Collecting stories to tell my grandchildren

My “collection of stories to tell the grandchlidren” so far are:

I remember Winston Churchill’s funeral

A friend of mine was invited to Princess Anne’s wedding and I accompanied her to buy the gift (I know, I know but its a story….)

I met John Wayne, Goldie Hawn, Stewart Granger, Richard Harris and Ken Loach (but not all at the same time)

I met Dave Allen three times (its a long story)

I had dinner with John Hurt and his beautiful wife Anwyn (I was a guest of a guest – but still….)

I was Guest of the Speaker at the House of Commons (Bernard Weatherill)

I took a photograph of my son (their father!), Harold Wilson style, on the steps of 10 Downing Street in the last remaining days when you could still do this (to start his own collection of “I was there” maybe).

As a 15 year old, I ran after a bus and accidentially knocked into the Queen in Sloane Square – she was saved by a bodguard who put his arm around my neck.

The inventor Trevor Bayliss showed me around his house and workshop (where I saw the wind-up radio in its natural habitat) before jumping into his speedboat, aka James Bond, and sped off up the Thames to Town to avoid the traffic.

I had the most charming experience of absolute courtesy displayed to me by Tony Benn when he was still an MP.  I was in an office two doors away from him in the House of Commons and wanted to sneak off and have a cigarette.  I saw his door half open and knocked gently – he called me in and I said “do you know where I could go for a smoke?”  He thought I said something completely different and said “oh I do apologise – is my pipe smoke affecting you?” When I reasured him that his pipe smoke was what called me to him, as it were, he directed me to a spot on a spiral staircase at the back of the offices where I could smoke in peace and he joined me. There we were sitting there, just the two of us, puffing away and watching the world go by from a small latticed window. I met him again at Paul Foot’s funeral but he didn’t remember me. I wanted to say “its me, the woman on the staircase!” but he is such a courteous man, I rather think he showed everyone to the secret staircase and stayed with them in case security found them unattended!

Incidentially, its interesting what you say to famous people you have always admired when you are suddenly in their company, no matter how much notice you have of the event.  I wonder if they can tell that what I am actually thinking is “I shall save this story for when you are in a Harry Potter film to get the best impact with my grandchildren”.  The question was recently posed by Jon Canter http://browse.guardian.co.uk/search?search=jon+canter&sitesearch-radio=guardian&go-guardian=Search about what you do when you meet a famous person, but especially a famous person you have long admired. Jon struggled with wanting to profess his admiration but knowing that as a serious grown up journalist – this was a bit iffy.  He decided that he only thing to do when you come face to face with your hero is nothing at all. Wish I had read this before I once said to Stewart Granger “didnt you used to be……..?”

As my grandchildren are growing, I realise that I will have to up the ante and start collecting contemporary stories…..now if only I could bump into a Star Wars character…….

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