Nov 23, 2007
Overheard at the bus stop
Oldish woman wearing a red coat, to another, with bulging handbag: ‘Scuse me…I think I recognise you from somewhere. Can’t think where, though….
Other woman: [smiles] Off the telly? Maybe?
First woman: [cocks head on one side and pauses] No, that’s not it…
Second woman: I’m an Actor? In, um, Eastenders? [smiles at the other people in the bus stop, as if to indicate that this happens all the time]
First woman: [studies the other woman for another moment] OH! I know! You look like that woman in the lamp shop down the road!
Second woman: [looks confused] …
First woman: [reassuringly, smiling] …it’s the hair.
Second woman: [reaches a hand up to touch her hair]
[the bus arrives]
*NB The photos above aren’t connected with this story, apart from being taken at bus stops.
Do tell - who was the second woman? Did you recognise her? PS enjoy your postings . . . always refreshing.
I love public transport. :)
Jonathan - I don’t watch Eastenders (or any other soap), so I’m afraid her fame was lost on me…
I see Nana Moon quite often round our way, Meg, (AKA The mum off Citizen Smith, older viewers). I claim my £5.
Must go into that lamp shop and compare.
Nana Moon died, so won’t be her.
I sympathise with the actress woman a bit. When I was working in a London bookshop this guy came in. I looked up and immediately recognized him as someone I knew fairly well and did the “Oh, hi!” thing that you do to people you know fairly well. Turned out it was the guy who played Sanjay on Eastenders in the 90s and which I hadn’t watched for years (didn’t even have a TV at the time). He gave me an “oh fer fucksakes” look and bought a book.
I was very angry with my brain for mixing fiction and reality there and somewhat horrified at the power of the telly.
Sanjay off Eastenders pushed past me on Shaftesbury Avenue one afternoon, he seemed to be in a bit of a bad mood. Granted, Shaftesbury Avenue is an unfuriatingly busy street, but perhaps he was running away from your bookshop, Pete!
Unfuriatingly? Perhaps that’s another word for calming.
I remembered another story - the bloke from those Bacardi Breezer ads where he tiptoes up the stairs when his girlfriend’s sleeping on the couch (he later starred as the new teacher in Teachers) was leaning against the bar in Fabric one night and looking at me funny. I presumed he was someone I knew from my uni days and was just about to go over and say something like “Hi, sorry, I remember your face but I don’t know where from, I was probably drunk when we met” when he disappeared. I realised 5 minutes later that would have been an embarassing conversation…