Hiya all,

Righty tighty, after my account has ended up stretching over pages (again, I must learn some restraint! :lol:) I've opened up this thread to keep it in one place and cohesive, as opposed to being split over different pages with other accounts in between. Sooo, below you'll find parts one and two, with the third and final part hopefully coming later tonight. :D

Before Part One, however, are some new photos of the scrapbook I made of the messages members left. I do have more, even larger, hi-res versions, but my laptop struggles with them so I'm going to have to wait until I can get on my home PC to post them up.

You'll see the scrapbook is a little crammed, but that's because of the limited number of pages, and I wanted to fit everyones messages in, and make sure there were quotes, photos, excerpts from reviews (both professional and CO! members).







Hope you enjoy!

PART ONE

Okay, this might be long so brace yourself for a heck of a lot of ramble! Though I’m not going to make it quite as rambling and long-winded as previous accounts for days I’ve attended, I don’t have the strength in me!

First off, as I mentioned in my previous post we are having problems with getting the photos up because Claire forgot her USB lead for her camera and we’re having problems finding out how to get hold of a new one that works (otherwise we’re going to have to wait until the weekend when she goes back home eeep!).

Anyhow, my alarm went off at half 4, and, surprisingly seeing as I didn’t actually get to sleep until an hour beforehand, I didn’t have too much trouble getting up and straight into the shower to start getting ready – I’m guessing it’s because I hadn’t had time in bed to get into a deep sleep!

Whilst showering, I notice there was a spider in the bathroom eeek – though in past experiences, Orlando days which feature a spider early in the morning have turned out to be quite positive, so I was there showering and washing my hair whilst constantly keeping an eye on this spiny horrid little thing staying eerily still. I kept getting flashes of the movie ‘arachnophobia’ – just imagine it staying completely still before launching itself off the walls at me. Urgh… just the thought of it gives me the willies.

Anyhow, got myself ready whilst watching TV at a ridiculously quiet volume – first the news and then horrendous childrens TV – if you live in the UK I heartily suggest you avoid watching early morning childrens television unless you really have no other choice – it is rather disturbing to say the least! From a gender-bending young Mexican child telling me to shout ‘run’ in Mexican as loud as I can at 6am in the morning, through to a cartoon map bouncing up and down on the screen singing ‘I’m the map, I’m the map’ over… and over… and over again. Quite how my TV didn’t find itself getting acquainted with my window and then the garden is still a bit of a surprise myself!

I finished getting ready and headed out with scrapbook in hand, bag slung over my shoulder, to get onto the bus with my housemate Claire. We caught the bus into Farnham then had to walk up to the train station and would you believe it – we missed a train that was heading into London literally by about thirty seconds!!!! Which meant we had to wait half an hour until the next one – and it was rather cold to say the least!

Finally we hopped onto the train and I pretty much slept the whole of the hour-long journey, still not feeling fully awake, though the combination of spider-fear, cool shower and despairing children’s TV had gone some way in getting me bright eyed and bushy tailed.

We arrived at London Waterloo and, after a quick stop at the Waterloo WHSmiths to grab some chewing gum (and being distracted by the big GQ men of the year poster featuring Orlando they had up), we hopped onto the tube to get to Leicester Square. Now normally, when I travel to London, stepping down into the tube stations is something akin to walking into a kitchen where the oven door has been left open for hours while cooking some manner of stinking manky slop. A little extreme, maybe, but the general point being it is usually hot and a little on the smell side. Yesterday, however, I embraced the warmth eagerly – dithering as I had been at the cold September morning I’d been so cruelly forced to endure!

The tube journey was very brief thankfully (though that didn’t stop me from sitting down hehe) and when we got out to Leicester Square I was a little curious as to why I still hadn’t received any text from Rosie, whom I had told we would meet outside the DOY’s between 9 and half past. Anyhow, the top priority for both myself and Claire was a toilet break – so off we hopped on a rather convoluted and unnecessarily complicated toilet search. At first we headed down to the National Portrait Gallery – a frequent stop-off of mine this summer for their wonderful, artistic, clearly rather expensive… toilets, only to find it didn’t open until 10am. So off we shuffled into Trafalgar Squares to find that the National Gallery (no Portrait insertion needed) followed suit and also didn’t fling open it’s doors until 10.

So we backtracked to Leicester Square and Claire pointed out that we should have gone to Mcdonalds like she suggested all along, only to realise she meant Burger King, which was of course closed, so we ended up going to Mcdonalds (which Claire had thought was KFC… oh the confusion) to finally relieve ourselves!

We then finally headed round to Leicester Square – and at first I didn’t recognise anybody at all. It wasn’t until Elpul raised her head out of her arms after about five minutes that I realised it was her, and bluehaysee alongside her. She had good reason to be stooped and exhausted though – she’d only returned from Florida that day before, had been outside the DOY’s the night before and her sleep quota was looking very slim indeed! Not to mention it was still bloody cold!

Anyhow, after a few introductions we waited around as people began to arrive – RosieB, lilsaz and eventually wannabe. Then began rather long wait in which slowly but surely a rather surprisingly large crowd gathered just for his arrival. Knowing how brief Orlando’s arrivals have been of late, I didn’t stand in line to get a photo or anything for when he got there – I stayed a bit further back on the steps with Rosie, ‘threading’ for her. I wanted to help make sure she got her stitching done, so was there taking apart bits of thread then folding them up. To begin with I was slow and a little disastrous to say the least, but I got the hang of it and eventually went on a threading rampage! By the time I’d finished just before the matinee, I’d almost covered Rosie’s blanket that she had laid down in folded threads.

Orlando arrived, and was indeed as brief as expected, not stopping to sign autographs or take photos or anything – I merely stood on the step smiling at seeing him in the flesh again, and peeked through the bars to see Rosie get to give him the cake. By this time the afternoon was getting on somewhat – and I had tickets to the matinee performance so didn’t want to leave it too long to go in.

I waited by the entrance to have a quick chat with Rosie after she got back from grabbing herself some lunch, then headed inside with Joanna, a girl I’d met on the first night (July 5th) and had no idea she was going to be there – so it was a pleasant surprise when she not only came over and said hi (whilst I was threading for Rosie) but also discovered she had tickets for the matinee. We weren’t sat right by one another, but she was only at the end of the row behind, so I was able to wave at her a couple of times before the show and during the interval.
Before I took my seat, however, I popped to the toilet again, and found the single cubicle in the men’s toilets occupied. No problem, I’ll be patient I thought. Now, before I continue this borderline-tasteless story I just want to clarify that I always use the cubicle, I just don’t like using public urinals at all… anywhere… ever. So I waited… then waited a little longer… then it became clear to me that whoever was inside had no choice but to use the cubicle, the time he was taking, and, dare I say it, the sounds being made, showed that the urinals simply wouldn’t have done the job! So there I stood, with only about 15 minutes to go until the performance, waiting in a rather petite washroom waiting… and waiting… and waiting. Finally, the man finished (and I had to resist giving him a ‘you should have gone before you left’ look of disapproval) then I popped in for literally 30 seconds, before heading back down to take my seat.

I sat reading my programme whilst waiting for the show to begin, and it was the programme I’d brought the play time I came to see the show. I’d luckily managed to get autographs from Orlando, Lynda Baron, Ciaran McIntyre, Tim Healy and Paul Hilton under their respective photos inside the programme, so my quest for the day was to get Dearbhla’s and Gareth’s to complete the set. Thankfully, I’d been able to pass my programme forward to Claire and Sharon whilst I guarded Rosie’s stuff when Gareth arrived earlier that day – and they had gotten me his autograph bless them. Now all I needed was Dearbhla’s…

Anyhow, there I sat, flicking through my programme for the hundredth time (I had nothing else to read and didn’t like resorting to my phone too much), when I was tapped on the shoulder by the lady beside me. “Excuse me,” she said, “but how did you get your programme signed?”. She was asking on behalf of her daughter sat next to her. I explained that I’d gotten them from coming down beforehand, but if she wanted hers signed the best thing would be to wait outside afterwards. I said the crowds will already be big after the matinee so if she really wanted Orlando’s in particular she would be better off waiting around until after the evening performance. It was at this point I felt sorry for both the mother and the daughter – the mother because she had train tickets and knew that wouldn’t be possible, and the daughter because she was clearly devastated at seeing the possibility of getting Orlando’s autograph, only to have it snatched away from her by the practicalities of travel and train times. L

Anyhow, thus the play beganneth, and for what would be my final time. There were the usual couple of gasps and intakes of breath from the crowds upon Orlando stepping onto the stage, as had become the norm, but overall once again the audience were fortunately restrained throughout.

The performance was once again superb, and I did notice a few directorial changes, and for the majority they were definite improvements. Having seen the play twice already, it was very definitely the best and most refined of the three. Some of Tim Healy’s lines, in particular, had been given much more time and pause to really get the most humour out of the them (“houses… houses… houses” springs to mind).

Anyway, with everyone on top form (Orlando included, of course) the most surprising thing during the matinee was Orlando’s eye contact. Now I know this most likely sounds a) a little over-reaching and b ) incredibly big-headed of me, but I swear on all I hold dear and would mourn to lose it is the truth. Quite a lot of times, Orlando would glance out to the audience, and a lot of times I kid you not he looked directly at me! Now this isn’t surprising when you consider my height and proximity to the stage, plus the fact I was in the very centre of the row, but I’m not kidding you, he was actually looking straight at me with unbroken eye contact for quite a while at some points (and I swear he was looking at, and not ‘through’ me as some actors can). It happened at several points throughout the play – most notably when he was upstairs for the first time, on the sofa during his emotional breakdown, and the biggest example was actually when he was sat drinking at the table in the morning. Obviously every time it happened my heart skipped a beat, but I made sure I never smiled or did anything except look at him as Steven – the number of times he must have looked out at the audience only to see a fangirl or the like give him a flustered grin and smile – I didn’t want to be that disrespectful to his performance – unless of course it was during any of the comedy lines. Also, at the point where he was on the sofa and looking, I broke the eye contact to look at Tim Healy – I hated the idea of me looking like I was some silly smiling fan spending the whole 2 ½ hours just oogling at him.

Anyhow, I didn’t get up or go anywhere during the interval – simply because I couldn’t be arsed ! It flew by thankfully, and I occupied myself with texting friends including Claire to see how everyone outside were doing.

The second act ensued, including the morning table eye contact as mentioned before, and it was very emotional to watch the final scenes play out, leading up to the last curtain call I would see for the play. I’d said beforehand to Elpul and Bluehaysee that we should do a standing ovation, and they had already discussed the same thing I believe. When the cast came on stage for the first bow, I clapped as normal, but as soon as they came back on for the second time, up I stood, and fortunately I was note alone – it wasn’t the whole audience by any means but it was still a substantial number. Orlando looked and smiled and actually mouthed a small ‘thank you’ to the audience generally for the standing ovation, and during which I got a smile and a nod off of him (*sigh*, * swoon*!!!!). As the bows ended, he looked down to see the row of girls two rows in front, who were wearing ‘Mrs Orlando Bloom’ t-shirts, he saw them and smiled, then as he walked off looked back and laughed. This distraction meant he either tumbled a little or jumped on Tim Healy from behind in celebration – Elpul and Bluehaysee said it looked to them like he tripped, to me it looked like a hug-leap from behind in celebration at finishing the matinee to Tim Healy. Who knows!

Getting out of the Duke of York’s proved to be a particularly slow and aggravating affair – some people were actually mollying on the STAIRS talking at one point about the play – fortunately they were told to move on. Some people are so, what’s the word… inconsiderate? Ignorant? No… STUPID!

Once outside, the crowds were as huge as I’d expected – at this point I already resigned to giving Orlando the book after the evening performance, and genuinely didn’t mind, and had no intention whatsoever of trying to push into the crowds – would have been stupid, pointless and I’ve been on the receiving end of pushing enough to have grown to despise it.

However, Rosie, Claire and co had apparently all been speaking to Pete (including Rosie having spoke to him before the matinee explaining I had the book) and was surprised to see him notioning me to come around to the other side. I was a little confused at first, so just walked around where he told me the crowds were smaller there, and at this point it was all he could do – there were too many people to do anything such as trying to get me to the front. I was fine with it, and thanked him (I was about four rows back but my height meant I could see just fine). At one point he asked if I wanted him to pass the book to Rosie to give to him, but I explained I was going to give it to him later, and thanked him anyway.

I was genuinely not at all disheartened – I would rather have the patience and respect to the security to not push forward, and having spent so much time and effort on the book, knew the best thing would be to just wait it out to give to him on the night. So I stood in the corner, waiting for Orlando, hoping maybe I could give him a wave or something to pass the time over...

PART TWO

Orlando eventually came out (cue conventional crowd wailing and pushing) and made his rounds as usual – but in my opinion he was most definitely spending more time than usual trying to get every little thing signed, no doubt because it was his last day. I’ve been super fortunate this summer to have seen him in all his variety of tops and attire – the only exception was I hadn’t got to see him in his luvverly jubberly t-shirt, so I imagine my joy and surprise when he came out wearing exactly that, looking wonderful as always, with the added benefit of arms on show! :woot:

He made his way around, and one of the most adorable things was seeing how he looked at these two kids who were on their parents (I assume) shoulders, shouting out to him. It was so sweet bless him, and you could just see all of the pride and love he will pour into eventually being a fabulous father.

Then he passed round by me, and at first I didn’t think I was going to get to wave or anything, but he actually looked back and stopped for a couple of seconds to wave and give a thumbs up, saying ‘hey mate, how are you doing?;’ or words to that immediate effect, with that undeniable shine of recognition in his eyes. It was wonderful, and whilst I’ve said before being a 6ft 6 male probably helps me get remembered, it still is another indicator of how fabulous he is with his fans, and that he does genuinely see us, and not just address us all as faceless masses. He then gave me a salute, and, still feeling all hearty-leapy, just did the same back, which was greeted with a smile. :wub:

It was simple, understated, but meant the absolute world to me, and I really wouldn’t have had it any other way. :D :D

He then passed round and saw that all of the Team Bloom gang were lucky enough to get their things signed and have little chats with him, and was pleased that it all went so well, and was genuinely happy for them. :D There was one very personal story concerning one of the other members which I have no right to go into myself, but they had really hoped to get a picture signed for a specific reason, so was delighted to see that get signed as well!

Sooo… after he went back in, I headed back over to the Clickers as the crowds split. Claire had to go and meet her mom at Waterloo station – the pair of them had tickets for the final performance, so Joanna and myself took her place. Thus began another great wait – Rosie didn’t stop with us very long, she was taken into her position in the passage to carry on with the stitching whilst we waited on the street.

The wait was a very jovial affair – mixed with games and sing-along sessions which were occasionally joined in by our head-of security friend. Myself and Eleanor played a ‘what track from the Wicked soundtrack am I singing’ game, whilst Joanna, Sharon and me went through a stage of singing old hymns, school assembly songs and even sister act numbers (it was at this point the head of security joined in, with a wonderful rendition of kum-by-ah :lol:). It was this kind of jolly atmosphere and game-playing which stayed prevelant through most of the evening, and really helped the time pass rather quickly.

The only real problem we faced was from a group of girls (started as a couple, ended up being something of a collective gaggle!) beside me to the right (I was on the far right of our ‘line’). The girl at the front in particular had squeezed in and kept trying to push me across and back, and wasn’t even discreet in announcing her plans to try and get her friends to squash in against us either! Hmph, how very dare she! Anyway, basic elbow jostling carried on for an hour or so, and at one point I actually had to say to her ‘look you pushed in to begin with’ until thankfully one of the security guards, who proved to be an absolute star all night, dealt with her and literally pushed her back and put me in her place. Not only did he do this, he came up to me after, looked at me and went ‘that’s better’ then followed to say something particularly unpleasant about the girl who I’d replaced. I’d post it up here but alas, I don’t want any wandering pilgrims reading this and getting all hoity toity about it.

The security, as mentioned, were absolute stars throughout the whole evening, and we all really got along with the majority of them. At one point a couple of them were chatting to me about how tall I was, and it led to a debate involving all of them over which of two of them were taller. It was rather funny to say the least, and then digressed into more tasteless conversation which I managed to get myself involved in! :lol: Again, I shan’t repeat it here, needless to say it involved the notion of height/length and the anatomy of a male human being… :whistle:

I also got involved helping them take a couple of photos with one of the Duke of Yorks ladies, kept winding up Joanna (bless her) with not one, but two of them (I think they rather liked her!) and just generally had a really lovely and pleasant evening, feeling very chummy with them as opposed to being a little intimidated or worried about annoying them as has been the case before.

During the wait, I realised I really needed food – I hadn’t eaten ALL day, not a single thing – and I’d been up at half four in the morning eeek! So bluehaysee, bless her, grabbed me a McDonalds when she went to get some tea (I think it was tea she went to get). So massive thanks to you hon, it was hugely appreciated! It was rather funny though – I was stood there trying to juggle my chips and burger whilst Sharon was so kind as to act as my ‘slave’ :lol:, holding my drink for me whilst I scoffed my food down. Sarah also fetched Joanna a burger, which was of course more ammunition for the security guard to wind her up! :lol:

Of course, it was also inevitable that not only would I eventually need food, but also a travel to a toilet again. Joanna had just been to the Starbucks up the road and had told me she’d gotten some rather suspicious looks seeing as how she hadn’t actually purchased anything, so off I trotted, but not before checking with security it was alright for me to pop off and then come back into the same spot, which Elpul thought was rather funny :lol:. On my way up, I knew I wasn’t going to get any of those dastardly looks which had been flung Joanna’s way, so upon walking into Starbucks, I slapped out my phone and engaged in an imaginary phonecall…
“yeah I’m in Starbucks now, shall I get you something in?”… (pause)… “why?”… (pause)… “where are you now…”…. (pause)… “Ok well I’ve gotta pop to the toilet or I’m gonna burst, don’t take forever”.
So, off I pop to the toilet, which involved an embarrassing situation where I couldn’t open the door so went and asked why, to which I was told it must be because it is in use. Dur! Sounds obvious, I know, but all the signs on the door made me think it was the door to a set of toilets, I didn’t think it was just one single cubicle which was occupied, hence the locked door… I did feel a tad stupid!
Anyhow, toilet business finished, quick spray and hair comb, pop back outside, but seconds before I walk out, cue fake phone call part 2…
“hello”… (pause)… “ya fool I’m in the bloody toilet”… (pause as I walk out the toilet)… “why?”… “okay, well I’m not sitting waiting, I’ll look like a prat… I’ll come and meet you at Leicester Square”… “by Burger King?”… “Ok, I’ll only be a couple of minutes”…
Oh throw me on the stage! I didn’t get any dodgy looks, and best of all my little false conversation made nobody realise I’d just come in to relieve myself (I hope). Of course the conversation about probably isn’t 100% exactly minutely accurate to the actual false conversation I had, but alas, it is near enough – I’m rather proficient at the whole ‘pretend you’re on the phone to let people think there’s a reason why you’re being naughty/using toilets when not buying anything/buying Orlando Bloom posters at the counter of a man to whom homophobia is a hobby’ thing. :lol:

So overall, things remained rather pleasant and positive throughout the night, with fortunately the security clearly on our sides and helping us out the whole night. Everything was shaping up so perfectly as the time for the evening performance to end drew near, and little did I know things were going to get even better, then a darn sight worse…

Your review is amazing, and the scrapbook is wonderful!
Thank you for sharing with us!

Kyle, I can't begin to tell you how thrilled I am with the scrapbook. It is more beautiful than I had ever imagined. What you have created there with all of the messages, reviews, pictures etc is just amazing. I am truly overwhelmed.

I know that Orlando will treasure this forever.

Thank you both so very, very much. :friends:

(Kyle, I'll read your account later this evening. I'm a little pushed for time at the moment. )

A HUGE thanks for the review ! I love read it :) More I think it's really good for my English. I mean like a training. :friends:

And thanks for the pics ! If I was you I would have kept the scrapbook :lol: So wonderfuuuuul ! :wub:

Thanks for the compliments on the scrapbook everyone, it's really sweet of you. I was having a bit of a confidence crisis when I was sit in my room putting it all together on Word. I went through different ideas and plans for it, but was eventually happy with the idea of keeping it all on Word and editing the photos etc. on photodeluxe and adding them in on there. It was a heck of a lot of work but it was all worth it.

And yes, Claire was also a big help - letting me use her colour printer to print it all off, pritt stick to stick the print-offs down, and also use her camera for the photos. :D

I just hope Orlando likes it. :)

Thanks so much for sharing that with us and that scrapbook looks like it is absolutely beautiful... what a lovely gift, I'm sure it's one that he will cherish!

Gonedeaf! Thanks for part 2! I can't wait for the final part! Sounds like you had a wonderful time -- and I so love that security joined in on your sing along! :lol: It's too funny!

And beautiful job on the scrapbook!!! :clap: Take a bow that is very impressive! :steven: I bet he loved it!

:towel:


ORLANDO LIKES YOUR SCRAPBOOK FOR SURE!!!!!

Kyle I just spewed water all over the keyboard with the bathroom story! :brow: The scrapbook looks fabulous! Im sure Orlando will treasure it forever! Can't wait for part 3 and no toilet jokes...ok?

Kyle, you write the best reports ever! :clap: :clap: :clap:

Did you sing Postman Pat???? :woot: I remember breaking into a rendition of that at a certain premiere a few years ago! :lmao:

I just knew where that conversation was heading!!! :lshic: :lshic:

Your pretend phone conversation...absolutely brilliant! :lol: I've been laughing so much I need to reapply my mascara!

Waiting for Part 3! ;)

Awww bless you all, thanks for the continued compliments ladies, it's uber appreciated! :D

Wendy - nope I didn't sing Postman Pat hehe :lol: - if I'd have known it had a legacy I would have thrown it in there! :lol:

And Ginger, worry not, there's no more scary toilet stories... though there is a rather disturbing story regarding a drunk lady and overhead storage shelves in trains...

Kyle the scrapbook is truly amazing- I kept getting glances of it from over the other side of the passageway chasm being on the theatre side and I was intrigued.

Your stories about the day, particularly the evening, do make me smile and remember what was a lovely chilled fun filled evening it was- its only a shame I know how it ended. :angry:

Oh Kyle!! :lshic: :lshic: :lshic:

I looooved the scrapbook!!! GORGEOUS!! Thank you for all your hard work! :wub:

WOW what a stunning scrapbook!
I can say for sure that Orlando just have to love this amazing book!
I'm very impressed you did an amazing job!!
:clap: :clap: :clap:

Kyle, you did a fantastic job on the scrapbook! Thank you so very much for doing it. I know Orlando will Love it.

Kyle, the scrapbook looks wonderful! :clap:
Thanks for sharing your stories and photos. I am looking forward to reading the rest. :friends:

Woohooo, part 2! Thanks so much for the wonderful report. The details make it so vivid, it's like a great book that you loathe to put down! :clap: Can't wait for the rest.

Kyle the scrapbook is just beautiful. Again, thank you for all of your hard work in putting it together (and to Claire as well :wave: ).

I have been so busy with school that I haven't been able to respond to your review!!!! :cry:


I just read it, and it is absolutely wonderful!!!!!!!! :P

I don't know what I would do if Orlando would ever make eye contact with me :thud:


I :wub: :wub: :wub: the book!!!! It was beautifully done :D GOOD JOB!!!!

Thank you very much, its brilliant :D

Wow, Kyle part 2 was fantastic. :thumb: I love the whole fake talking on the phone bit was very funny. :lol: I can't wait to read part 3.

Righty tighty, here is the final two parts (they won't fit onto one post). I hope you enjoy it, I'll add the photos of my completed programme on another post afterwards.

PART THREE

As the time neared for the performance to reach it’s end, the security asked us all to move back, and of course, being the obedient little beavers that we were, we complied, making sure that the evil group behind us did not monopolize on this chance to push forward (though I know Pete would have moved them back behind if they so much as tried it anyway). It was the final night, so I was expecting big crowds, but they were bordering on ridiculous, and the security pushed everyone really far back, much further than I’ve seen them push crowds back before (though I was told it had been done that way for several nights prior – practise for the finale perhaps?).

Anyway, we were all in wait, carrying on with our chatter, singing and games (and also chatting to the girl behind me who seemed to have defected from the evil group and was now being nice… hhmmm… maybe she’d gathered security were on our side?). Eventually, the audience from inside the theatre began to leave, only adding to the considerable crowds (eeek) and on the other side of the road scores of people were lining the pathway opposite, including some rowdy drunks. I did actually spot Kadir and some of the security look at them and then at one another, and no doubt the potential for them to be problems was noted, but unfortunately they did not (or could not) act upon it – no doubt because it is a public pathway after all, they couldn’t throw people off it or tell them to buggar off without cause.

Slowly but surely people began to leave through the stage door, many of whom I didn’t recognised, but some I definitely did. Everyone seemed to notice Bill Nighy (on our side at least), and from the sound of things quite a few people in the crowds did, but despite screaming and shouting, he didn’t stop to sign autographs. Where I stood at the POTC:DMC premiere last July got the same treatment from Bill Nighy (I.e. stroll past without signing), so a repeat would have caused me to no doubt spend some time here giving him a royal bash if it weren’t for a) the fact this wasn’t his show or project, no doubt a reason why he didn’t sign and also b ) Eleanor told me how much time he spent with the people near her at the DMC premiere, so he’s forgiven… a little. :lol:

The posh, privileged and peculiar passed by, and it wasn’t until Gareth Farr left the building that I really got into the swing of things. Khadir had come over to us earlier in the evening and told us that two days before, it had been Gareth’s birthday and he hadn’t told anybody – they’d only found out that day. Soooo, he asked all the crowds if they’d sing happy birthday when he came out, and he’d explain to Gareth we knew it was two days late. So, out comes Mr Farr, carrying a lovely bouqet of flowers as did all the principal cast, and we all bursted into a rather moving ‘happy birthday’. Gareth seemed a little surprised, but then when Khadir spoke to him a look of realisation spread over his face and he seemed quite touched and very grateful – mouthing ‘thank you’s’ all around the crowds. It was lovely and hopefully very memorably for him! :D

Next up was Lynda Baron. Let me just take a moment to say I have an unusual love for Lynda Baron – no doubt stemming from her work as Auntie Mabel in ‘Come Outside’, a British children’s programme I used to watch and found equally adorable and hilarious. She would pop out into her garden with her loveably dog ‘Pippin’, jump into her spotty aeroplane and go off to find out how toilet paper was made, or something of that ilk, which usually required her singing a song about it (‘ooooh what would we do without toilet paper, what we do to wipe our bums?’ – that’s an original creation, not from the show :lol: but that’s the kind of thing it was like), and of course Pippin always ended up being something of a mischievous little scamp! It was all thoroughly British, and utterly charming, adorable and, as I said, frequently hilarious (I’ll never forget Auntie Mabel trying to teach me how to walk like a duck – I saw a repeat a couple of years ago and almost caused myself damage through laughing so much!).

Now I’d already gotten Lynda’s autograph in my programme, so I wasn’t going to harass her for one again, but I was lucky enough to be in the absolute perfect place to say hello – as the stars left the stage door, there was a gap in the crowds left for them, and then most of them walked down past Orlando’s car which had pulled up waiting for him (on a double yellow line I might add tut tut!) then straight past me (I was at the far end of the crowds at the front, so the perfect position). As Lynda walked past, I smiled at her, and said ‘congratulations, you were brilliant’ and I got a lovely smile and she said ‘thank you very much’. It was lovely, and all I really wanted to say and be said to back really (bit of a mouthful there) – I wasn’t expecting her to come somersaulting over the barriers screaming ‘oh my god how incredibly kind of you let’s boogy on down to the timewarp’ or anything more than just the chance to say well done and have it acknowledged… it was for the six year old in me. J

There was, of course, a cast member whom I was not prepared to let pass by without her scribble, the wonderful Dearbhla Molloy – the single missing link in my complete autographed programme extraordinaire (except for the understudies of course but hehe, I didn’t trouble myself with such underlings… joke joke joke!). Anyway, when Dearbhla walked out of the stage door passage, or Orlando’s passage as it should now correctly be addressed, I excitedly pointed her out to Sharon, and let out a meagre ‘Dearbhla!’. Sharon, no doubt realising how pathetic my attempt had been, unleashed a much more powerful and proficient ‘DEARBHLA!!!!!!!!’, which thankfully got her attention. She looked over and saw me holding the programme and seemed to almost instantly click what was being asked of her, so she shouted over ‘stay there’ with a lovely smile. Of course… I was planning on squeezing my way out of the heavily condensed crowds before Orlando had come out just to avoid you Ms. Molloy so it’s a good job you told me to ‘stay there’. :lol: Sorry, the cheeky side got the better of me for a moment. :lol:

Anyhoo, bless her cotton socks, she walked over as promised, I handed her my programme… then she asked for a pen. Whoopsy… no pen! So I fidgeted around asking people for a pen which eventually Joanna handed over (thank you my dear), and Dearbhla signed, completing my programme yip-yip-yapparoo!!!! :D :D :D
I was not the only person, however, who wanted to get her autograph, so I seized the opportunity of standing literally right next to her and engaged in a mini conversation with her. I told her congratulations and said she’d been wonderful, which she thanked me for, then I asked if she’d enjoyed it, and she said, and I quote “It’s been an absolute gas”, and not so much just for the project, but also for the crowds outside, she seemed really genuine, down to earth and lovely, really appreciate of the crowds and how supportive they’d been, and commented on how wonderful the audiences had been every night. It was really remarkable chatting to her for a few minutes (and it really was a mini conversation – the girl behind me afterwards asked if I’d gotten it on camera because it was such a nice little chat), it was really an eye-opener, seeing how much of a transformation Mrs Shaw actually was for her, and it really notched my respect for her as an actress, and my already high opinions on her performance up a few notches. There was none of the slightly aloof sense of detachment or distance of Mrs Shaw at all in Dearbhla – she was warm, friendly and open, and of course the accented only further distinguished the stark difference between character and actress. Was a wonderful little experience I’m very grateful to have had, and can only thank her again, even though she’ll probably never read this, for being so kind and talkative!

When Dearbhla left, there was much applause and cheering from the crowd for both Tim Healy and Paul Hilton, and I was in a really happy, excited place. Getting my little moment with Lynda Baron, my lovely chat with Dearbhla Molloy, getting my programme finished, having such a lovely time with the Clickers, the security guards being so nice, being at the front with the scrapbook ready to give to Orlando who was still yet to come out – it was all looking so positive and I was really buzzing. I had El, Joanna, Sharon and Sarah all poised to take photos of the moment when I gave the scrapbook to Orlando (and had rehearsed a couple of cheesy gestures to Sarah’s camera in preparation :lol:) and Khadir had even come over at one point and said ‘no pushing or leaning forward – except for you who we know about’ talking directly to me! So I had performance to lean forward, give the book to Orlando and have my photo taken… I was so excited it was almost too much to repress… and then of course he came out and things didn’t go to plan by a long, long shot.

Before I do my best to chronicle Orlando’s disastrous final post-performance signing, I’ll just give you an update on Claire and her mom. They’d come out of the showing, but really stood no choice of getting near the front – the barriers were not only stopping the crowd from pushing forward, but also spreading out – meaning there really was no way at all into the crowds. Unfortunately for Claire it meant she had to stand back on the steps, but she seemed ok with it.

PART FOUR

Soooo… Orlando finally came out… and once again cue the screams, wailing and all manners of noise and din. As he stepped out, already the crowds opposite started to push madly, and the security were instantly flung into the unenviable position of trying to stop them. There’d already been trouble earlier that night over the opposite side with a rather large man trying to get through the crowds even though the barriers were there, and he kept disputing with the security guards, so I was already glad we were over the side that we were – now I was thanking the powers that be I was on the much calmer and docile side.

As he made his way round, the screaming got worse, the pushing extremely so, and the security guard really seemed to be fighting a losing battle, particularly in regards to keeping people off of the roads. It really was the biggest and most extreme case of an actual mob scene outside the Duke of York’s I’d yet seen in the whole run, and that includes photos/videos of days when I didn’t attend. It was scary to say the least – the people on the path opposite all rushed forward, the screams were intensifying, and were being matched by the sound of the security guards yelling at the top of their voices trying to manage the crowd.

Then it happened, just as Orlando was passing by to come over to our side, and I would have been one of the first people he reached – some hooligans began throwing things over. Now on the night I only saw a rose, but heard afterwards the talk of a glass bottle, and did indeed see it on a fan video. At the time it was all such a blur, an extreme shock and really a heart-wrenching experience – seeing the security guards open the car door and usher Orlando indeed it.

Devastating. :(

I stood there, desperately hoping he was just going to wait in the car until it calmed down (what a stupid naïve thought Kyle you fool!), but alas, it was not meant to be. Bless his soul though, he actually took the time as he was getting in the car to look over and wave and apologise – a genuinely look of sympathy and sorrow in his eyes, and I don’t think I’m alone in saying I didn’t blame him one single bit – nor do I blame security. It was the irresponsible, immature and pathetic excuses for human beings who had seen fit to act in such a deeply horrible manner that ruined the night for everyone, not least all of us on the other side who all let out collective gasps, sighs and moans, and exchanged puzzled looks of disappointment and despair as Orlando’s car pulled away and drove him to safety away from the idiots and arseholes who had just sent many of our worlds crashing down around us. :cry:

The aftermath of it all happened so quickly, most notably because myself, Claire and her mom had a train to catch very soon, and needed to get to the station. I was dumbstruck though, and stood there like something of a fool for a short while until I turned to see Sharon on the verge of tears saying how sorry for me she was that I hadn’t gotten to give him the scrapbook – both her and Joanna gave me an enormous hug which was very comforting and welcome.

Rosie jumped in to help though – she quickly beckoned me over to give her the book, which I of course complied, before heading back over to say my goodbyes. Claire asked her whom the scrapbook would go to, and I was told it was given to the Production Manager, who assured it would be given to Orlando the following morning with the stitching when he came to pick up other things. It wasn’t quite enough to make up for how disappointing and upsetting the past five minutes had been, but it was still a lifeline at a time most needed ,and I was, and still am, exceptionally grateful to Rosie for helping me out at that pivotal time. :friends:

What was also lovely was Khadir actually took the time to apologise for me not being able to give it to him, to which I said I understood and knew why they had to usher him away. Like I said, I never assigned any blame nor felt any bitterness towards the security – they were doing their job and doing it well, protecting Orlando as we all wanted and expected them to do. Being in such a rush as I was (and particularly wanting to get the chance to pop over and say a final goodbye to Sharon and the other clickers), I didn’t get the chance to properly thank the security and team for their help and brilliant work over the past 10 weeks, though I was relieved to learn that Rosie did. Hopefully they’ll know I felt the same way.

So I said my final goodbyes to the Clickers, who all looked an understandable mixture of despondent, disappointed and angry, before we began our quickstep journey to Waterloo station. As if to rub salt in the wounds, as I was walking over the road to Leicester Square tube station, one girl actually said to me ‘you’re the lucky one – you’re the bloke who got closest to Orlando Bloom’ then said to her friend ‘he was this close’ and approximated about half a foot with her hands. I just looked at her and said ‘Orlando? No I was on the other side’ to which she replied ‘I saw you, were right in front of him’. I wasn’t in the mood to argue this point I knew was very definitely not the case, nor did I have the time to do so, so just walked on. Silly girl.

For the remainder of the tube journey to Waterloo station, and the train journey home, I had my ipod stuck in my ears on full blast, with my ‘calming’ album on repeat. It’s full of soothing, some would say bordering-on-depressing, tracks, perfectly fitting how I was feeling. I just couldn’t find it in me to get into proper conversation with Claire or her mom (though I didn’t blank them by any means, and Claire’s mom did try to cheer me up with chocolate bless her), nor was I feeling in the mood to listen to anything upbeat, cheesy or cheery.

As such, the journey home was a particularly sombre, sad and downbeat affair. I was upset, hugely disappointed and very, very tired. Not even the antics of the drunks who were sharing the train with us could pick me up… and they were the stuff that I would usually have a little giggle at normally, mostly because of the stupidity and immaturity of their antics. There were about 15 drunkards, who all looked in their early-mid twenties, mixed genders, who were group together at our end of the train, and they were all considerably intoxicated. As such, they weren’t being particularly quiet or conspicuous. One of the men thought it would be a good idea to climb up into the overhead storage shelves, and invited one of the girls to do so. Now, this wouldn’t be an idea I’d particularly endorse at the best of times, but consider that this girl wasn’t a) the slightest of ladies, B) wearing the longest of dresses and c) possessing anything resembling a bra or underwear, it becomes as horrific as you can imagine!

She of course though it was hilarious, and the others in her group were as well, with two of the men in particularly enjoying their viewpoint extremely. Enough Said. The tomfoolery carried on for about ten minutes when the next chapter, the saga of actually getting her down without complete exposure or bodily harm, began. With the aid of a friend, it went rather smoothly, though did end with her friend, who seemed to be almost equally inebriated, losing her balance and falling onto me… good times! Or not as the case may be. I wasn’t going to be a grumpy arsehole, so I smiled and laughed and said it was no problem, but deep down I really, really wasn’t feeling like being celebratory or joining in there fun and games… I just wanted to be home, and in bed.

When our train finally arrived at Farnham about an hour later, it was FREEZING. Exceptionally cold, as if the temperature had plummeted a ridiculous amount in a stupidly short time. So the three of us dithered around the road onto the car park before hopping in and being grateful to have just a short journey before getting back home.

Being back at home, or my student home at least, was an enormous relief. No doubt had the evening ended a bit more successfully and joyfully I would have still been buzzing and desperate to get online to squee and share and celebrate. As it was, I stumbled in, having taken a few moments to appreciate how beautifully clear the sky and stars were (really, I’m not waxing lyrical for nothing!), thanked Claire’s mom for the lift, saying it was hugely appreciated, then wombled my way upstairs into my bedroom.

By this time it was getting on for half past one… 21 hours… lordy above. Having been up for so long, with plenty of travelling and standing around in between, was enough to excuse my immediate departure for slumber, I really don’t think either of them thought I was sulking (and I genuinely wasn’t – I was sad but it was the tiredness and longing for bed that took me straight there, not an attempt to project how miserable I was feeling).

All told I think it was the right thing to do as well, rather than sit around moaning about how badly things had gone, because, as I got into bed, ignoring the mess from my earlier preparations which I would no doubt have to clean up the following morning, a genuinely strange thing happened. Almost instantly, I began to feel better, and a surge of positivity and gratitude swept over me as I cuddled under my duvet. I had seen the play on the final day – loved it, gotten eye contact from the man himself and took part in the standing ovation. I’d been remembered outside afterwards, and gotten an adorable little salute. I’d completed my programme as I had wanted to. I’d had a wonderful wait with the Clickers and security making it pass by a lot faster and a infinitely more enjoyably than it would have done so had I been alone. I’d gotten my little chat with Dearbhla and a moment with Lynda.

The scrapbook was in the hands of the production manager and fingers crossed would be in Orlando’s possession the very next day…

And most importantly, and this was genuinely a great source of comfort… Orlando was safe, sound and healthy, and tomorrow would be another day.

This may sound little wishy-washy claptrap written four days after the event, but I can put my hand on my heart and assure you it is the comforting thoughts that soothed my mind as I slowly began to nod off. Sure, the night may had ended badly and bitterly, but with that painful half an hour or so aside, there’d been ten weeks beforehand of brilliance, happiness, excitement, and a handful of wonderful experiences with Orlando which nobody, not even an uncontrollable drunk with a glass bottle and penchant for throwing the sodding thing could take away from me.

It had not been a premiere, a single day or event, it had been 2 and a half months of discovery, of forging friendships, all of the time spent at ClickOrlando, the scrapbook, all had come from these amazing 10 weeks which would go down in history as one of the most inspiring and enjoyable backbones for any summer of my life so far. And of course it had all been down to one man… one man who I know will continue to go on to do many more wonderful, inspiring projects that I will be able to hopefully have the pleasure of experiencing, and all of the many encounters, stories and friendships that being a fan of his has yet to present to me.

The past 10 weeks had given me more friends, more inspiration and more respect for Orlando than anytime that had come before it, and that, more than anything, was enough to settle me peacefully to sleep, and give me cause for celebration indeed.

FIN.


And to finish off, here are the photos of the programme which I managed to get completed wahoo! :woot:

You'll notice Dearbhla's sticks out as being not only the only autograph in biro, but also not at the bottom of the page... ah well, I'm not complaining! :D

Thanks for this amazing report!!! The pics of the program are terrific

*hugs*

Like a good movie coming to an end. Tissue in hand....I cried, sighed and smiled. Kyle your writing is amazing and so are you! I see a little Orlando in you. I do! He would be just like this if he were in your shoes. Always able to turn the bad around and say something possitive about it. No matter how bad the bad was. Are you sure your not a Buddist? I know Orlando got his scrapebook and enjoying reading all our messages. Thanks for taking time to fix something so special to give to him, something that included all of us, not just you. That's a good trait to have. Thanks for sharing your story and pictures with us!!! I'm glad you got all your program signed. I just realised that I will be getting the signed program soon in the mail and that all those pictures will be inside. For some reason I was thinking of the signed card. Take care Kyle! Your special, Your a charm! God Bless You!

Perfectly said, Kyle! I really enjoyed reading your reports and I'm glad you were able to get everyone's autograph. :D

I almost cried when I just read part 4. brought it all flooding back. I think I went through every single emotion possible between 6am on saturday morning and 1am on sunday. was a very strange time but like you said, it's been a fantastic 10 weeks for so many reasons. an emotional rollercoaster, but one I wouldnt change for the world.

That's Dearbhla's trademark signing...she signs at the top and Lynda signs over her writing!!! :P


oh and kyle...everytime I now hear you cant stop the beat or or the wicked soundtrack, I think of you!! damn you :lol:

Kyle Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, I'm sorry the ending did not go quite as planned, but I'm so happy you had a wonderful time over all!!! And your writing is fantastic, you put so much thought and emotion into it that all of us feel like we were there.

And I love that Orlando probably doesn't even realize it, but because of him look at all these great friendships that have began!

I also love that you all sang 'Happy Birthday' to Gareth (it was very sweet)! Then I thought... wait... two days before... that was my birthday!!! :D

So once again, :thankyou:. thank you for everything!

Kyle hon, an absolutely wonderful account. You are THE best! :party:

I wished so many times that the evening had ended differently, but once the dust settles on things like this, you do look at what you had rather than what you didn't...

I think now that we have all got over the disappointment we can see how blessed we were with these 10 weeks. As a group, we were given more than most people would even dare to dream. Although I was only there once, and when I was there I was two rows back in that crowd (three if you count Pete stood in front of me as well), I had to reach out to get Orlando's autograph but his eyes found me and he gave me the most dazzling smile. I can live the rest of my life on that smile if I have to...that one smile will get me through days when I'm feeling low, days when I want to find a rock to crawl under and hide from the world. It's more than a lot of people had and I am so grateful to Orlando for giving me that one, very small, but very precious moment in time.

It's on the way Ginger. It was posted on Monday afternoon! :flirt:

Thanks for the heads up Jesse :friends: I work for the post office so they know I'm waiting for it. I'm afraid I"m might go balistic when it arrives!!! They already think I"m insane for being a 40 year old Orlando Bloom fan :ex: But guess what....I DON'T CARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:friends: :cry: :D

:thankyou: all so much for your incredibly flattering and humbling comments, I'm so touched and grateful to you all, and so thrilled that the scrapbook and account have resonated so well with everybody - I wrote it for you all and I'm so honoured and pleased that it has been so positively embraced and received! :D

Wannabe - I'll always make sure I've got you there not only for the hilarious games, antics and friendly chit-chat, but indeed for your incredibly Dearbhla (and Orlando) attracting yells! I tell you, they get the job done very well indeed! :D

Ginger - your post really had me choked up, thank you so much hon - such sweet and flattering words! :friends: The comparisons to Orlando are just an honour beyond words! :D

Elpul (I feel like I'm going through a register here :lol:) - I'm glad I left a lasting impression hehe - know now you must always keep those as special songs of rememberance! :thumb: And as for Dearbhla and Lynda's trademark autographs, why they have defied a very simple formula I had going, how very dare they! :lol:

Jesse - awwww, you know how much of a LOTR nut I am, using that Sam and Frodo dialogue - perfectement! :friends:
Like you said, after the initial disappointment and sadness, the full realisation of how giving and brilliant the past 10 weeks have been really sinks in, and you can help but celebrate and appreciate it, rather than mourn its passing!

And Nahla, Irie and Josy, and everyone who posted such lovely words in the other thread before I opened this one, all I can say is again a huge thank you for your lovely words and a great squeee of delight that it has been received so well! :D

Kyle,
Thanks for your delightful and detailed report!

Gonedeaf,
I have enjoyed reading your account of the last night. I was very sad to hear what happened the last night of the play.

No doubt, Orlando felt disappointed, and I think mostly for his fans than himself. He is such a giving person and probably planned to take the last chance to thank everyone who came to support him and the rest of the cast.

I can only hope that he goes away from this experience with positive vibes, and somehow think he will, no matter the stupid thing that was done on the last night.

All of you did a great job reporting what was going on that final day for us who couldn't be there ourselves so take comfort in that you brought the play closer to us, bridging the gap, and through your eyes and everyone else there, we were there too in spirit.

Libra :thankyou:

I just can second what everybody said!
Thank you so much for your entertaining report!
I feel really really sorry that you had not the chance to give him the book personally!

But I hope for you that there will be another chance one day!
I'll have my fingers crossed for you!

However, thank you so much for everything!!
*hugs*

hello gonedeaf,

I didn t imagine how well the album would be.
thank you so much!
you did some hard work methinks.
I know how much time it needs to make one, I did formerly albums for weddings.

that is a real unique gift orlando got from clickorlando, as the cross stich, too.
maybe he took these in his treasure footlocker for his memories, after having it a long time for looking. ehm, maybe on a shelf in the workroom.

am really happy to be part of all this. cause you made it possible, as do jesse and also rosieb.

your account did do a good job, I have a glimps of view how that day was for you. thanks for sharing your experience!
of course the side with less joy too. made it personel.
if I may say, I like your humor wich you use for the writing.

I was there at the 28 august but I have forget the most things passed me by. only I know I was there. very short,hm? so I love to read from other fans, their postings about their experiences with orlando and in celebratiion and the masses till mob and sometimes good friends.

things they come and go, but what you have once lived, that remains. in my case, stored somewhere in brain,hihi : D


take care
...robin:hood...

Scrapbook looks absolutely beautiful - well done you lot.

Kyle - thanks for such a detailed, reflective report, don't know how you manage to type so much, and get to put so much into it (love, perhaps?)

Reading all this stuff keeps giving me a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.

Kyle, I am just now reading your account and have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it! Rather made me feel as if I were there with y'all!!

You really went all out with the lovely scrapbook and it shows your dedication and that real thought and feelings were used in compiling it!!

Mega thanks for doing this!!

~Karen

Hi Kyle,

I remember you and no it's not just because you are tall! Regarding the annoying girls trying to push in: A] Are they mental? No disrespect but if I were to attempt such a thing [not that I would] I sure as hell wouldn't pick you to mess with; B] It's so great of the security guys to move them.

I'm really sorry you didn't get to hand your book to Orlando in person. It was scarily crazy that night. We came out of the last show and it was the first time the crowd felt like a mob as opposed to fans. Thankfully noone got hurt.

I'm sure Orlando appreciated your efforts. He's a kind, wonderful person and I'm sure he was genuinely touched.

Selena

Hi all, Joanna here. Yeah the security guards were having a right laugh, whilst I ate my burger, but it was cool,because they were so nice. Kyle , you told it very well.....I can't wait for P3.....Or perhaps, you have typed it up already and if you have , I'll be sending another message...... :D

Great report Kyle........I truly hope Orlando received the book.