Lord Lucan

I once quite literally bumped into Judith Chalmers as she came out of a shop in the Cotswolds, she looked at me like she had stepped in something unspeakable and pushed past muttering under her breath. I think the reason I bumped into her was I couldn't see her, she's only about 5 foot tall.

Well thats my claim to fame...

I know, not much of a claim is it but it's the only one I have so I'm clinging on to it with both hands LOL.

billy farmer

today me and my mum met sylvester mccoy (7th dr who) at the television and movie store in norwich he was a very friendly man he signed 3 dr who items for me i then had my photo taken with him and then had another photo taken with my mum in the photo as well outside the store where there was a very long queue i took photos of 2 daleks and had my photo taken with a friendly cyberman.

bhowells

I spoke to Norman Rossington in work once, I work for the DTI (now called Berr), he seemed very nice, I didnt know it was him until the phone call ended.

Also saw Maurice Denham in a hotel in Merthyr Tydfil circa 1981, didnt speak to him. Not sure about the film he was making it could have been for telly.

Also saw Tommy Trinder once he was appearing on stage in Merthyr at the Scala Cinema, he was in the cafe next door and I asked for his autograph, the lady behindt the counter didnt have the foggiest who he was, this was circa 1978, he was a bit of a has been by then.

Peter Barkworth once smiled at my wife and myself from the stage of the Oxford Playhouse in Oxford, it was the interval of an evening of recitations and poetry with Stephanie Cole and he was greeting people from the stage, nice bloke.

A work coleague of mine once saw Anthony Quayle in a play in Cardiff, she asked for his autograph and he refused. Shame, this man is synonimous with Brit movies.

bhowells

I foolishly waited a considerable time for the autograph of Peter Adamson of Coronation Street, this was pior to the scandal that wrecked his career.

I was in the queue poised for him to sign a copy of a Coronation Street soveneir of len's wedding to Rita. I trried to nab him as he went off for a cuppa, he ignord me but I eventually got it upon his return, I think he was in character when he spoke to me.

By his own admission not a nice man .

ggm

A common thread in this for me (I haven't bumped into any famous people, nor have they chosen to bump into me) seems to be that if they were old enough to have either worked the clubs, working-mans or other, or else done the regional theaters, then they probably know how to be 'real' to ordinary joe's, because quite a lot of the time, they shared a bathroom with them. And after all, if your bottom warms the bog seat for their holy rear, they can't exactly ice you off, can they?

but if they are a product of the post WWII glamour driven society, then a front was all part of the sell. you either work the crowd nicely, or else p*ss them off totally. The Goons used to rehearse their act in the west end pubs, so my parents recall seeing snippets of the show and sharing pints. I doubt if peter sellers took brit ekland in for a swift mild and bitter.

lots of big-name comedy actors were in the 'unity' theatre movement, an inter-war socialist realist drama group. Unity Theatre, London - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and again, you weren't going to be a twit with the public if you were in that community.

I'm told that people like Bill Oddie, who has a completely 'other' life as a twitcher, are fine if you talk birds, cos on that score, you're all equals. So, if you are into sado-masochistic golf in wetsuits, as long as you only ask the freakout star about their choice of wetsuit whilst on the course, you'll be fine. but if you try to get back inside the mind of the drama queen, all bets are off. Seems fair to me. I don't mind talking shop with my shop-assitants, but I don't need to do it with strangers.

cymro glan

Sir Ian Mc kellen was very kind and considerate to a large group of autograph gatherers outside the theatre at which he was appearing in the West End. Sir Roger Moore was also terrific at the stage door of The Show What I Wrote. And slightly less starry, the late Bill Owen was a gent while in panto in Bournemouth about 20 years ago.

Jackdaw

I spent a couple of hours in a pub with Nigel Pivaro (Terry Duckworth from Corrie), when he was touring in Wuthering Heights, and I found him to be a very likeable, modest and intelligent, if intense, young man.

Jackdaw

I bumped into the young Judith at the Radio Show in 1962, and she was a real minx!................mind you, I was quite hormonal at the time.

donna

my claim to fame is walking past Richard Widmark in the street in Bridgeton Glasgow
talking to Billy Connelly in the street in Glasgow
met the lovely Sylvia Syms in the Olympia cinema in Glasgow
was in front row of Mickey Rooneys show two years ago in Glasgow
have been writing to Doris Day for 20 years and have many photos and letters
have emailed and had emails back from Jeff Chandlers grandson Uri whos mum was Dana Chandler Grossel.
had emails from a cousin of Darnella Flynn who died aged 44 a few years ago sadly daughter of Errol Flynn.
missed seeing Mel Giblson in Stiriling Castle when he was here, still mad at myself .

alan french

Hi.
I have met several times James Hayter, (who signed my autograph book
Lots of luck, from Friar Tuck.) Other autographs, Gordon Scott (screen Tarzan)
Roger Livesey, Terry Thomas, Jerome Green (Maracas player with Bo Diddley), Joey Page ( This may or may not have been one of the Everly Bros. having a laugh. He was in an ermergency situation a temporary Everly Brother), Jacky Pallo, etc.
Have had a lift in a car with Kenneth Seeger (Professor Klein in BBC version of Quatermass and the Pit/a cyberman in Doctor Who etc.) David Kossoff, Frank Lovejoy (editor of 2002 Space Oddity.) Walked by Jon Pertwee once while I was on union business in Birmingham. During a publicity event in Hemel Hempstead, a Dalek came up to me near the market square and said hello to me. So I said hello back. Once as I opened a door, I found I had by accident knocked Benny Hill over. Also almost did the same to Arthur Askey. When I met Charlie Drake, he was safe.
Won an electric razor in a publicity version of Take Your Pick from Michael Miles. Participated in an art festival which Michael Flanders was in. My path has crossed that of Hughie Greene twice. Frank Ifield once had the misfortune of seeing me perform rock 'n' roll at a charity event in Dunstable as well as seeing me play the piano with my foot and hands. There have also been others, including Princess Alexandra and the late Queen Mother. On amateur cine film I have filmed Michael Miles, Harry Worth, Muhamid Ali aka Cassius Clay, Ronnie Barker, Chas Chandler and Eric Burdon of the animals plus some more. But I think I had better stop there.
However, one person who I must praise up is Linda Lusardi. I was in a que for something at a video exhibition in Islington. Lind Lusardi was nearby signing photos. Eventually, she finished signing all available photographs. As her stand was being cleared away, a little girl came up. Linda nicely told her that she had finished and that she had run out of photos. She then put herself out to find something to sign her auto graph on. I thought it a nice gesture.

Alan French.

Moor Larkin

So many stars, so little time

scholes

I was eagerly waiting for Clint to make an appearance in the Hog's Breath, so I could go over to him, put one arm around his shoulder and ask the wife to take a photo of me pointing towards him with the other- you know Dave Courteney like, but without the menacing appearance.He never showed up, even though one of the waitresses had told us he'd made an appearance the night before.

So other than John Motson and Tim Finn of Split Enz (after their concert at Eric's in Liverpool) Lulu had a few words to say to me in Waterstones in Edinburgh........
'd'ye mind moving you're in the way of the camera'.

As you can imagine I was absolutely gutted..........about Clint obviously.

Then the following year my wife went one better and introduced herself to Tom Jones in the MGM Grand in Vegas. Had her photo taken and spoke with him for several minutes.
Tom Jones was about 4feet across. Very broad man, not very tall though.
On the same night Michael Spinks passed us in the street,but by the time I realised who he was ,he'd long gone.

Gazza

Working in theatre, I tend to meet a fair few people. By far the most entertaining, witty and erudite was Sir John Mortimer.

Ray

The nicest star that I ever met was Deborah Kerr in 1972, she was starring on stage in London and there were a crowd of us waiting outside the stage door. She actually apologized for keeping us waiting and invited us all into her dressing room. She posed for photo's and signed autographs and was really delightful, and incredibly beautiful.

Jean Kent was the last star that I met, when she gave a lecture at The National Film Theatre in 1999. A really delightful lady who stood in the foyer and signed every autograph requested as well as posing for photo's with fans.

Surprisingly, the shyest star that I ever met was Barbara Stanwyck who I met at her Lincoln Centre tribute in 1981. I nervously introduced myself, and when I told her that I had travelled all the way from London for the event she insisted that we have our photo taken together. I was struck dumb by this unexpected piece of luck, and she did not make conversation, but it was very sweet of her to suggest the photo. When she held out her hand to say goodbye, I plucked up courage and kissed it, it was certainly a memorable evening.

batman

I heard that about BS. A mate of mine who lived in the US said that he was seated near her at a charity do in the 70s in LA. He said she was really gracious and unstarry but he felt she was extremely uncomfortable about being on 'display'. He said that she only stayed for just over an hour and then politely said goodbye to everyone at their table and quietly left alone.