Around 1993/1994 I used to have a mate who designed restaurant interiors ( yes, its a real job apparently). A place he did allowed him to invite a number of guests for dinner. It was a Benihana type set up with a chef cooking in front of you and all the guests sat in a row. Me and my then girl were ushered to one table and sat down. Did the intros to people to our right. “Im Andrew” said the bloke next to my Mrs who chatted obliviously away to this really nice bloke. He was good company, asked questions about you etc. "You look really really familiar’ she said and continued trying to work out where she knew him from. Not Torquay. Not Subterrania. Not Ladbroke Grove in general. After persistent attempts to narrow it down he says ‘you might have seen me on top of the pops’ . ‘Thats it!’ she said “you’re in Duran Duran”. “No” he said "but close ish “. Triumphantly she turned to me and said 'Its Gary Davis isnt it?” it was Andrew Ridgely …
Used to deliver Georgie Best’s papers, never saw him until he gave me a five pound note one Christmas. I was getting £1.20 a week at that stage, quite a tip.
His gaff in our village.
I remember that. He was pie eyed to say the least. And wearing leather trousers…
I ended up on the piss with Terry Christian in Estonia a few years ago. There was a bit of aggro in a pub we were in and Tel quiped ‘it’s like Salford on a Saturday night in here’.
Once had a drink with Harvey (not that one) and Romeo from So Solid Crew outside Cafe Mambo.
Ended up speaking to Kelly Jones in The Groucho Club and I thought he was in the Manic Street Preachers, he wasn’t impressed.
Got chatting to Roy Walker at Toddington Services, he was heating up a Ginsters pasty at the time.
I was a glass collector at stringfellows for a few summers during uni. I collected Lemmy’s empty glass.
I used to dabble in stand up comedy about 10-12 years ago. I was on the bill with Frankie Boyle at The Stand club in Edinburgh once. He’s a total misanthrope unsurprisingly. I was going to ask him what he thought of my material, but he was so on the spectrum, I left him alone. Michael Redmond (Father Stone in Father Ted) however is totally lovely to speak to.
I also compered for a 16 years old Kevin Bridges in Aberdeen on a Tuesday night to 12 paying customers. A year later he was selling out the SECC etc.
I’m not bitter. It’s a shit business etc.
Similar tip but not as glamorous, Gerry Marsden was on my round, then I switched to the milk gig and Holly Johnson and Paul Walsh as well as Gerry who remained a customer, all decent tippers too.
in Scotland the schools stop earlier than the rest of the UK so for the first three weeks of the summer holidays the kids’ shows would be shown in the morning to us - like CBBC but based in Glasgow/Edinburgh. When I was 10 there was a show called Up For It (!!!) and it was presented by Rod Stewart’s cousin Marsali Stewart. They ran a competition called Groovy Grandparent Of The Day and the idea was you would nominate your family member who was a bit cool to go on and speak about themselves. My grandparents are massively into Elvis and my grandfather spent decades doing Teddy Boy weekends as an Elvis impersonator so we applied and he got on the show. I got to go on TV and introduce him to all the Scottish kids watching. The guests on the episodes were the Scotland coach Craig Brown and pop star Kavana so I got to meet them. And then after it there was a Fully Booked rehearsal happening so we hung around and got to meet Gail Porter, Tim Vincent and Chris Jarvis. They were all really nice - Brown was a bit dry, but Porter was exceptionally nice and charismatic and it’s really obvious why she ended up such a big personality in UK media. Then we left and on the way home we spotted Mrs Mack from Take The High Road and got her autograph too, what a day.
I’ve got plenty of other really rubbish ones too:
back in the day I did journalism at uni for a bit and got involved in the uni paper, and interviewed lots of random folk who were either pre- or post- peak fame. Face-to-face memorable encounters: Ali Love was really friendly, Scott Capurro was endearingly unhinged, Laura Hird was the sweetest soul. I interviewed Limmy over the phone right before the TV series aired and he was exactly like who he is in all his media - when I called he was playing Street Fighter and at one point he asked me to pause it because “that cunt Ryu’s head is bobbing up and down, and it’s really annoying me so I need to go batter him.”
also wrote for a couple of listings magazines around then. I interviewed Jackmaster in the late 00s and his technical understanding of DJing and how to do it was like nobody else I had spoken to on the subject, and then he lit up when he realised I was calling from a Paisley phone number and started talking really excitedly about Club 69.
I dipped my toe back into it a few years back and interviewed Right Said Fred over the phone for the 25th anniversary of “I’m Too Sexy” - my pal who runs a music website had been offered the interview and was looking for someone to do it, and I’m too curious to not say no to something like that. This was pre-Brexit but even then Richard Fairbrass was committed to his now-controversial stance, and I’ve got an audio recording of him singing the chorus to me.
once ended up at an afterparty with two members of Mogwai but I didn’t realise it was them at first because I’m not really a fan of their music.
I went to a Memory Tapes gig because Air France were supporting and I adore them. They ended up DJing afterwards and I got a photo with them. They invited me to go on to a party afterwards with them but the friend I had brought with me was upset over something and we didn’t go, biggest regret of my life.
I ran into Brian Dowling from Big Brother in a club and drunkenly told him that he changed my life because when I was growing up I didn’t know any gay men and seeing him be accepted and win the show was really inspiring to me. He was really touched until I told him that also I just really fancied him back then (I didn’t, it was just a drunken joke to make my pals laugh) and he ran away.
Partying with several members of Grange Hill at the Dungeons in '89. Forgot about that one,
Not a surprise it kicked off with Terry Christian about, he could start an argument in an empty house
My Uncle met Elvis, twice.
I still have the newspaper article somewhere.
Used to see celebs constantly when I worked in central London. Will always remember locking eyes with John Peel one lunchtime. We had a moment. Well I like to think so anyway. That and standing next to Weatherall for half an hour at the listening posts during a very quiet mid week Phonica binge are two of my favourite moments.
Working in Hollywood we had tons of celebs coming through. We had a policy of not approaching anyone and letting them just do their thing unless they asked for help.
Couple of notables were helping Elton John with a ton of records off a long list he had for his ‘Malibu house’ He was super friendly we had a nice chat and handshake when walking him to his car.
Walking Benicio Del Toro with some records to his super hoopty Crown Victoria, he seemed like a really down to earth guy.
Here’s Kanye West digging, who was the complete opposite and told me when we I was helping him out that he was a ‘visionary’ was hard to keep a straight face 
My favourite though is when I was about 12 my Dad surprised me and a friend for my birthday and took us to see Guns & Roses, Metallica and Motörhead with back stage access. My friend and I came back stage after watching the concert and my Dad was hanging out with Kirk Hammett & Eazy-E !
Went to school with ‘Robbie’ from Grange Hill. He always had nice trainers
80’s pop/rockers T’Pau (Carol & Ronnie) bought our house in London in 1987. Came round in a clapped out Morris Marina after being on Saturday morning tele. Presumably just before they got the cash from having #1s both sides of the Atlantic. Nice people. Showed me and my sister around when we went back and knocked on the door. Home studio on the ground floor.
A few years ago i was crossing the road in Shudehill in Manchester city centre, there was a short guy in front of me doing the same, i could only see the back of his head & his hair was a bit of a state, it looked like a (suspiciously) jet black, birds nest of spray on hair, as i walked past him i turned around to see the owner of this follicle fiasco, it was David Gest, Liza Minelli’s ex & Michael Jackson’s bezzie.
Tried and failed to chat with Bob Redford in La Boqueria, his minder told me where to go. All I got was this photo. He drove a car I owned in one of his films, thought we had something.
Sooooooo many stories that I cannot tell 
Father Stone lol brilliant
Kanye West a pretentious tw@t irl!!
Who’da thunk it?? 