The OFFICIAL Neighbours Thread

[T O Hare]

His warm up act was great as well that night

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The great Dr. Kennedy emailed me once. One of the highlights of my life.

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

Do you still have the email Ziggy?

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No, computer blew up two years ago and I lost it.

[Medic]

The doc is a great man, getting to meet him was a highlight!!! he was quick to save Fitzy yesterday and diagnosed him with internal bleeding while he was still falling now thats a doctor!!!!

he's a man mountain gp and yet so modest "i'm just an a&e dr" 

whatever

i think these 2 reviews sum up why i really admire the man. shame he's not touring again this year.

Fletch for Secretary-General of the UN, Mayhem, rock and roll in Durham - by Lady*Anfield

Apologies for starting a new thread but I honestly feel that this deserves a thread of its own.

The last time I went to a concert where I had to wait uncomnfortably was two summers ago. It was a Bon Jovi concert and it was at the Milton Keynes Bowl. My friends and I were there three hours early. Already there were people crammed near the stage. The lesser mortals like us decided to sit down and wait. Lying on the uneven road, my head resting uncomfortably on my haversack, my sides being poked by sharp stones and getting wet by the cold trickle of summer rain, I promised myself that this is the last time I am doing this. Life is too short for this kind of discomfort...

....Yet here I was, two years later, tottering in my high heels, waiting for 40 minutes in an unsurprisingly cold summer evening, shivering. There was happy banter in the queue though and that helped. Somebody split lager on another woman and she groaned "There goes my chance of getting Karl Kennedy to fall in love with me." I said to her, "You have to beat Izzy". She replied "I can beat Izzy any time". Then I said "Ahh, but what about Susan though?"....at that, she nodded defeat ruefully.

It was 6.40 p.m. when we were allowed in. The Waiting Room was scheduled to appear ....at 11 p.m. I groaned. There was no seating place and I thought surely it is a fringe of one's human right to be deprived of the basic need to sit. There was no way however that we were going to give up our front positions, no matter how tired we were becoming. Helie, Nick468 and I had each other's company to amuse ourselves with - although when Nick split my last Sex on the Bondi Beach ****tail all over my gorgeous red and black sequinned punjabi suit, I was as amused as Chirac when the French said "non". (kidding, Nick - just be grateful that I am not revealing your other shenanigan ). My friend Angelo was quite disbelieving that there were people who were so crazy over a Neighbours star. I set him straight. Alan Fletcher is not a Neighbours star, he is the Neighbours star. He is also a talented musician, a brilliant photographer and has strong civic-consciousness. I have tremendous respect for those in the entertainment industry -Geldof, Bono, Sheen, Fletch - who could very well luxuriate in their own comfortable worlds but who have the guts and gumption to speak up and out against issues that trouble their consciences.

Alan must have been really wondering whether he was John Lennon or one of the Gallagher brothers - such was the hysteria and excitement that greeted him. By that time the crowd had expanded to gargantuan proportions and the security seemed ill-equipped to control them. Alan was told that there was no VIP facilities at the Walkabout either but when we came in, there was an enclave that was cordoned off. It was near the stage and again, I was not amused when it was filled with women who obviously came after us. (Yes, I used "women" on purpose.. ) Meanwhile we were crushed to the barrier and shades of Hillsborough actually entered my mind. I was scared at one point. I am not joking. My hands had purple patches when I went home. Even now I feel a slight discomfort around my chest, ribcage and back. I was being pushed either onto the burly bouncers or against the barriers. It was mayhem because the crowd just surged. Mainly made up of young energetic people (for that read students who had just finished their exams), they were robust in jumping up and down and pushing and shoving their elbows and arms into other people. A couple of girls pushed and shoved their way between me and Helie which annoyed us considerably. Subsequently one of them nearly fainted and had to be carted off!!! I felt sorry for some older people - I know a few left because they just could not have dealt with the mayhem. I feel battered and bruised. Was it all worth it? You bet it was.

Alan had to pass my way to get on to the stage and I wrote a note to pass on to him to tell him that Helie, Nick and I were there. He passed on so close to me that I could smell him, and the man smelt gorgeous!!! (I always say that men generally underestimate the aphrodisiacal power of a gorgeous aftershave!!! ). I could not pass the note on as he passed me by through a wall of heavily-built grunting Geordies. I wasn't too worried because I had a contingency plan, but Alan, bless his big heart, had already thought ahead.

So the crowd are jumping and rocking, some smart aleck using my shoulder as a bouncing pad for his arm. To be honest, I really was not noticing because I was so caught up with the star in front of me. I do not get starstruck easily, but there I was, stars shining from my eyes. I was trying to assimilate all that in when Helie shrieked, "He's asking for you". I could not believe my ears when he asked again "Is Lady Anfield in the audience?" OMG. I screamed "I'm here, I'm here". I wasn't sure that he had noticed me - but continency plan was about to put into operation. He started on Three Lions and I dug out my Liverpool scarf and started waving in the air. Alan had asked me to sing YNWA to identify myself to him. Since I cannot sing to save anyone's life, I did the next best thing, I waved the scarf of the Mighty Reds. He saw it, started smiling broadly and beckoned excitedly for me to pass on the scarf. I passed it on. He put it around his neck and screamed something about European champions - I was starstruck and now I was rendered dumb as well. I thought of giving it to him as a souvenir but he kissed it and threw it back at me, saying "Thank you B", I knew then it would be up there on my prized possessions list, next only to a BB King's Lucille lapel pin. What a sweetheart Alan is. He remembered my real name as well. I am not washing that scarf.

The man's stage presence is amazing. He was energetic, charming, gallant - he was climbing over barriers to kiss women on their hands!!! He got his bum slapped - oooh, you naughty man! I loved their music, it was my cup of tea, bottle of vodka etc etc. As much as I love Oasis, it's the classics that really made my heart expand with joy. "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lyrnd Skynrd brought back memories as my friends used to dedicate that song to me - my real name is in the title of that song!! "Brown-Eyed Girl", "Hey Jude", "Living on A Prayer". Alan was jumping when they were playing LOAP, you knew he wanted to rock it up. Oh, and the crowd was clearly pro-Susan. The Izzy-lovers were outscreamed by the Susan disciples. Even the band screamed Susan. LOL.

The show was over in a blink of an eye. We stood again outside barriers to meet Alan and we were let in to meet him. When he saw me, he put out his hands widely and shouted "B" and I rushed and got enclosed in a heartwarming hug. I asked him whether we should wait until we finish and he said that he would take a long time. So we took photos but the man was on an adrenalin high - he was running from one end to the other, taking pics and signing autographs. Helie was very upset because her photo with Alan did not turn up well so I went up to him and asked him whether he could take another pic with her. The gorgeous guy did it again without complaint. He signed my CD "Love you B". I love you too Alan.

I managed to give my bag of presents to him - I had gotten little gifts - a desktop calendar of the Durham and other Cathedrals in the UK, a letter-opener with a Celtic design for him, a Celtic bookmark for Jackie W and a coconut ice from Durham for Nat B since I heard she had a sweet tooth. I hope he did not forget them. It is a pity that he did not have time to indulge in his favourite hobby of photography and take pictures of the most beautiful city in England.

Oh, and I have a naughty snippet about Alan but he was a gentleman. To the pathetic girl, Jennifer Hansen is a hottie. She is gorgeous, beautiful and d**n sexy. You can't hold a candle to her.

So, I finally come to the crux of the matter. I love, respect and admire Alan Fletcher. He is a gem. He is friendly, charming, has no airs and graces, a real people's man with a big heart. When he smiles, his eyes smile and that to me ia the definitive gauge of a person's sincerity. Australia should be proud of him. In fact I think he'd make a great UN ambassador and would solve a lot of world problems through his amiability, warmth, sense of decency and his music.

I am listening to his album now. The Waiting Room apparently was inspired by an actor who said that he only remembered the waiting.

I do not remember the waiting, Alan.

"Did you ever know You Are My Hero?" -- Reading, 2 June 05

Apart from the constant ringing in my ears [if I have permanent damage, Fletch, I'm suing] I sit here now in the afterglow of a wonderful gig and almost religious experience.

Myself and friends got to RUSU early, about 7.30. We killed time in 'Mojo's' (a bar in the union across from the club section), shooting pool and chewing the fat. 9.00 pm. we wandered along to the venue and got a place in the heart of the throng, about 6 rows back from the front. We expected Fletch to be on any minute and when the MC announced he'd be another hour and a half, it was like a veritable stake to the heart! It was like being told Christmas Day had been delayed.

We were partially compensated by the fact of being in close proximity to some pretty girls, and to a bunch of rugger club boys whose energetic and faintly moronic dance gyrations were highly comedic.

Then it came. The moment arrived. I felt the crowd draw in a sharp intake of breath, simultaneously, like. Fletch skipped on. "We've been looking forward to this night more than any other....there's been so much hype about this gig..." and then straight into '500 Miles'. This might have been my favourite moments of the whole gig, in an instance i realised how much fun he was going to be. He jumped up and down like a maniac. His stage presence was somewhere between Sinatra, Buster Bloodvessel and Ian Dury. He bounced up and down and flapped his elbows around, and delivered the Proclaimers tune with an extraordinary energy and strangling his voice to give the desired punch to the words "Hie vill walk a tousand miles, AND hie will walk..." It was immense.

Right from the get-go some crackpot young men were initiating some crowd surfing and general over-vigorous bouncy dancing. But hey, everyone needed to express their Fletch-love in their own special way.

The singalongs were ace. The whole evening had an air of karaoke, but not in a bad way. I disagree with Liz about "Livin' On A Prayer" with seemed totally appropriate for the occasion. "We've got each other, and that's a lot..." Everywhere you cared to look, people were belting out these profound phrases, arms in the air, in a beautiful harmony. We were bonded by Fletch. I imagine this is what the Woodstock crowd felt like when Hendrix was on the stage.

Personally, I didn't particularly like how the MC etc were referring to Fletch as Karl (and the stethoscope was a bit twee too) -- he is the DeNiro of the small screen. I mean, you wouldn't call DeNiro Travis Bickle would you? His name was, is and forever will be Fletch. It was the name he was born with.

That said, of course, the Neighbours banter was supremely good and funny. Fletch knew how to tease the crowd perfectly. Talk about charisma and stage presence. Somehow, it was like seeing a brother (or a mad uncle) on the stage in front of you, somebody who you have seen in your living room everyday for the last decade. It was a wonderful collision of the spectacular with the familiar.

The most touching moment of the evening was when Fletch said: "This is the best night of my life." I know he is an actor but he had such conviction and boyish enthusiasm that I totally believed him. By the time of the encore I was physically drained. It was a superb finish, and I was suddenly very jealous of the front row as he reached out and touched sweaty palms with those lucky few.

My tip to Fletch in the future would be to do a classic song that builds up all the drama of the occasion, something by Neil Diamond would be great. "Touching hands, reaching out..." I think it would be a great contrast to the rocking out numbers, and it would showcase his voice even more, allowing the audience to go on a little journey of discovery with him: The singer, The poet, The Lover, The Seer.

My friend got his CD signed. I took snaps. Fletch gave off this overwhelming sense of goodwill throughout the performance and the meet-and-greet. I was desperate to shake hands with him, but the Security were only allowing those with CDs to go up (at least at first). I was saddened by this hint of commercialism, surely the logistics would have been fine if people went up as and when?

Fletch is obviously a (very fine) actor who has dreamt of being a rock star. He acted so humbly, as though he was fortunate to have this opportunity. He seemed overwhelmed by the love and support. It was really sweet to see this one man live out his dream. I can imagine him now, back in Oz in a couple of weeks time, regaling Tom Oliver and Ian Smith with his tales of sex, drugs and rock n' roll, and showing round the photos of Britain's youth in ecstasy as he performed.

Which reminds me, Fletch, that was my favourite bra and knickers that I threw it at you, so if you still have the items, is it possible you could send them back?

In all seriousness, I am not suprised the tour has been based around student venues. It is not because Fletch is some ironic cult hero (ok, it's partly that). But mainly its because young people (like myself) have grown up with this man. He has been a wonderful constant in a scary, changing world. That is not to say he only appeals to the young: he has got something for everybody! He is an Everyman. He has shown us the whole range of human emotion, reflected a part of ourselves back to us. Shown us great human strengths, and more importantly, fragility too. This was all summed up in his mesmerising performance last night. He has touched so many of us for years. Long may that touching continue. [Insert Carry On style joke here].

Right, apologies for such a long post. I hope everyone from the forum had a wonderful time too.

My ears are still ringing, Fletch, my ears are still ringing.

All my love,



Michael

[Medic]

an article about aussie rules

http://afl.com.au/tabid/208/default.aspx?newsid=62763

eta:  i just realised that my 3 last posts were all a bit random-ish. lol oh well

[ziggysego]

Great to see Susan take Ringo in, in his hour of need. And the counselling of Pru over her relationship with her two sons. All this is even more remarkable when you consider she's suffering from MS. The woman is a saint, is there nobody she helped in Ramsey Street?

[Onion Bag]

Get this shite off the board

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:*

[Our Nail Loney]

Get this shite off the board

GET THE f**k OUT OF OUR THREAD!

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Well said Nail

[The Gs Man]

All this talk about the great doctor himself brings me back to the night I shared a stage with him........

Legend!

[ziggysego]

Always comes back to the Captain Kennedys, don't it Gs Man 

Seriously, must have been a real privilage for youse.

[The Gs Man]

His music was brutal, but he did come across as the generous, kind, warm-hearted stud muffin that you want him to be.

There's a couple of people on the board that we got backstage passes for can testify to that.

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

Great to see Susan take Ringo in, in his hour of need. And the counselling of Pru over her relationship with her two sons. All this is even more remarkable when you consider she's suffering from MS. The woman is a saint, is there nobody she helped in Ramsey Street?

Can't think of anyone Ziggy. She even found it in herself to forgive Dirty Darcy Tyler.

Don't miss this evening's episode. Zeke was on the very verge of becoming a man, only for Susan to walk in!