Famous People in Odd Places

[Guest stuartp]

I made Dean Sullivan (Jimmy Corkhill) a cuppa in the booking office at Appleby once, while Norman Collier stood on a barrow outside with our sweeping brush doing his 'broken mic' routine for a trainload of Orient Express punters. Nice bloke.

 

Not met the guy but whenever I have been to India the locals mistake the way I talk for Geoffrey Boycot - well he lives about 6 miles from me!

 

He once seriously lost his rag with me for refusing to accept a cheque for a couple of hundred quids' worth of first class tickets without his cheque guarantee card. I got the whole "Do you know who I am ?" routine. I knew very well who he was but BR rules were that if the cheque bounces with no card number on the back, I'm personally liable for the loss. Dicky Bird, on the other hand, was always a gent.

[DavidBelcher]

He once seriously lost his rag with me for refusing to accept a cheque for a couple of hundred quids' worth of first class tickets without his cheque guarantee card. I got the whole "Do you know who I am ?" routine. I knew very well who he was but BR rules were that if the cheque bounces with no card number on the back, I'm personally liable for the loss. Dicky Bird, on the other hand, was always a gent.

 

Did Boycott test the quality of the seats by jabbing his car keys into them?

 

David

[bluebottle]

Dicky Bird, on the other hand, was always a gent.

Whenever Dicky appeared on TV, my wife would comment: "That's him who thought Helen was a boy at that book-signing in Sheffield". Hell hath no fury like a woman whose baby daughter has been mistaken for a boy.

[45156]

A couple more that I have just remembered - both sort of similar and involving visits to that well know institution, the pub.

 

First was when I was in the Hamilton Hall at Liverpool Street, when Wetherspoons was still a proper pub chain, rather than a cheap booze emporium, and (as one does) got chatting to a guy standing next to me at the bar - I couldn't work out why the bar staff were being so polite to him, but as part of the chat, I told him that I thought that the Wetherspoon concept of traditional style pubs, and decent cask ale at good prices was a winner. He took his leave shortly afterwards to catch a train, and the manager came across and asked what we had been discussing - "Why?", said I. "Well. he's Tim Martin" came the reply - to the uninitiated, Tim Martin was the owner of Wetherspoons.

 

On a similar note, I also met Mr Gale, Owner of Gales' brewery the same way, and the end result was free private brewery trip, and a selection of Gales beers to take hom - including several "corkers" of Prize Old Ale, which I gaave ten years to mature, then supped them with my boozing mates.

[Oldddudders]

A few years back, when we lived in Kent, our local was an elderly rural pub with low ceilings - the Peacock at Goudhurst. Wearing a hat seemed a bit unnecessary indoors, therefore. So when a bloke in a cowboy hat was at the bar one night our mate quickly sussed that this was David Soul. He became something of a regular, and made good friends among the locals.

 

When we went house hunting here in France, the landlady from the pub and her husband came with us to look around, and bought their house the same day we did, a couple of villages away. The pub is now under new management, natch - but the pub quizzes still carry on among the Brits here in rural France!

[Allegheny1600]

Quite a good few years ago, i was at the Earls Court motor show, chatting (quite knowledgably!) with a team member on the Maserati stand when Pat St. Clement barged up and said "How much are these, then?", glaring at me as if i were the rude one! By way of compensation, the chap gave me an apologetic look and then, more brochures than she got!!!!

 

Riding the London train back to Derby a couple of times, saw the late Kevin Lloyd from "The Bill", propping up the bar in the Restaurant car, pye eyed and "entertaining" anyone who would listen to him. I wasn't surprised when he got banned from driving a couple of years later, mind you the drink finished him off.

 

Cycling around Derby(shire) for many years, i saw Brian Clough quite a few times when he was going for a jog - he was always friendly, giving us a wave or calling out "ello lads!". Blimey, he's another late one.

 

When i went over to California, my mate and i happened to get tickets to the opening of 'Planet Hollywood', Beverley Hills and we spotted quite a few celebs there (hardly surprising, though!), Bruce Willis & Demi Moore, Sly Stallone, Oprah Winfrey, Arnold Swarzenegger (now Govenor or California!) and quite a few others (can't remember them all!).

 

Best on that trip though, the mate we stayed with (Bill) was into planes and old cars - he had an early 50's Cadillac and an earlier open top Bentley. Sadly the Bentley was out of action then but previously, Bill had had a couple of his friends over to stay who were from Texas! Bill was treating this couple to a tour of the famous places around L.A. and got stuck in traffic! Some American tourists saw them and shouted "Gee, are you guys movie stars?" Bills lady friend leaned over and shouted back "Nah, honey - we're just RICH!!!!"

Cheers,

John E.