I must start by thanking Doreen of Pinner for taking the effort to write me a letter, buy a postage stamp and mail it. A rarity these days and it is great to receive feedback from readers whether it be in person, via an email or even a smoke signal. Writing is by nature a lonely task so realising people actually read it is very rewarding.
It was very sad to hear that Dennis Waterman has died after a two-year battle with lung cancer and it was good to see the amount of media coverage as he had been retired for a few years.
I only met Dennis once back in the 1970s when he helped me get together a showbiz football team for a charity match. The only other member of the team I can recall is Patrick Mower, who is thankfully still with us.
I have just returned from a dance show starring Giovanni from the hit BBC show Strictly Come Dancing, which is filmed at Elstree Studios. I was accompanied by my old showbiz mate Brian, who was the film officer for Warner Bros and Disney in London and is a great live theatre fan. I had actually booked this show two years ago but it had been cancelled twice due to Covid.
Giovanni Pernice and Rose Ayling-Ellis on Strictly Come Dancing. Photo: BBC
Read more: Giovanni and Rose's silent dance made me a Strictly fan
We had a chance to go backstage and meet Gio for a few minutes before the show, which was a pleasure. He seemed slightly shorter than I imagined and very slim in an athletic way. He came across as charming. A staff member kindly took the obligatory photo of us together and now we are allowed to hold shoulders and shake hands. It was interesting that hardly anybody wore a mask.
The show was excellent and the level of energy exerted is amazing, especially when they do two shows a day. It was a full house but Brian and myself were outnumbered by ladies probably nine to one. Gio works the audience well, playing up to his Latin eye candy image and the ladies were usually cheering, clapping or squealing. It reminded me of the days when I was a babe magnet.
You know the old showbiz saying...
Gio asked if I had seen Strictly at Elstree due to my past connections with the studio and was surprised I had not but I have never been asked and anyway tickets are like gold dust. As we were leaving Gio I turned and said 'break a leg', which is an old stage expression wishing a performer a good show but he looked at me a bit perplexed and said 'I hope not Paul' . Perhaps it was in retrospect not the best thing to say to a dancer from another country.
- Paul Welsh MBE is a Borehamwood writer and historian of Elstree Studios
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