Famous people you've met

Who were either not quite as pleasant as you'd like them to have been or more pleasant than you'd expect. 

Christopher Eccleston grabbed his bag, script and stormed off to a different carriage after I’d asked for his autograph. This was difficult to accept at the time as a shy and slightly star-struck teenager who hadn't met anyone off the telly before. It was at the height of his Dr Who fame.

Gary Linekar turning round to pass me my coffee in Costa having picked up the wrong cup. 

I met Jimmy Nesbitt at a party in a pub - before he introduced himself I had expected him to be totally aloof but he was actually very kind and pleasant to everyone. 

 

 

Mr Motivator came to my school and refused to speak to any of us when the cameras weren't rolling.  For context, he was only filming with 8 of us (#humblebrag) so it wouldn't have been that much of a hardship.  If anyone wanted a picture or an autograph you had to speak to his assistant who had a pre-prepared stack of signed photos.

I would have been ok with this behaviour if it had been a proper celebrity, but his delusions of grandeur made it much more galling coming from him.

Paul Ince on the shuttle bus in Johannesburg Airport in 2010. I know he was retired. Not fat but surprisingly bulky muscular . I would not want to be tackled by him if I had a choice. Conversational. He had been doing commentary in Spain. I asked what he thought of it. He said “It was shite.”

Much of the Argentina squad during the 1986 World Cup the day before the Argentina v England game. Maradona, the manager Bilardo, Pumpido etc. In an ice cream shop in a shopping centre in the south of Mexico City. Security locked the doors. I knew Maradona had a injury to his left knee. I walked past him. (To go the bathroom) I was severely tempted to take him out. However, there were about 6 guys clearly carrying concealed weapons standing about him.

I once had a Saturday afternoon team building session with Sean Fitzpatrick who was a genuinely nice guy and actually interested in what we were doing because we were a new team setting out its goals and objectives whereas his background had been joining the All Blacks where of course there's a huge weight of history and a well trodden path and little chance to influence things.

I also met Desmond Llewellyn (Q in James Bond) a few times as he was a friend of my granny and he would take his time to talk to 10 year old me about the gadgets in the next film and stuff and was delightful.

Most disappointing was Olympic sailing medallist Shirley Robertson who was the after dinner speaker at a sailing event and she made no secret of the fact that she was only there as a favour to her mate who was organising it and would rather have been anywhere else.

Marco Gabbiadini was not pleasant at all. 

The lass who was playing Glinda in Wicked on Broadway was a lot, lot more pleasant than I expected stage actors to be. 

@swiss: 

Same thing (Urinal bonding) with Prince Harry (Pre Meghan) in a hotel in Durban, South Africa. I was alone at the urinals and somebody came in and started opening all the trap doors and looking in each one (Nobody was in them anyway) and then Harry walked in. 

Glad to hear Marco Gabbiadini is a prick, I never liked him and he always seemed to score against Barnsley. Has anyone met Nathan Blake? I would also like it confirmed that he is a w**ker.

I met George Best and Denis Law in the food court of a mall in Florida when I was a young un in 1994. I didn't really know who they were but my dad sent me over to get their autographs on a napkin. They were both very nice and Best gave me his bag of pick and mix. 

Coached for a few sessions by Matt Pinsent.  He was very kind and didn't laugh at us too much.  He was wearing pink "I've two Olympic gold medals and couldn't give a fook" cords 

Damon Hill when I was about 14. He couldn't have been nicer as I gibbered on, got autograph etc. 

Quite a clutch of actors in my film crew days. The ones to watch were the super status insecure ones - much greater chance of a-holeness there

Telly Savalas.... (Kojak).  I was aged about 7 and waiting for a flight to Singapore at Heathrow from boarding school.  There had been a lightning rail strike and it had taken a night (staying overnight in the station master's office at Birmingham New Street with random other stranded children) to get to Heathrow.   I was with my brother (age 9) and another 3 children from our separate schools, the oldest one about 12.

I was tired, cold, upset and hungry... I was in tears and Telly Savalas bought us all sweets magazines and sandwiches before going to catch his flight.

This was in the days when military boarding schools all unleashed their children on the world on the same day, putting them on the train with transfer instructions was considered enough of a duty of care.  A lightning strike put paid to the usual clear transition of a porter randomly shepherding children to their trains (just because the porter happened to be there) and I remember the overnight stay at the station and the poor Transport Police having to find blankets and arrange changes to flights and trains for the next day.  I recall thinking of my brother as an adult who could fix it all, despite him being nine!

I met Richard dreyfuss at brown's in Oxford.  He was pretty unimpressed to be bothered over lunch, even though I only wanted his autograph.  Although I was fvcking sh1tfaced, so who knows what I actually said to him. 

Danny Glover in a hotel in San Francisco, utterly charming. 

Ron Haslam was a really nice guy. Michael Dunlop.was remarkably relaxed during a pitstop at the TT.

Paddy Ashdown was at least twice as craggy in real life as he is in pictures. Charles Kennedy was a nice guy with real charisma. Both of those two have scabbed ciggies off me.

I stood in a hotel queue behind Martin Johnson. He was smaller than I expected, but even more intense (even when queueing for a budget hotel in Loughborough).

Huw Edwards was a paid after dinner speaker at a PFI awards dinner about 8 years ago.  He was drunk, bored and just went around interrupting the groups saying how he only did this stuff for the money and didn't have a clue what it was about.  I recall he just threw a lot of sexist and unsavoury comments around and called it a speech.  Audience was about 30% women, he was horrible.

That's a shame. At various times, I have been at dinners with Jonthan Woss, Lee Hurst and Jimmy Carr, and they were all really good,  and had clearly made the effort to know a bit about the audience.

One Father's day several years ago I was in Kensington Gardens with my wife having a picnic. A couple of guys with earpieces (but not obvious heavies) came past followed by a family group of various ages following.

I realised the Dad, taking his family out for a game of cricket with a bat and a tennis ball  was actually Mick Jagger. Instinctively I said to him "Hello Mick!" as he walked past. I don't know the guy and have no idea why I said that to him. Anyway, he said hello back and then carried on. I thought that was quite charming in the circumstances.

Another one was Johan Cruyff in an airport when I was a kid. Posed for a photo with me and my dad, who was overwhelmed, even though I had no idea who he was. Top guy. 

Had a small breakfast meeting with Sajid Javid and a few others. He was perfectly pleasant if slightly uninspiring. 

Sold chocolates to Harvey Keitel once. He was extremely pleasant.

And escorted Vanessa Feltz up in a lift when I was on lift duty. Very pleasant again.

George Benson, at an awards ceremony to mark his legendariness : I went over to say that I thought he was marvellous, and started to move away thinking that he would just ignore me, and he stopped and said thank you, and if I remember rightly, kissed my hand!

Lenny Kravitz - he was at the peak of his alleged sex god powers, and women were practically hyperventilating just from being in the same room with him, so I expected him to be an arrogant twot, but he was just very normal, and polite, despite having more charisma in the end of one of his dreadlocks than most people have in their entire bodies.

Kevin Spacey - went over and asked for his autograph for my brother, he was really gracious and friendly and quite chatty.

"Kevin Spacey - went over and asked for his autograph for my brother, he was really gracious and friendly and quite chatty."

And wanted to know what your brother looked like and if he ever went down to Clapham Common.

Ooh, I sat right next to Ainsley Harriott sp? In a restaurant.  Seemed really nice.  

Met Johnny Vaughan 3 times, randomly,  in 3 weeks.  That was a bit strange.

Ha!  Actually, he was on a table with other famous people, and they were all lovely.

I think pretty much all of the famous people I've met have turned out okay, the only one who is an unmitigated aunt (but this is not news), is Morrissey, or however you spell his name.

I got stoned with Howard Marks (former drug smuggler and author of the biographical Mr Nice) at university after he spoke at the Union. 

Very nice bloke. Gargantuan appetite for cannabis and alcohol. Smoked Purple Haze, if I remember.

Martin Johnson and Simon Shaw - both lovely and got their autographs and photos.

Mel c used to sit on the table behind me a lot at the coffee shop seemed lovely but never spoke to her.

Ditto James mcavoy, never got the balls to tell him I was allowed to have sex with him and it wouldn’t be cheating as he’s on my list (laminated version)

Jodie Whittaker was so lovely. Gave nob her sausage roll in gails as she was in a rush and didn’t have time to eat it.

Peter what’s his name the other doctor who is always walking down my road and nods hello 

kat slater from Enders is really loud and short and walks around larging it in sunnies 

mr bingley used to be in my hot yoga class. Never spoke to him but he’s my friends neighbour and is now a geography teacher and she says he’s lovely but as she’s not seen p & p doesn’t get the fuss 

the gmtv presenter - forget her name but her husband has been really sick with covid was always arguing with her husband in the coffee shop and used to vape between mouthfuls 

Daisy Edgar Jones used to work in the coffee shop and is genuinely the most lovely person and makes a fantastic flat white 

 

Priti Patel at a dinner about 8 years ago

funny and quickwitted

feck knows what’s happened to her since but I like to think she’s still ok in private 

Right this is my best one: Roger Taylor out of Queen, with his Missus in Occitane on the kings Road.  Late December, clearly doing Xmas shopping.  Holds bar of soap, turns to wife and says (mildly irritated) "So I'm gonna buy this, right, and it's from you to me?"

Some of this has reminded me of Patrick Mayhew the former Northern Ireland minister coming into the shop where I worked.  A car would drive in and two blokes in suits would get out and walk into the shop and take up position at either end of the shop and then another car would drive in and Paddy would come in and do his shopping then he'd leave then the two blokes in suits would exit together and leave.  Must be a right faff having all of that just to nip to the shops for some cheese.

Lots of rowers round here, Matt Pinsent top bloke and James Cracknell...well lets just say he lives up to his nickname Crackers. He was partic nasty to a lady in the gym once.

I also met Jimmy Nesbitt on hols last year and he was lovely, even when I dropped a massive clanger - talking about demonstrations in Athens, he was saying, great to see people out protesting, democracy in action, and I said no, often turn into riots, petrol bombs, at which he turned a bit pale and said, no, I dont like petrol bombs. Only later did I remember his NI homeland...

I'd forgotten, this thread reminds me - saw Michael Palin about 100 yds away in a sunny backstreet in Kentish Town. He clocked me clocking him and did this delightful, mildly Pythonesque, exaggerated skit of checking for traffic and crossing the road. We were the only people on the street, it lasted about 10 secs, I can only assume it was his way of handling the attention, being generous, needing to perform. 

Nicest sleb I've met is probably Andy Green, world's fastest man.  Genuinely interested in everyone else, brilliant communicator about his projects, shame Bloodhound seems to be stalled again thanks to Covid.  Similar to Sir David Attenborough, who gives you the impression that you are doing him a favour by engaging him in conversation, makes you feel very at ease.

The one time I met Margaret Thatcher I had the misfortune to be with a chemistry student, when MT found that out they spent the next few minutes talking about some of the latest trends.  Interesting that the Baroness was still keeping up with it.

I'm going to defend Christopher Ecclestone. My neighbour had a small part in Song for Marion and Ecclestone would hang out with the extras and keep everyone's spirits up.

Terence Stamp, on the other hand, was a tool on and off set.

I’ve met a few famous people but the nicest one was Paul Dano the guy from There Will Be Blood.

We saw him drinking in a pub in Soho with some people (one of them turned out to be his costar in War and Peace) and we were like ‘is that...?’ My friend said ‘Mugs go and talk to him’ so I went and said ‘are you...Paul Dano?’ 

And he said ‘yes’

’can I buy you a pint?’

’er...ok’

and then we chatted to them for a bit and I was like ‘hey Paul....if this were a pint of milkshake I’d be like ‘i drink your milkshake! I drink it up!’....I expect loads of people say that to you’

’No, actually. No one’s ever said that before’.

Classic Paul!

used to work in a posh hotel as a stude on the weekends so have met quite a few middling slebs, usually there for interviews

Vic and Bob - Bob funny and charming, Vic weird and as funny as an investigation by HMRC

Eddie Izzard - weird and very serious

Myleene Klass - beautiful and a bit cheeky. I like her.

Johnny Vaughan - talks. A lot. 

Jay Kay - tool

that list has a very mid 2000s vibe

Gruff from the super furry animals. He was massively hungover and arsey.

Lenny Kravitz was ridiculously cool. Comically so. 

Loads of other musicians and artists, but not as famous. Thom Yorke's brother was alright, but his music was just Radiohead light.

@hotblack I met him too but he was less charming than he was to you - he stuck a cocaine covered finger in my gob and told me that I could go out the back and give him a blow job if I liked. Reader, I did NOT like.

 

obviously Lenny (insert your own story here, wang). Had dinner with Angela rayner once and yes she really is that dumb. Dave Prowse used to come to our house when I was tiny (he did some work for my dad).

 

none of this really matters when you’ve got muttley knowing mog the cat though.

 

(oh! I share a godchild with Timmy mallett! Obv have therefore met him.)

@ jonnatton yeah - I boosted something on her the other day about how person going to meeting with celeb would know how to behave based on the celeb’s approach to them, which would either be outright ignoring, or best friendery and a charming handwritten thank you letter etc. The latter was based largely on Myleene Klass! (And Geri haliwell, who goes just that extra step too far into weirdly creepy)

Ray Wilkins wandered over and joined my table with a blonde I was with in a pub near the training ground.  Spent half an hour with us.  Said his favourite sport was rugby.  He was an intense listener and very engaging with his contributions.  I tried to lower the conversation at regular intervals but he didn't lower himself.  That's the mark of the man!

I sat opposite Clint Eastwood at a dinner and didn’t peg who he was for quite some time (in fact when we got up for pudding - it was a buffet thing - and my husband told me). Thought he was a charming old man. He made me take a selfie with him at the end “so you know who I am next time”

Sat next to will young at a charity thing and we got on so well my husband got genuinely stroppy and jealous (despite the fact he is GAY)

Jamie Cullum - see you next Tuesday (rof passim, contra to escers experience)

jamie oliver - met him in a swamp in Louisiana randomly, extremely nice guy 

Jimeoin (only Aussies will get this) - staying in a serviced apartment in bondi junction with a group of mates and got home late after a big drinking session and he was in our lift. He was a rude cvnt and very unimpressed with our “going down the escalator” impersonation 

Sat next to Charlton Heston for a 3hr flight in about 1995. He was really nice.  Didn't realise who he was until after (recongised but couldn't name).

We have a family friend who is a famous actor - one of those you know their face but probably not their name.  They've always been a real handful in a fun way, but now is into early 80s and losing mental capabilities. An absolute nightmare to deal with now, which is a shame. 

Richard Keys moved in next door back in his TV-am days.

Not as pleasant as expected at the time albeit about as pleasant as you’d expect these days. 

Phil Lynott - smoked a spliff with him at the fairly posh public school which my sister went to. Decent bloke. 
 

Lemmy - had a pint with him in a strip club. Decent bloke but quite hard to really know as strippers were all over him and I was very drunk. Ugly as sin. 
 

M Palin - drinks party, good egg. Also (separately) met his brother (dead spit in looks and sounds exactly the same) who is a bit prickly- was warned not to mention family resemblance. 
 

 

I had a colleague who was in biz class (I'd been bumped to 1st) on a flight back from Washington on the day after the Correspondents' Dinner. His seat was next to Elle MacPherson. If I'd known I'd have swapped my 1st class seat with him and tried to persuade her making a huge mistake with the antivax loon she ended up with 

Ooh, I've just remembered one of my most random "celeb" encounters - I was confirmed by an Archbishop of Canterbury.  Which probably makes it even more of a damn shame that I'm atheist, I expect that would have given me some proper bragging rights amongst Christian types.

I was confirmed by an Archbishop of Westminster, this could have been a proper schismatic face off if I was not, also, atheist.

Bill Nighy is a lovely man. Can't think of anybody else.

Posted the other day about the Chris Gale one in the four seasons in India.

Hugh grant in a bar in west London on a Tuesday night, embarrassed to say I have little to no recollection and was reminded the following morning.

Russell Crowe at coffee shop in eastern ‘burbs He was quite grumpy and had two body guards but also it was v early in the morning and he was mega fat at that point. 

Gerard butler at the Hamyard hotel - my sister just said “hey Gerard” like she knew him because she thought she did but then realised it was just from films. He did actually chat to us for about 5 minutes though we were pretty drunk and kept trying to buy him margaritas even though he was telling us he was sober for 15 years and we must have been soooo annoying. My sister then left her number with reception 😂😂

Tom kerridge was nice, as you’d probably expect, sat with us for about 10 minutes at restaurant opening. 

At the other end of the spectrum, my OH and I were training at the same firm back in the day.  We went to Wimbledon and were walking around centre court when we saw a man that we recognised but didn’t know with all the lanyards on etc, we both thought “who was that”  - about 5 minutes later we realised he was just someone on the firms UK board who’s face was plastered all over grad recruitment materials. 😂. Sorry for the emojis it’s late. 

Yes Orwell re Terry. Such a great writer. When I met him I think I was 9 or 10 and my mom allowed me to skive school to attend a book signing. He drew pictures in the books I bought and was very friendly.

Interesting you mentioned Gervais. He's walked past me in the street looking angry- think one of his usual pubs was very close to law school. Wouldn't say I've met him properly though.

@rex I suspect the £30 mil and women throwing themselves at you in bars probably gives you the answer... Obviously he regrets not spending the last 20 years in a soulless office building dealing with office politics, back stabbing and relentlessly trying to be paid for work he’s already done. 

I met Jarvis Cocker in an airport once,  not long after the peak of his game. I can’t quite remember for sure, but I think it was NYJFK, which would have made it 1998.

I met Sebastian Vettel at a Goodwood car event, and I met Darren Peacock in Our Price at the Metrocentre, where he was browsing heavy metal CDs.

I have been told to fck off by an England Rugby star and a famous gardener and the bloke who was Ricky off of eastenders.  

I once pointed at Graham Norton and said to my Mrs "that's Graham Norton", she didn't know who I was talking about and he said "yes I am"

Have also had a slash in the urinal next to Dr Robert Winston. 

Ne Yo -  nice guy, had a chat about preserves.

Pele, very friendly. 

Galaghers, pleasant

Dave Gorman and Danny Wallace - massive c0ckwombles

Chris Moyles - friendly and helpful (was working in a pub and he helped collected glasses when we were slammed). 

 

Debated with (against) Jacob Rees-Mogg.  He was as expected

Met Kristen Scott-Thomas at my cousin's wedding.  She was nice

Met Princess Anne and Diana as a child.  I dont remember

Lived with Kris Marshall for about 6 months.  He was an unrelenting khooont.  Never forgave me for asking him at the flatmate interview what he did.. and then when he said actor whether I was likely to have seen him in anything... and then when he said "Love Actually" I said ... what.. an extra?

Lived with Kristian Digby - he was lovely and very intelligent

Met Elle MacPherson a good number of times - nice lady

Met Greg Davies -he was funnier in person (and I find him fairly hilarious as an act)

Met Shirley Crabtree (Big Daddy) in my local papershop back in the early 80's - Lovely guy.

Sat watching footie with Bad Manners in a hotel in Dublin - Nice bunch.

Exchanged thoughts on the first half of an Arsenal game at the Emirates with Alan Davies - Gooner Ledge.

Sat discussing upcoming release of Dad's Army film with Bill Nighy on a bench in Grosvenor Sq - Quite humble and down to earth.

@CliveWarren - He was fun enough, I was waiting at the bar next to him and didn't know who he was except I did notice he was a huge black man in a crowd full of Indians. My OH came back from the loo and was a complete fan girl next to him, but we ended up drinking with him for abit. It was a bit sad really as he was just in a roped off section by himself (i think he was there for some pundit gig) I feel like he only went up to the bar to not be sitting by himself. He did come and say hello the next morning by the pool and we exchanged some pleasantries which he didn't have too. My OH had already gone out to the cricket - he was furious he missed it! Don't know if id have found it all abit more awkward if i'd have not been with husband.

Alexander McCall Smith, just dredged that memory up. He was just as you'd expect - a touch pompous but very witty and warm, a master at being sharp without being cutting

@ Chambers 20.15

Sting was playing guitar in the classroom when he should have been teaching you grammar?

Mind you, we used to have relief teacher in school who had served in the Pacific during WWII. Flying in Catalinas

We worked out that if we mentioned WWII he would go on rambling stories about his service so we would not have to do any work in that period

However, he did tell the story of sitting on a beach ( in the Solomon Islands IIRC) and watching a local woman washing her baby in the lagoon. Her older toddler was in the water closer to shore. In front of him a shark swept in and took the toddler. 

 

"I was confirmed by an Archbishop of Westminster..."

I'm sure I win this, Spurius - I'm pretty sure that Archbishop of Canterbury is like the queen to Westminster's Prince Philip?

I spent an evening with David Soul once, the second time I met him.  He was on his own in a London bar and I said I loved Salem's lot - that was it - he latched on.  I don't rate him much as a person tbh, he was ok but probably what you'd imagine him to be like. A but up himself.

Had a flight back from London with just me and the Chelsea Team back in the day.  I hadn't a clue who all these guys were on the plane wearing tracksuits.  They were pretty flirty.  Mario Melchic? (sp?) was chatting to me Manc side and I asked why there were crowds waiting for them. I said are you in some sort of team and he said yeah Chelsea.

Hugo Spear and Neil Morrissey came on to me and a friend in a pub in Hampstead.  V nice guys as you'd expect.

I know various sports guys pundits etc from the golf club (Kenny Dalglish, Alan Hanson etc), nice guys

Alan Hansen is a nice guy, met him a couple of times he wished me happy birthday and came over for a chat. 

I think Mistee and myself might have lived in the same part of the world at one time.