Jazz Not Jazz as part of Macready Theatre’s temporary programme of performances across the Rugby School campus.
Event Details
Date: December 2026, final date currently being reconfirmed
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: Old Big School, Rugby School
Location: Rugby, Warwickshire
Age restriction: 18+
Running time: Approximately 150 minutes
The programme includes two 60-minute live music sets, with a pizza break between them.
Meet Jazz Not Jazz
Jazz Not Jazz is an established five-piece band based in Rugby.
Fronted by vocalist Jennie Myers and saxophonist and vocalist Andy Davey, the band takes a broad approach to jazz rather than sticking rigidly to one style.
Their repertoire combines songs from the Great American Songbook with pop and rock covers, creating an accessible evening whether you know your jazz inside out or simply enjoy good live music.
Pizza included with the evening
The food is not an afterthought here.
Guests choose a PizzaExpress pizza when booking, which is then served to the table during the interval.
Choices currently advertised include:
Classic Margherita
Mozzarella and tomato
Classic American
Pepperoni, mozzarella and tomato
Classic Padana
Goat’s cheese, mozzarella, caramelised onion, spinach, red onion, tomato and garlic oil
Classic Pollo ad Astra
Chicken, sweet red peppers, red onion, mozzarella, tomato, Cajun spices and garlic oil
Gluten-free versions of the listed pizzas are available, along with a vegan Margherita option.
A Christmas special
This December performance is being billed as the Pizza & Jazz Christmas Special.
With live music, food and a well-stocked bar, it is an easy option for friends or couples looking for something festive that does not involve a Christmas market or office party.
It is also refreshingly simple: pizza arrives, the band plays, and somebody else clears up afterwards.
Interested in bell ringing?
You certainly do not need to understand all the terminology to appreciate hearing a church’s bells properly rung.
The Daventry Branch describes its meetings as friendly gatherings and welcomes people who are interested in finding out more about bell ringing.
The branch covers towers across the area, including places such as Byfield, Badby, Braunston, Daventry, Barby and Kilsby.
For somebody living around Byfield, Woodford Halse or the surrounding villages who has ever wondered what actually happens inside a bell tower, this could be a good introduction.
How to get tickets
Advance booking is required through Macready Theatre’s official booking partner, TicketSource.
Book via Macready Theatre:
https://macreadytheatre.co.uk/
Select Pizza and Jazz with Jazz Not Jazz from the current programme and follow the Book Now link.
Your pizza choice is made as part of the booking process.
Because the published December date currently differs between Rugby and Macready Theatre listings, we recommend checking the booking page carefully before purchasing.
Where is it?
The event takes place within:
Rugby School
Barby Road
Rugby
CV22 5EA
The performance itself is in Old Big School.
Discover more local events
Rugby has a surprisingly varied live events calendar, from jazz and comedy to theatre, workshops and food events.
We enjoy sharing some of the local dates that are worth knowing about, particularly the events happening in distinctive venues right on our doorstep.
Keep an eye on the Campbells community events pages for more local events throughout the year.
