Wednesday 31st December
End of Year Review Part 2
It just gets better!
July
Geth did a stint over the summer standing in for both Eamonn Holmes
and Gabby Logan on Radio 5Live. We may have sent a ’few’ texts....
There are several pictures if him wearing his glasses captured from the webcam!
The ‘Fron’ choir did a couple of tribute songs to him using some well known Welsh music!
'Gethin Jones is a Waltzer…' - is how one starts!
We got a little hot under the collar with some half-naked pictures in Heat magazine.
The nice Virgin people contacted us about putting Danger Hunters Videos on the website
We got all hot under the collar again about a rather lovely Eisteddfod advert
- well it was the tight fitting dark blue shirt I think!
August
Gethin took part in a Football Association film about respect for referees - we liked the shorts……
The UK’s First Gold medal was won by a Welsh cyclist, whilst Geth’s programme was on air.
At the National Lottery awards he took a tiny little trip - really, hardly worth mentioning.
He was on live radio the next day, getting the mickey taken mercilessly about it.
September
Strictly started - there was no Gethin, so we felt bereft!
He was on the One show pushing Danger Hunters, and left a little self-portrait!
Geth started doing the Lottery shows on a Wednesday night.
He really needs to tell us about these things in advance.
Talk about versatile, Gethin started writing a weekly column in the Daily Telegraph
as ‘Strictly Insider’, which kept us amused.......
He sat firmly and diplomatically on the fence but clearly liked Christine.
He took part in the England v Rest of the World Soccer Aid match
and was all over the pitch - talk about stamina. He very very nearly scored,
but forgot it wasn’t rugby!
- He ended up wearing Alan Shearer’s shirt, and was called an ‘Adonis’…..well, very true!
The Proms in the Park mentioned in Part 1 finally came round and after a long wait
we took up residence in the front row - right under Gethin’s nose - he didn’t miss us!
Gethin’s Girls got a mention in Glamour magazine
The Danger Hunters series started, and it was GREAT! - whoo hoo
October
Geth did a ‘rugby dance' and made sushi on the Paul O'Grady Show
Miracle of miracles, we found out Geth was doing the Strictly Come Dancing
live tour and there was a rush for tickets by the GGs!
He was a member of the team of journalists at the launch of the new Welsh Rugby Strip,
and boy did he look good in it!!!
The man never stopped this month - he took part in the Great North Run, and was followed
round by the BBC cameras (supporting The Joshua Foundation)
November
We heard about a Welsh quiz show called ’Cwis Meddiant’ being hosted by Geth,
and there’s a whole other report about that!
He won Cosmopolitan Magazine’s ‘Ultimate Hottie’ award
December
He was on the Friday Panel on It Takes Two, and danced with Claudia, he looked great!
He said in his weekly Telegraph article that he is wearing shocking pink on the tour!
Gethin presented a special edition of Police Camera Action, getting a bit tipsy
in the cause of road safety. It was a very good programme, and we almost forgot
we were watching it for Gethin!
We’ve had a little personal note from Geth this week,
and are really looking forward to seeing him in the new year!
What’s next? Well as far as we know the tour will take up a few weeks early in the year
- after that, we wait to see. Good luck Gethin!
Wednesday 31st December
End of Year Review Part 1
Oh my, what a year!!
January
2008 started with a bang, well several bangs and quite a few rockets too
as Gethin stood on the South Bank opposite the houses of Parliament and
‘entertained’ a rather non-chatty crowd. He needed us there!
We did have some dispute about whether we liked his coat……
'Gethin's Girls' gained a seal of approval from the man himself for the
blog and a full-blown website to follow. We were fairly excited!!!
The website was designed by our beloved Webmistress and Gethin visited it!
Geth was fighting fires on Blue Peter (hubba hubba)
February
The Blue Peter Crew climbed mountains in Northern Ireland, Wales,
England and Scotland - Gethin in fact had his 30th Birthday
on a mountainside! We liked the glasses and the unshaven look!
Geth joined News 24 for E24, ‘a weekly roundup of news from the
world of film, television and music with behind-the-scenes reports
and interviews with stars of that week's shows, gigs and events.’
It was supposed to be a 6 week pilot, but was re-commissioned
and is continuing in 2009.
He also appeared on Ready Steady Cook with pal, Dan Scarborough
- and lost AGAIN! This time by one vote. He really can’t cook,
but eating is definitely his thing!
There was an article in the Sunday Mirror Magazine - and we
Gethin's Girls were mentioned - birthday card, website and all.
Not sure about our adoration being seen as 'hilarious', but we
will forgive Geth anything......especially since it is better than
being weird or embarrassing....
Then we got a glimpse of the salsa and Geth in the BP studio
at Brucie's bash. Geth being far too busy to be there, it seems.
March
Geth still on Blue Peter, employing all his self control to maintain
perfect eye contact with some scantily clad samba dancers.
He delighted us all with his exploits as a jockey (OK, so it was the
sight of the jodhpurs, boots and whip that did it).
10 of Gethin's Girls went to a Charity Ball in Bristol and had a blast.
Of course we met the man himself, got some gossip, photos and lots of
opportunities to ask all the burning questions we had.........but mostly
forgot them all!!! One kiss on the cheek and we lost our marbles.....
Geth flew off to China…
He was on BBC Radio Wales with a recorded programme that was funny and
entertaining, and he guested on Camilla’s radio show, too.
April
Gethin announces he is leaving Blue Peter:
"I've had a career on Blue Peter that you wouldn't even dream about
and for that I feel privileged and fortunate."
He opened the Wales Young Musician competition by playing the piano
- Beethoven - and ‘The Muppets’………
He hosted the Bafta Cymru awards, as well as appearing on Blue Peter,
Bhangra dancing, cleaning windows, and of course, there was the China trip.
He was seen on screen at the Baftas, though he wasn’t in the audience.
The big news for April was that we got ourselves an exclusive interview for the website!
Gethin played ‘Arctic rugby’ and took a sauna for us……
May
The Jones boy was never off our screens - on TV no less than 3 times one night;
Blue Peter, the Soap Awards, and on BBC Young Musician of the Year.
We were treated to the films of the trip to China - rickshaw-driving, bug-eating,
playing at Shaolin monk antics, and the Chinese opera - but we loved those pandas!
Right at the very tail-end of May, the GGs got to meet Geth again (at the Hay
literary festival, where he was narrating Peter and the Wolf). We managed to
wangle our way into the rehearsal, so more time to watch Gethin. He was lovely to
us and chatted after the performance. He also let us film a little message to the GGs
waiting in Birmingham for a get together we had planned before Hay came up.
June
He was filming a series for Virgin 1, which was to become ‘Gethin Jones’ Danger Hunters’.
'You'd think that after Blue Peter I would be ready to put my feet up and enjoy a cup
of tea and a biscuit, but not me. This is a really energetic programme and it has some
interesting contributors'
It was announced that Geth would be hosting the BBC Proms in the Park in Swansea
in September. Some of us decided we were most definitely going to be there!
Geth played a Dalek on Dr Who - and said goodbye to Blue Peter!
Sunday 23rd November
Special Report from the Cardiff 3
Sunday 23rd November dawned very cold and very early for the C3 as we set off from all points East towards the M4, and Cardiff
Despite a small hiccup on the way due to part of the M4 being closed and
my misinterpreting a text message, we still managed to get there early.
We were met by the lovely Iestyn, and taken down to have breakfast.
Gethin, we were informed, had been allowed to lie in later than us
and wasn’t there yet, but to make ourselves comfortable and enjoy breakfast
and he would come and get us when it was time to go to the studio.
The families and supporters of the teams taking part in the quiz started
to arrive and before long up popped Iestyn again and said he would take us
to the studio. Outside the studio we were asked to have a seat and wait for
a few minutes and hey ho around the corner comes Mr Jones looking absolutely
wonderful in dark jeans dark jumper and open neck shirt.
‘Hello Ladies, I see you have your badges on’ - not oh my god those nutters
again or anything!!! A few minutes conversation, then he said he had to go
and do some sound checks and ‘Oh hows your Welsh?’ erm almost non existent!
We were taken into the studio and were sitting at the back behind the quiz
contestants and Geth so we will be seen on the TV! Lots of rehearsing of
clapping and cheering. The sound man came and hooked Geth up for sound by
putting a box in his back pocket and a wire up the back of his shirt.
Geth then spent ages talking and listening to someone on his earpiece.
I kept trying to see who he was talking to in the studio only to find out
that he was talking to someone in another room. Lots of camera and sound
setting up and Geth came and ‘worked his audience’
He asked ’Do you speak Welsh’ - not much response, then ’Do you speak English’
not much response (don’t know why) ‘Do you speak?’
He sat on the ‘wall’ in front of us and chatted. He told us that Jodie had been
knocked out of Strictly (naughty boy) but I had to tell him that the dance off
had been against Lisa. He asked if we were going to the tour, and of course we are!
He said did we know he was dancing with Flavia and Jules said yes we read your
article every week. I asked him what dances he was doing and he said Waltz and
Salsa which resulted in general squeals and gestures of delight, I didn’t have
the guts to ask if THE shirt was coming out again. Some general conversation about the dances on Saturday
night. Rachel’s 4 10’s got some general disbelief and we told him it wasn’t as good
as his foxtrot.
He then mentioned Tom and Jules said ‘we don’t talk about Tom’ and he looked at her
really seriously and said, ‘Does it make you feel like you are being unfaithful’
The first part of the quiz was then filmed. Geth is a terrible fidget (and nail biter)
and was constantly moving his screen with his questions on it (it was hidden from the
studio team by a sort of desk in front) so they couldn’t see him doing it and he kept
loosening it so much that they had to keep coming and fixing it…
The quiz was quite good fun, general knowledge questions, but the quiz is based on
rugby rules. Geth was very funny and we understood more of it than we thought.
It's bloomin amazing how many times they stop and start and re-do bits even in a quiz
(obviously they always have to keep giving the same answer even if it was wrong)!
There was some funny bits where they just wanted Geth to re do his question and the
contestant was not meant to answer again but they found it really hard to keep quiet
Once the first ‘leg’ of the quiz had been filmed we broke for lunch.
Geth joked that the food was terrible and that he was having his especially flown in!!
He asked if we were stopping for the next filming and we said we were.
Off to the restaurant for lunch, which wasn’t too bad, a rather nice curry
and lemon meringue pie but we didn’t get to eat too much.
Nat chose a table for four and we sat down, the door was slightly to the side and rear
of me and Jules said that Geth had just walked in. He stopped to shake a few people's hands
and looked like he was doing the ‘rounds’ when, I think to all our shocks, he came and
sat down at the spare chair on our table..
He asked Jules what the food was like, and asked if he could have some of her Coke
(now who was going to say no to that?). I remember saying ‘Hello you’ of course he
didn’t realise that I feel as though I have known him for years so it didn’t
seem odd to be talking to him.
We chatted about how great he thinks the website is. I said that he was going to be
getting a snazzy new website with his agency and he said yes but he didn’t think it
could be as good as ours.
I asked him if he was doing the Xmas Strictly and he said no he hadn’t been invited :(
I asked him how he felt about dancing with Flavia on tour and he said well it was a
choice between Flavia and Kristina and he did at least know Flavia, and won‘t have the
whole thing about getting to know someone new! I said she was a good dancer which he
agreed too and I said she had a massive fan base, and that he was popular too but
goodness knows why, and he laughed.
We talked about Swansea and the proms. He said, ‘You lot were very distracting on the
front row - I kept catching sight of you out of the corner of my eye.
I told the cameraman to pan over to you‘. I said that I got fed up with seeing the girls
on the TV and I said it was the best proms on that night.
We went back into the studio for the afternoon filming, Geth had changed into a white
shirt grey cardigan and brown shoes. Filming pretty much as before, and then we had
a buffet tea, we were hoping Geth might come in again but he didn’t, unfortunately.
Final filming session, Geth had changed again to a dark cardigan. I was sitting next
to a couple of girls who had come from the pub!!! They thought they were seeing
Gethin Jenkins the rugby player so possibly were a little disappointed and they were
a bit tiddly. One of them said in a voice perhaps slightly louder than she meant,
‘Oh hes handsome isn’t he?’ (well yes he is) ‘He’s smaller than I thought though isn’t he’
at which Gethin turned round and said ‘what do you meant smaller than you thought’
and walked over (had a big grin on his face though) she got the full Gethin charm
offensive and cheek.
Then it was over we all got a kiss and I said ‘thanks for putting up with us’
he said, 'Don’t be silly its wonderful of you all to come and support me'.
He also said as a parting shot, ‘I’ll be in touch about the website’
Iestyn escorted us out and we left with huge smiles which I don’t think have faded yet
Wednesday 20th August
Another String to His Bow
Most
people have a passion for some kind of music; very few have the talent
and dedication to master an instrument. (The recorder doesn’t count:
Once a year in the Nativity Play does not a performer make!) Was there
ever the possibility that Gethin could have starred as contestant on
the Young Musician of the Year, instead of host? With his presenting
skills and knowledge called upon again for the upcoming Proms in the
Park in Swansea, I decided to take a closer look at Gethin’s possible
music career.
Having grown up around music, Gethin was excited to return to Cardiff’s
St.David’s Hall this spring to launch the biennial 2009 Texaco Young
Musician of the Year. He’s a talented musician who achieved Grade 8
violin and Grade 6 piano and performed lead violin at the venue in
1989, with the South Glamorgan Junior Orchestra. (Which kind of puts my
annual performance of ‘Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem’ at a similar age
to shame.)
It was his music teacher mother who insisted he began violin lessons
when he was seven years old, telling him: "You can give up at Grade 8!"
This he achieved when he was sixteen, having to forego his beloved
Saturday morning rugby during that time, for fear of damaging his
fingers. My beloved Saturday mornings watching HR Puff’n’Stuff gave way
to working in the paper shop - for fear of not having any pocket money
…but I digress: Gethin competed in young musician competitions, but not
on the scale of the Texaco competition or the BBC Young Musician and
said: “For me, the young musician competition is a chance for a young
person to prove themselves on a big stage and prove themselves
musically.” (I did that once - Miss Ray’s Broadway Babes, Barking Town
Hall, 19 *ahem ahem*… only, I was so keen to get ready for
‘Zipperdeedoodah’ I missed ‘Wouldn’t It Be Finer Than To Be In Carolina
In The …Mo-o-orning.’ Digressing again, sorry.) Started in 1978 and now
a British Institution, the BBC Young Musician competition was inspired
by two classical music enthusiasts, Humphrey Barton and Walter Todd.
Driven by good old fashioned pride when no British musicians made a
world final in Leeds, the competition was ambitious and radical and has
discovered some of Britain’s most successful musicians. (Unlike
Eurovision, where even bad, new fashioned pride can’t help us and
pretty much stops potential pop stars in their tracks - a good thing,
some might say). It helps if you have music in your heart early on and
can attend a specialist school, such as the Purcell School for Young
Musicians. The standards are very high but entry is based on talent
alone and not qualifications. So I’m guessing Woodwork isn’t an option,
unless they make their own instruments. Gethin never attended music
school, although he did complete the AS level in Music, achieving an
‘A‘. But playing drums in a band and being in the County orchestra
weren’t enough to stop the yearnings for rugby, and at 18 years old,
university beckoned, giving him carte blanch to injure himself freely.
And he was never going to fit a piano in his Halls of Residence was he?
A violin bow? Near a student bar? I think not.
At school in the 60’s and 70’s, most young people had access to free
music lessons - our trusty recorders, if nothing else; with school
music lessons now costing from £60 per 10 weeks, I wonder, will the
British musical youth be affected? If my children showed an aptitude
I’d pay, but not for them to try it out, which is perhaps a chance they
should be given. Maybe I’ll suggest ‘taster’ sessions to the Head
Teacher: I’ll take the playground mafia with me though; she‘s a
formidable woman! I remember having piano lessons at school: I say
lessons, I don’t recall a teacher. It was a very relaxed affair where,
if a piano room (little more than a cupboard, but half a dozen of them
containing a standard upright) became available they’d ask if anyone
fancied a go: I think I made it to ’Chopsticks’. And then went
trampolining instead. Considering the years between them, those more
dedicated than me, past winners of the BBC Young Musician, have similar
advice if you wish to follow their path to success:
“Find out what’s best for you - take advice but don’t model your
situation on someone else - it’s about being true to yourself.” (Nicola
Benedetti 2004)
“Vital to take advice from the right people, those who are established
- don‘t be in a rush.” (Michael Hext 1978)
“Don’t take on too much too soon - only do what you feel comfortable
doing - strike a balance between studying and performing.” (Emma
Johnson 1984)
“The true joy and rewards will come from making music - that can’t
happen overnight.”(Natalie Clein 1994).
And if all that fails, sleep with the conductor. (Scattyjan 2008)
Had Gethin been tempted to go for the post grade 8 and then a Diploma
from Trinity College or the Royal Academy of Music, who knows where his
career may have taken him: Teaching? Feasible - we know he’s great with
kids. Back into the folds of an orchestra? He’s a team player, this
would appeal to him for sure. Enjoying the limelight as a soloist? He
does that as a presenter, just minus the instrument. Or - Pop Star! No,
seriously - Annie Lennox went to the Royal College of Music to study
flute; it was whilst waitressing in London that she met Dave Stewart.
The youngsters of the 80’s gain was the students of Aberdeen’s loss,
since she was intending to return there as a teacher. One thing for
sure, knowing Geth as we do: he wouldn’t have settled for busking!
Would he? He might on his days off I suppose - have a good look next
time you’re on the London underground, just in case!
Trombonist Mike Hext, the inaugural winner of the Young Musician of the
Year, now plays in the Royal Opera House orchestra. In an era when
strings and keyboards were the favourites, his was a controversial win,
the trombone unfashionable. Apt then, that on the 30th anniversary,
another trombonist, 12 year old Peter Moore, should triumph. Although,
isn’t it difficult to compare wind, piano, brass etc? Not so, according
to Julian Lloyd Webber - the one who impresses is someone who masters
their instrument and gives the best finished performance. We’re back to
passion - the judges felt Michael pulled it off on the night. Emma
Johnson, world renowned clarinettist - Humph had a book running and
backed her - considered playing with the orchestra a prize in itself
and clearly this showed in her performance. And leading a symphony
orchestra of a hundred players is a daunting task, it can take a
soloist years to learn how to direct one. Gethin has been privileged to
play with both the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Nicola Benedetti and
of course, more recently on Blue Peter, playing pop music with the
rather dishy young violinist, David Garrett, who’ll be appearing at the
Hyde Park Proms on September 13th. Unable to make Swansea? London seems
the next best place to be!
I’ve always associated the violin with classical music: Since I enjoy
the genius that is Joe Sample, the piano holds no such restrictions for
me. But violin? The more I looked, the less I saw of classical
violinists. Random clicking brought forth Folk (Dave Swarbrick) Jazz
(Jean Luc Ponty) and Rock (Ed Allyene Johnson) Stopping short of being
really lazy and Googling the London Philharmonic, Janine Jansen finally
appeared on the music sheet with a repertoire comprising Bach,
Beethoven and Britten (and others not beginning with a ‘B’!) as opposed
to the Lonnie Liston Smith, Duke Pearson and Horace Silver of Nigel
Kennedy’s offering, ‘The Blue Note Sessions’ (I may have to invest).
Would Gethin have stayed true to the traditional, classical roots? Or
would the exposure to ‘Azucar’ have led him to explore those other
styles? The spot with David Garrett suggests he’s open to experimenting
but we’ll never know for sure. Will we? Take it away, Geth!
Saturday 19th July
Not just any old Heat Torso ....
Prime,
lean fillet of beef, seared to perfection.
Marinated in earth, air,
fire and water for three and a half years, simmered in sequins for
three months.
Bind together in chains, drizzle with oil and serve al
dente on a bed ...
This isn't just any 'Heat Torso of the Week', this
is the Gethin Jones 'Heat Torso of the Week'.
Monday 30th June
Bye Bye BP
Bye Bye BP - an ode to Gethin’s departure (To Auntie Beeb) - to the tune of 'Bye Bye Baby'
If you hate me after what
I say
Can't put it off any longer
I just gotta tell ya anyway
Bye Bye BP, BP goodbye.
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
Bye bye BP, don't make me cry
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
It’s the only kid’s show I see
But to watch now Geth‘s gone? Not me!
I wish it could be.
I could watch again, but why begin it
'Cos there ain't any future in it,
Geth’s the best, but now he’s left, so:
Bye Bye BP, BP goodbye.
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
Bye bye BP, don't make me cry
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
Wish I had written you a letter,
Wish you kept Geth - so much better, for a GG
How good it would be for me.
Now I tell you that I won’t be there,
There's a new crowd, I just don’t care,
Geth’s the best, but now he’s left, so:
Bye Bye BP, BP goodbye.
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
Bye bye BP, don't make me cry
Bye BP, BP bye bye.
Monday 31st March
Meet the GG's!
We
didnt
actually make it all up !! Here is a photo of 10 of
the Gethin's Girls with Gethin Jones, Camilla Dallerup and Ian Waite at
the Strictly Energised Ball on 21st March 2008.
This photograph is used with the kind permission of Black Tie Portraits
www.blacktieportraits.co.uk
as well as Gethin, Ian and
Camilla. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Kim
Ingleby for organising the event www.energisedperformance.com
Monday 31st March
Inside Geth's Wardrobe
It
would appear that we have
Geth’s dad to thank for the physique that we love.In a recently
repeated programme on
S4C Gethin discussed his wardrobe with presenter Nia Parry, and let
slip that he started working on those biceps after his father bought
some weights when he was a teenager.
Along with many others,
teenage years were not particularly kind to Geth, and were
made worse by braces, thick glasses and a home haircut, but one school
holidays, our ugly duckling began his transformation into a beautiful
swan when he started working those weights, and discovered contacts
(not that we don’t love him in his glasses too because we do!) and when
he returned to school even one of his teachers didn’t recognise him.
Sunday 30th March
Tongue-Tied and Starstruck
|
Giggle |
n
1. a group of Gethin’s Girls |
A “giggle” of Gethin’s Girls – a rather apt collective noun to
describe
the group that presented itself to Geth at the charity ball in Bristol,
as well as being just one reaction to seeing and meeting the man
himself. In truth, our initial reactions were very diverse:
Our first sighting in the hotel
lobby (by Anaronkita,
ScattyJan and myself) involved hands covering mouths, eyes rubbed in
disbelief
and grown women leaping up and down as if Christmas had come early!
Fortunately, being the
gentleman that he is,
Geth merely smiled politely and passed us (with perhaps a slightly
bemused look
on his face!)
Once in the hotel
it didn’t take long before he was
accosted again. It
would seem that
Claudiaforqueen presented herself with a degree of decorum when
speaking to
Geth in the corridor, although this illusion was quickly shattered when
he
doubled back and witnessed two GGs squealing with excitement in a
bedroom
doorway.
Throughout the evening
various GGs had encounters with
Gethin (a kiss, a hand shake or a touch on the arm). Some were even
able to hold a reasonably intelligible
conversation, demonstrating that not all GGs are reduced to quivering
wrecks at
a glimpse of their hero. Unfortunately
though, I fall into this latter category – whilst brave enough to
approach
Gethin, I instantly became tongue-tied, resulting in an autograph to
“Nat”
instead of my real name! Other
GGs
found themselves sufficiently star-struck during the evening that they
could
not utter a single syllable to the man himself. Such is the effect on
women of the Great Gethin!
Despite all our diverse
reactions, I’m sure Gethin
really had no need to worry about us, even given our preceding
reputation! He had
after all been forewarned of our
impending presence. Throughout the ball though, Geth did seem to
embrace the
idea of “Gethin’s Girls” and even made a point of partaking in a group
chat (no,
not a group snatch!) – greatly appreciated by all 10 of us. To his
credit he didn’t
appear at all fazed
by the attention and readily joked with us about jodhpurs and Bed
&
Breakfast.
I’d
like to think there’ll be another opportunity for
the Bristol 10 and all the other GGs to meet Geth again. Particularly
as next
time I intend to ask Gethin to pin on my Blue Peter Badge (despite
having had
it for 25 years). Now, how do I explain how I got it??? I think I’d
better
start rehearsing now…..
Wednesday 26th March
Confessions of a Tired and Emotional Scatterbrain
The first of my fellow GG’s I had the pleasure to bump into at Bristol
was
Anaronkita. Following the early morning start, I returned from lunch
with hubby around 1pm, hell bent on having a nap, doing a second coat
on my nails and ceremoniously laying out the paraphernalia for the
evening ahead. That all went out of the window; I chanced a glance at
the Drawing Room (our makeshift Champagne Manor) really not
expecting anyone to be there till the agreed 3pm, but couldn’t miss the
balloons, and, more importantly, lots of wrapped up chocolate boxes!
Annie and I yelled, greeting each other with open arms like old
friends. We were joined shortly thereafter by BP Badge Winner 1982 and
the virtual forum became a reality. It was the three of us who had the
honour of spotting Gethin first. I was facing the archway when this
handsome young man strayed into my line of vision. A sharp intake of
breath, much frantic finger jabbing in his general direction and urgent
whisperings of “It’s Him! It’s Him!” alerted Annie and BP. At
which point BP and I tied Annie to a chair as previously arranged! With
hindsight, we should have let her go:
Gethin proved throughout the
evening to be just as sweet and approachable in real life as
he
appears on TV. At the time though, all he received were three very
cheesy grins as he passed. He didn’t look that alarmed! Much. Camilla
and Ian arrived; this time, we let Annie wave and Camilla, curious
about the balloons, came in to ask if we were a having a party and
received the full low down of who we were. Being the first official GG,
it seemed Camilla would’ve happily stayed chatting but for a certain
waltz rehearsal. That seemed a good point for BP to move her car and me
to take the milk and hubby’s nibbles up to our room (he was settling
down with Sky Sports for the night, bless him) and change into
something pink. On my way back, I found Jan 2555 and Ger at reception,
joined next by Miss Sparkly Jules and Sparkling Champagne (noise levels
were rising) then Little Miss Bob and Claudia for Queen (other guests
vacated the drawing room). Finally, Fabulous Fantastic Fan, undoubted
winner of the coveted ‘Pink Thing’ Award arrived and morphed into the
Sugar Plum Fairy before our very eyes (other guests now quickly veering
off into the Club Lounge). It was a lovely moment, everyone is just how
they are on the forum. And time to reflect: There were definitely no
dodgily disguised men with us - hubby was convinced I was being
groomed! To be honest, there’s no man alive could’ve kept up with us!
(Except maybe Geth). After tea in the drawing room, we adjourned to
Jan’s for champagne, strawberries, muffins and macaroons and someone
suggested drawing lots to see who would be staking out the gym/swimming
pool at 7am next morning, just in case Geth stayed over. Since I was
the only one with the foresight to bring kit, I won! (Oh, all right, I
really brought it on account of staying for the weekend). We then
toasted ourselves a la Robin Hood: We are Gethin’s Girls! Time was
rapidly running out now; so much for the 2 hours prep time, facial
scaffold erecting etc - we had less than an hour to make ourselves
fabulous. It was a case of: Does the dress still fit? Yes. Is it too
hot for a shrug? Yes. Gold shoes then, I know I can dance in those.
Blue eyeshadow? Oh, goody. Bye hubby. Mwah mwah. No, not now. Get off,
you’ll crease me. It was less cool, calm and collected and more hot,
bothered and all over the place.
Now, before I continue,
let me just say this: I don't get out much. Consequently, I don’t drink
much. And I stopped drinking wine years ago because it makes me light
headed. So why oh why did I partake in two champagne receptions and go
with the flow when someone suggested table wine? Fortunately, at the
time of the group photo I’d only had the bubbly and slipped demurely
into a space at Gethin’s side, receiving that trademark gorgeous smile.
He then snaked his arm around my waist, with a detour to my shoulder
and back down to the waist again (bit like the Dirty Dancing, girls!)
Luckily, the dress was boned, or I’d have been a crumpled heap on the
carpet. What have you done to me, Mr. Jones? And yes, it was there that
Geth did say he’d love to come to our next get-together. I told him the
date, by the way, hope you don’t mind!
There
followed fine dining, beautiful dancing , fantastic company, and whilst
the dance floor was packed for Ian and Camilla to teach us a Cha Cha,
it was great fun, and I was able to nab Ian afterwards for a quick chat
and signature, before doing the same with Camilla. Time for a break
before the raffle and seeing Gethin alone, I approached with my
programme and pen, thinking, I’ll just briefly introduce myself.
“Hi,
I’m ScattyJan.” Couldn’t just say Jan, or Jaye, oh no. I had to say
‘Scatty’! He repeats it quizzically and I babble on about it
being a jazz thing, but no; who am I kidding, the girls call me it …and
by now, the sensible part of my brain has put it’s head in it’s hands
and is shaking it slowly, before finally yelling ‘STOP!’ Thankfully,
another guest butts in and saves me. And then the rest of the GG
cavalry arrive and I find myself credited with maintaining Geth in a
holding pattern. The pleasure was all mine, I‘m sure. We had a
wonderful time discussing jodhpurs, the SCD message boards and violin
playing amongst other things.
The
band returned: Finally, my comfort zone. I was gagging to hit the dance
floor and expend some nervous energy and calmed down considerably once
I had. Overwrought, overwhelmed and overcome was how I think Jules
described it. Meeting the girls for the first time, meeting
Gethin - I
still feel quite emotional now, probably because we’d built this night
up for so long and now it’s all over. One thing struck me; normally, if
you go out in a group of ten, smaller groups form, don’t they? Not
Gethin’s Girls - we lived up to our motto:
One
for all and all for Gethin! And we needed all ten nearby, just in case
a Group Snatch opportunity presented itself! Although, did anyone find
a suitable cupboard?
Tuesday 25th March
Up Close & Personal (or Me & Mr Jones)
Thereis something about Gethin Jones that makes you feel that he is
talking to you personally, a way of focusing that he has whilst also
being aware of what else is going on around him.
We
had been warned that women go a bit gaga when they meet him. We were
prepared, or so we thought! When Geth arrived, there was a
murmur
passing round the room, and it was obvious to all who was there.
We
were greeted for our photo with Gethin, Ian and Camilla with a warm
hand clasp and a kiss on the cheek. For many of us, a lot of
the rest
of the evening was a blur, punctuated by moments of clarity when Geth
was around.
A
beautiful waltz with Camilla, just for us, surely…. some jokes,
ditto…..a visit to the table….. an arm on the shoulder….a kiss or two….
a cheeky look…. a little bit of flirting… those deep brown eyes…..the
eyebrow….
Some
people have a ‘presence’, dominating any room they are in, Geth is like
that. Yes, sure, he is very good looking, dashing that night
in a
suit reminiscent of Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack, but there is something
else - a genuine way of making people feel special! If he
wasn’t
aware of it before, since Strictly, I don’t suppose he can have been
left in any doubt that the women of the UK (and beyond) have fallen for
him!
I
can well believe that going to the supermarket is a bit more of a
nightmare than usual these days, but Geth is still Geth, the boy from
Cardiff who lets his mum look after him when he’s sick. Long
may
he remain so.
Monday 24th March
Geth's Girls, You Shall Go To The Ball
On the 9thJanuary 2008 the GGs found a little
golden nugget of information hidden deep within the internet.
Gethin was
going to dance again at a charity ball in Bristol on 21st March 2008.
Tickets
were bought and for the next 10 weeks plans were made and discussed in
great
detail on the GGs private forum boards.
Dresses
were bought, some were fine right from the beginning but some were
discarded over and over in attempts to find ‘just the thing’!
Shoes were
worn around the house whilst hoovering in order to make sure they
didn’t rub
your little toe. Nails that had not been looked after for
years were
being protected in rubber gloves and appointments made for manicures.
Make up was a BIG issue, make up bags were dragged out the
bottoms of
dressing table drawers, dried up mascara and lipstick colours that went
out of
fashion in the 1980’s were rapidly discarded in place of shiny new
boxes
purchased from perfectly turned out ladies in the large department
stores and
larger branches of a well known high street chemist. We had
virtual make
up lessons where the relative merits of different kinds of eyeliner
were chewed
over and hard decisions made about eye shadow colours.
Pictures of
various bits of jewellery were posted and scrutinised and ‘magic
knickers’ and
how to deal with them in the Ladies Room were a huge source of
amusement.
I think I must have typed the words shrug and bolero every
single day for
10 weeks (at least it seemed like that) and I never want to see one
again!!.
So finally the glorious day dawned. We all packed up and
headed for
Bristol not really knowing what to expect from the evening we had
looked
forward to for so long. My fellow GG’s you all looked amazing
in your
finery BUT as soon as a certain Mr Jones walked into the room you could
have
been wearing your PJ’s because absolutely no-one would have noticed.
Geth you told us that you do look at this website, so I would like to
say on my
own behalf and that of my fellow GGs that were so fortunate to be with
me in
Bristol, that you are a wonderful man and that the way you treated us,
the
attention you gave to us and your wonderful dancing turned a much
anticipated
evening into a spectacular occasion that will never be forgotten.
Sunday 23rd March
Ball Report
Ihad my hair done in the morning and came home to find
LittleMissBob in curlers in my daughters bedroom.
We loaded the car with muffins and stuff for the ball and set off for
Bristol -
we had a sudden urge to travel north on the M40 before turning south
but we
were just interested to see what that bit of motorway looked like! We
arrived at Bristol
(after a min round the
houses!) and eventually found the hotel car park.Found our way to the
drawing room where we
found Lovetokeepgethhanging,
Anaronkita, Jan2555, BPBadgeWinner1982 and ScattyJan surrounded by tea
things
and pink things and found we'd missed Gethin, Ian and Camilla - had we
missed
out completely or would fate bring us together?
LittleMissBob
and I checked in and while we were queuing someone
familiar passed me - it was SparklyJules followed by
SparklingChampagne!
Soon after FFF arrived so we all chatted for a while.
We
retired to Jan2555’s room to eat muffins and strawberries drink
bubbly and
rest before getting ready for the ball. We all then went to our rooms -
mine and FFF’s was along
the corridor
from Jan2555. Slight
problem as my key
card no longer opened the door but FFF’s did so while she showered I
headed to
reception to sort the keys. Halfway between mine and Jan2555’s room I
passed a
man in a kilt and braveheart shirt being shown the way by a nice young
man in a
suit who I realised after he passed that it was Geth! I rushed to tell
Jan2555
and FFF that he'd walked past their door - but curses I'd missed the
chance to
speak to him!
....so
having missed my chance to grab him in the corridor I got
changed - it was now nearly time to meet for the champagne reception so
I went
along the corridor to see if Jan2555 was ready .. and walking towards
me was
Gethin!!!!
So
I took a deep breath, carried on walking and said "Hello, looking
forward to see you dance later"
G:"oh you’re coming to that are you?"
C:"yes - I'm afraid I've been stalking you, I'm one of the Gethins
Girls"
at which point he put out his hand, shook it and said "so whats your
name?"
C:"they call me claudiaforqueen"
G:"Claudia? Well thanks so much for your support I'm overwhelmed"
C:"No thank you- we've had so much fun and we've just met for the first
time"
G:"Well we must have a drink later- see you"
At
which point I casually sauntered up to Jan2555’s door and knocked on
it. She opened the
door and I squealed "I've
just met Gethin - he held my hand" only to find he'd doublebacked and
was
walking past me so I had to dive into Jan2555’s room to try and keep
some
decorum.
Well
after that we all met up and went to the champagne
reception, queued up for a photo with all of us with Ian, Camilla and
Gethin.
After
that we had individual photos taken with the 3 of them - mine was
awful
so I didn’t buy it - the weird expression on my face may have had
something to
do with him having his hand round my waist! In one photo he's actually
turned
to look at me so obviously he'd realised he'd found the woman of his
dreams!
As
everyone has said - the
dances were magical, the setting lovely, we were seated right behind
Gethin and
he went out of his way to pop by and chat. After his waltz he came over
to ask
what we thought of the dance and so we held up ready prepared 10s.
The
chat from Cam, Ian and Geth was interesting and funny, we got referred
to
quite a bit.
After
the auction we waited to waylay him and he promised to come back and
chat. I popped to
the loo and when I returned I
rejoined the group and found myself next to Gethin - not planned
despite what
you any of you may say!
Anyway
we chatted about BP, SCD,E24, China , jodhpurs, a little bit of rugby
and lots of other stuff - the conversation flowed quite naturally
despite him
draping and arm round my shoulder - like I say he'd found the woman of
his
dreams!
We
danced a group cha cha and then normal party dancing and we all talked
til 2am.
We
had breakfast together, watched E24 with cheering and waving, bumped
into
Ian at reception who said he'd come as a last treat "hello girls!" I
offered Ian a muffin (as a present) and when I explained that they were
for fundraising,
he insisted on giving some money.
Sunday 23rd March
From Webmistress to Princess
Afterspending Thursday night rushing around trying to finish
all of the little jobs that needed to be done, my final task was to get
a good
nights sleep so that I'd be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for the ball.
It
didn't quite happen. All week I'd been feeling a bit worried
that I
wasn't excited enough about what was going to happen on Friday.
I was
really looking forward to meeting the rest of the Bristol 10 as we were
calling
ourselves, but just couldn't quite comprehend that Gethin was going to
be part
of the plan as well. It all caught up with me on Thursday
night and I
ended up having a bit of a rubbish night’s sleep.
Friday
morning came around and I managed to get out of bed a lot more
sprightly
than normal. After the final girlification stages and
checking my packing
list (again), I packed the car, said goodbye to the cats, and headed
off down
the M1 to pick up my travel-buddy.
I was a teensy bit worried when I arrived there as she was at the
hairdressers
having her hair done and I'd have to meet her family before I met her.
And walk round their house with my rollers in! I
needn't have
worried as they were all lovely to me (special mention to her 9
year-old
daughter who looked after me and showed me all her girly makeup and
jewellery!)
After de-rollering my hair and making sure we'd got more than
enough
muffins to keep us going, we set off to Bristol to meet everyone else.
The journey was fab, even if we did head the wrong way up the
M40 and struggled to find the hotel car park!
On
the way to reception to check in, we walked past the bar but there
were no
faces I could recognise.I
needn't have
worried. As we stood in the queue to check-in, I spied a
collection of
pink from the corner of my eye and found the GG party was in full
swing, with
balloons, badges and more pink items of clothing in one small space
than I'd
ever seen before! I also heard the news that not only had
Camilla been
over for a chat earlier, the man himself had also been spotted - he was
wearing
his glasses and I'd missed it!!!!!! Suddenly the little detour up the
M40 seemed like a
BIG
mistake. I
dumped my bags in my room (which was astonishing - the amount of
pillows on the
bed made me feel like a princess!), grabbed my pink things, and headed
back
down to the drawing room.
It'll not surprise any of you at all to hear this, but the rest of the
girls
were just as glorious as I expected them to be. Not that
there was anyone
else in the drawing room by the time we took over, but you could never
have
believed this was the first time we had met - we were far too chatty
and
giggly! The next plan was to descend on a hotel room for
champagne,
strawberries and nibbles. A suitably GG-way of celebrating
the excitement
of the night ahead. Absent friends were toasted, and I can
confirm that
the muffins were completely scrumptious. It was just a shame
every Friday
couldn't be spent like this!
It was then time to get ready for the ball. Things were goingwell, I
didn't smudge my eyeliner, my hair responded well to being recurled,
the shoes
looked as gorgeous as ever and I even had time to phone my Daddy to
wish him a
Happy Birthday. Then disaster struck. While on the
phone to my Dad,
I noticed that something about my dress didn't quite look right
......... there
was a white mark on the bottom at the front!!!!! Something in
my suitcase
had leaked on the dress! Why on earth didn't I get a separate cover for
my
dress - it was on my list of things to do but I just ever got round to
it.
After quickly ending the call (sorry Dad), I managed to wash
off the mark
and while grabbing my hairdryer to get it to dry in time, I prayed that
no one
would notice. And they didn't (or at least if they did, they
didn't tell
me!) - maybe the shoes had diverted everyone's attention away.
The plan
was to meet by the lift at 6.55pm, and despite the receptionist telling
me that
she was putting all out rooms together, I only had one other GG for
company on
my floor so we walked up together. I had to confess to her
that I was
feeling sick with nerves. Incredibly excited yes, but my
stomach was
doing flips. The realisation that the night wasn't just about
meeting the
other girls was starting to sink in. Gethin was going to be
there as well
...... maybe it was a good thing I'd managed to block that out earlier
in the
week otherwise I'd have been a complete gibbering mess by the time the
ball
started.
Slowly
but surely, we all congregated by the lift waiting for the rest
of the
girls to arrive - everyone looked stunning and I was starting to calm
down.
Then I heard a GG story of how she'd met Gethin in the
corridor more than
once - apart from being gutted that I'd missed him AGAIN, this was
enough to
send the butterflies in my stomach into overdrive. Walking
down to the
room where the Champagne Reception was being held, I kept thinking of
what an
absent GG had said about keeping your head held high and looking as
though you
belonged there - it just about got me through. I was trying
to distract
myself by looking at things like the table plan. We were
table 10 and
Gethin was on table 3. Oh bum - our table looked like it
would be at the
other end of the room from Geth. Waiting
in the reception room, we stood close to the photography area
and
decided that a group photo of all of us with Ian, Camilla &
Gethin was a
must, while some individual shots were also planned. I decided to only
have a
group photo as my fake smile looks awful ........ what the hell was I
thinking?!?!?! I'm now kicking myself a bit that I didn't get
another
photo but I'll just have to live and learn (and pray that my chance
comes round
again!). We watched some people have their photo taken with
Ian &
Camilla ...... and then Gethin arrived in his suit, looking just like
the Bond
photos he did for Heat magazine. We took our turn to get the
group photo
done, and afterwards while waiting for others to get their photos, I
found a
nice little corner where I had a GREAT view of Gethin. I was
a bit disappointed when it was announced that dinner was served!
Walking through into the main ballroom, I was shocked at how small it
was.
Pleasantly shocked actually. The smaller the room,
the better the
view of the dance floor. Some of the others had found the
table before I
got there and it was in a good spot, one row of tables back but facing
the
stage right in the middle. Then I noticed the table between
us and the
dance floor .... table 3. Surely not, that was too much of a
stroke of
luck surely? We couldn't really have Gethin sitting right
behind us?
Oh yes we could! Fate had obviously decided to
become an honorary
GG that night.
The main event got started with Geth doing a funny little speech at the
start
(and playing with his jacket - nerves?), mentioning how Strictly had
enabled
him to take part in events like this and how the Blue Peter audience
had
changed somewhat! He was going to be dancing the waltz with
Camilla and
that was more than OK by the rest of us! Whilst eating the
starters and
waiting for the waltz to begin, another bit of fate came our way.
We
wanted to hold scorecards with '10' on them for when the dance had
finished but
how was that going to happen? Quite easily as it turned out
as we were
sat at table 10 and there was a table number we could wave round in the
air! After
scrapping together some more score cards from bits of paper and
lipsticks we
were ready for the Waltz.
Gethin
was dressed all in black and Camilla was wearing a lemon yellow
dress
with culottes at the bottom. The goosebumps started even
before the
soundman pressed 'play' on the CD. To be honest, I can't
actually
remember much of the waltz now, just certain moves that I've seen
numerous
times on the internet and the DVD, but to see them close up ...... it
was so
beautiful. You get a different feel of the dance when it's
performed
live. You can hear the shoes moving across the floor, you can
see the
looks on faces so much more clearly, and you can hear the gasps of
delight
around the room. The whole performance felt so much more
intimate.
Rapturous applause broke out round the room and I found
myself cheering
along - a completely involuntary reaction for a wonderful dance.
Camilla
must have taught him well as you'd have never known he'd not danced for
3
months. I've no idea if anyone waved the '10's in the end as
I was facing
the dance floor, not the rest of the table and sorry girls, but you
were not
the focus of my attention for those few minutes! A bit more
chat from
Gethin followed while Camilla did a quick change to get ready for a
tango with
Ian. I know this sounds daft as they're both professionals,
but Holy Moly
they were fantastic. TV does not do this pair justice.
Again, the
mood of the dance felt different as I was seeing it live but it was
absolutely
electrifying.
The dancing was over for now and another round of food was served.
I was
quite happily tucking into my main course when a figure leaned over
between me
and another GG and asked 'What did you make of it then?' OH
MY GOD.
Gethin was stood right next me. I was about to say
'We all gave it
a 10 with the scorecards' (even if I wasn't actually sure!) when I
realised I
had a mouth full of chicken. OF ALL THE TIMES I COULD HAVE
TAKEN A
MOUTHFUL OF FOOD!! Ahem. I tried to finish eating as quickly
as I could
but everyone else had a bit of banter with him about the scorecards,
before he
said he'd be back later for a proper chat but he needed his food
(quelle
surprise - that boy and his grub eh?). I think I may have had
a bit of a
sulk at this point at my sheer bad luck about not being to talk to him.
We then had two more dances from Ian & Camilla - firstly, a
brilliant
cheeky cha-cha featuring lots of bottom wiggling by both of them, but
such a
great amount of fun. Ian then chatted while Camilla changed
(bless him,
he's a real sweetie) and then Camilla chatted with us while Ian took
his turn
to get changed. I don't particularly like the Rumba, I find
it dull on
SCD and wish they'd replace it, but I should have guessed from
Camilla's
gorgeous dress that it would be amazing. I had goosebumps all
the way
through it and nearly cried at one point (wouldn't have done my mascara
much
good though) - words cannot describe just how stunning it was.
As much as
I relished the chance to see Gethin & Camilla do the waltz in
person, the
rumba was my dance of the night - no question.
The
night carried on with pudding and after making a quick stop-off to
choose
my group photo, the auction began. It took a while to get
going (£1600
reserve on a meal at Claridges stalled the proceedings for a bit), but
overall
it went well. Geth had the winning bid on a pole-dancing
lesson for 6,
much to the amusement of the room, and a GG managed to be winning
bidder on the
Dyson. We also had the chance to see Geth doing his
'catalogue' pose
while modelling a pair of sunglasses that were being auctioned.
Bad
sunglasses but VERY good model! The GG's table had even been
noticed by
the auctioneer and we got an honorary mention at one point!
Then it was our turn to dance. The best part of 180 people
headed for a
tiny dance floor, to be taught to cha-cha by Ian and Camilla.
This could
get messy. It started well. The first move wasn't
too bad - a
basic side-to-side type step and we seemed to get into the swing of it
fairly
well. Then another step was added (pointing your feet about)
and again,
we all got the hang of putting the two together, eventually.
Finally we
had to add a spin or two in there. It all seemed to fall
apart at this
point. People were spinning all over the place in different
directions and
on a small dance floor it wasn't a pretty sight! No one
seemed to care
though, we were having far too much fun. We may not have been
dancing a
technically brilliant cha-cha, but we'd got the spirit of the dance
down to a
tee!
The band came on for the first part of their 2-part set and I decided
with a
few others to go and get my photos. I should have guessed
what was
happening earlier, but the GG's with me in the photo queue were
gradually
disappearing off one by one. I just assumed they weren't
bothering
waiting (the photo couple were lovely but a overwhelmed with the queue)
but no.
They'd realised Geth was talking to a GG and went to join in.
By
the time I'd twigged and joined them he'd gone! I was really
beginning to
think it might not be my night after all. Would I ever have
the chance to
meet Geth? I was told that he'd promised he'd be back for a
proper chat
in a few minutes so I waited and decided that I wasn't going anywhere.
Even though at one point I was desperate for the loo, I KNEW
what would
happen if I nipped off!
And true to his word, 10 minutes later he came back and had a good old
natter
with us all. I don't think the 10 of us could believe our
luck, he was
even more friendly, charming and flirty than we could ever have hoped
for.
I managed to ask him what he was planning to do with the
pole-dancing
lessons (give them to his sister as a present) and introduce myself as
the
Webmistress. Apart from that I just found myself listening as
I was in a
state of shock, and couldn't speak very easily! As
unfortunately I can't
lay claim to any Geth kisses during the night unlike some of the other
GG's,
I've decided to take on the role of his PA instead. After all
he did say
that he looks at the website to find out what he's meant to be doing
that week!
He told us that E24 had been recommissoned and he was loving
being
involved with it. He also said that his sister was now
helping out with
his agent, how much he enjoyed his time on SCD and how he used to go on
the
message boards after the Saturday nights shows as he was still hyped up
from
performing. Full credit to him, he didn't have to talk to us
at all, let
alone for that long, but he really took an interest in how we got
together and
how we were enjoying the night. I can't remember which GG
said it to me
later, but she said she was almost weary of meeting him, as they say
you should
never meet your heroes, they'll only ever disappoint you.
Absolutely 110%
rubbish in this case - he was a total joy - everything we could have
hoped for
and more. It's
strange the things you
remember though - I was stood at the side of him and couldn't help but
notice
that cute little bit of hair hanging down that never seems to make it
into the
sticky-up bit properly.
Time was up and he had to be whisked away for the final part of the
evening -
the raffle. By this time, Geth had completely settled into
the role of host
and was a total natural. The first raffle prize was £250 cash
and in the
spirit of the evening, Geth (quite rightly) wasn't going to let the guy
who won
take the prize home - the whole evening was for charity after all, and
the
money ended up going back. One of the prizes was a
B&B stay at the
hotel which lead to Geth's comment about 'Who's staying at the hotel
tonight?'
- we all put our hands up and cheered. His reply? 'I know who you lot
want to stay over!' - I'm
not sure he'd
have had that kind of giggle with us, had he not had the chance for a
proper
chinwag a bit earlier! The raffle was rattling on and after
some dodgy
prizes (waterproof hat anyone?), the one I'd got my eye on came up - a
copy of
Oz & James' Big Wine Adventure book signed by both Oz Clarke
& James
May. 'White 80' Gethin called - it was my number! Luck
decided to repay
me for the chicken incident earlier in the evening by letting me win
the book
and collect the prize from Geth! I was a VERY happy bunny.
I wasn't
the only GG winner in the raffle though - a last minute prize of two
t-shirts
signed by Ian, Camilla & Gethin came up and was won by our
Irish GG! He did actually seem quite chuffed that one of us had won the
t-shirts! Hopefully she’ll tell her own side of the tale, but let's
just say Gethin
won't be forgetting her in a hurry!
Geth
then had to rush off to catch his China flight but he made sure he
stopped
by our table to say goodbye and thanks. I've said it before
and I'll say
it again - he's a true gentleman. While some GG’s danced the
night away,
the rest of us headed to the bar for a good old natter about the
evening and
how magical it'd been. In our wildest dreams it'd couldn't
have gone that
well - that's not real life surely? Before we knew it, it was
heading for
2.30am and plans for breakfast we made (meeting at 10.30 so we could
get a bit
of shut-eye). I headed back to my room with and we talked
about it all
again - just how brilliant the night had been and just how wonderful
Gethin
was. He went beyond the call of duty and we loved him all the
more for
it! Even though I was shattered, my eyes were sore from
wearing my
contacts for far too long, and feet were starting to ache a bit, once I
was
back in my room, I had to do a quick little dance around. I
really did
feel like a princess returning back from the ball!
Sleep came in fairly short bursts during the night (my head was
spinning far too
much to nod off properly) and after being woken up by the maid (I’d
left the Do
Not Disturb sign on the door the wrong way round so it said Please
Service My
Room instead) I couldn't quite get back to sleep again. A
last minute
change of plans came through - breakfast would be earlier so we could
all watch
E24 together. E24! How could I have forgotten! I
have NEVER got ready
so quickly but made my way downstairs to find everyone else was still
on the
same high I was. After breakfast we made our way back to a
bedroom and we
all watched E24 together - such a giggle but slightly surreal at the
same time.
The fact that it was all Geth on this week's show seemed to
be the
perfect ending to the perfect day.
And so the memories of a Webmistress end here. I'll confess I
was on a
bit of a downer by the time I got back on Saturday afternoon.
Partly
because I was so tired after not a lot of sleep the night before, but
mostly
because
the night was so damn perfect, I don't think I'll have that much fun
again for
a while yet. Recounting my side of the ball has cheered me up
again and I
may even have another little dance around my bedroom tonight!
I may not
have done the full Cinderella and won the heart of Prince Charming but
I don't
care - I'm now a fully fledged princess!
Friday 7th March
The Perils of Message Boarding
As we know, message boardingis addictive. Even more so when you bump
into a bunch of like minded
individuals who enjoy a natter! (And the GG’s could not only represent
England at that, but also Wales and quite possibly the rest of the
world too!) On the SCD Message Boards though, it isn’t just general
chit chat - passions are roused, tempers fray and in some cases, people
are banned! Gethinitis raged across the boards like the great fire
through London: This competition matters, it‘s serious. The last series
of SCD certainly fired everyone up - not least because of what many
fans saw as a travesty - Matt being voted though to the final instead
of Gethin.
The bookies had Gethin and
Alesha as joint favourites and an unofficial forum poll before the
quarter final showed Gethin on 112, Alesha on 107, Matt 34 and Leticia
1. As you can imagine, the place was in uproar when, just a week later,
the judges voted Matt through - so much so, Claudia felt
compelled to mention it on ITT. A whole new raft of previously unknown
names appeared to express their disgust; The GG‘s, aware that ‘bad
losers‘ comments would be directed at them, refrained. The question was
raised: If Matt had been voted out, would there have been so much
outrage? Matt fans may have been upset for sure, but it wouldn’t have
been unexpected and SCD would certainly have been spared the subsequent
allegations of fixing: How much did the producers want a finalist on
the live tour? And how much did the judges want Alesha to win? Having
brought in the dance off to avoid a situation like the year before,
when judges favourite Emma Bunton was outvoted by Matt Dawson, it
appears they preferred a foregone conclusion. Were the judges privy to
the phone vote? Gethin’s Girls were in no doubt that the build up to
the semi would have shown a big lead for their man - both Alesha and
Matt having previously appeared in the bottom two (Alesha’s vote
collapsing the week of Matt’s meltdown points to a sympathy vote by the
neutrals who assumed, rightly, that she would be saved by the judges) -
thus the only way to ensure Gethin didn’t book his way into the final
by right, would be to place him bottom of the leader board.
His
Argentine Tango was at least equal to Alesha’s, his powerful, musical
Paso slaughtered without rhyme or reason. Matt’s waltz was ‘nice’ to
paraphrase the experts on the red button. Worth four tens? Not
according to Philip Jackson, who made it quite clear to Claudia that,
in his exalted opinion, Gethin should have gone through. Thus the
judges ensured an Alesha victory by taking out her main competition.
Not that Gethin’s Girls had any issue with an Alesha victory - many
admitted she was their next choice and they’d have voted for
the best dancer on the night of the final. But with the public paying
good money to vote for their ‘favourites’, wouldn’t it have been fair
to let them decide the final two? For some ‘boarders’ the voting system
had to be explained - they simply thought we hadn’t cast enough votes
for Gethin, when in fact, fifty million people could’ve voted for him
that night and it would have made no difference. Which makes it all the
harder to accept.
The first six weeks of the
competition belonged to Alesha, the final three however, when tasked
with two dances, were all Gethin’s. He outperformed everyone left and,
to quote Anton Du Beke, is: “The best celebrity ballroom dancer SCD has
ever had”. Not bad for someone that many fans were confusing with T4’s
Steve Jones and without the benefit of the fansites and publicity
enjoyed by both Alesha and Matt, pop star and soap star respectively.
In fact, the only websites dedicated to Gethin were a couple of blogs,
and officially, the Blue Peter website. Now of course, we have our own
semi-official site, given a seal of approval by the man himself, much
to our delight. The point needed to be made, following an article whose
writer claimed it would definitely have been an Alesha victory - as
more people viewed her websites! It’s a shame they couldn’t count how
many searches were made on ‘Gethin Jones’ (And found only an older,
gentlemanly namesake!) Now, of course, when you Google Gethin you’re
spoilt for choice!
The tummy lurch felt in the
aftermath of the show has receded now, but the niggling feeling that
fans were cheated of the final two they wanted, hasn’t. There were many
threads begun at the outset of the show, expressing concerns over the
dance off format, and then also, following Kelly’s unfortunate
withdrawal, about another three person semi-final. The fact the
dance-off was unconfirmed until the weekend brought even more
suspicion that someone, somewhere had a sneaky peek at the phone vote.
The overall vote was down this year; with the fund-raising aspect for
Children in Need removed and the dance off still in force next year,
comments posted at the start of the last series suggest it’s destined
to fall further still. With the Strictly Sport Relief special upon us
and no votes required, let’s hope the viewing figures don’t do the
same.
Friday 15th February
Why Gethin?
AfterGethin exploded onto the dance floor in week nine,
Strictlyaddiction
posed the question: When did you become a Gethin’s Girl? And it wasn’t
the obvious reason for most…
When
the list for last year’s celebrities was announced, the talk was all
about the girls - glamorous, sexy, fit - surely none of the
boys could
compete? And after the rehearsed-by-text meringue (trust me, that’s the
correct spelling for that particular dance) no-one was disagreeing.
And
yet, a silent army was gathering to support the Blue Peter Action Man,
some egged on by the their children. Strictly viewers who had never
voted before, who’d never entered the murky world of message boarding
and didn’t even know who he was! There was much Googling (and goggling)
of Gethin!
In
the preview show, Charlies Angel fell “head over heels” from the moment
Camilla pointed back at him when Gethin asked: “What’s your ideal
partner?” His modest response was to trip over while holding open the
door for her. Who could resist? The handsome, dark yet shy demeanour
reminded many of Ramps - their favourite in Series 4 - and they also
joined the message boards, finding others who thought the same,
regardless of differing ages and backgrounds.
Strictlyaddiction
herself remembers his nervous smile before the start and cringing at
how harsh the judges were, yet, at the same time, noting how well he
took the criticism. Along with Gethin&Camilla, I too worried
for
Gethin, so disheartened following those judges comments. I found myself
punching the air and shouting “YES” when his name was called. Our faith
was repaid: as each week passed he became more accomplished on the
dance floor.
For
many, ‘Gethinitis’ hit big during the week of the group Jitterbug - and
the appearance on the dance floor of Flying Officer Gethin. We could
see he was more comfortable letting himself go within the safety
of
the group (it wasn’t just the uniform, honest!) And then there was the
Foxtrot wink - and the training for it - that accompanied one of the
most beautiful songs ever, a favourite of Chris 1314, who
gave a name
to the symptoms we were beginning to suffer from (impromptu bouts of
dancing, permanent smiling and watching Blue Peter for the first time
in years, amongst others!)
His
Viennese Waltz put him top of the leader board; on the Ballroom side of
things, he was a contender for sure - but still the judges wanted more
‘performance’. Leaving Canadiangethinfan in a ‘puddle’ just wasn’t
enough!
The
week the celebrities were pitched headlong into two dances proved to be
Gethin’s pivotal week: the breath-taking, romantic Waltz followed by
the electric, sexy Salsa, and a whole new battalion of Gethin fans
joined us in the Gethin’s Girls Lounge, the coolest -and
frequently, hottest - thread in the joint! That was the week everyone
sat up and took note: This man was a serious challenger - the judges
knew their job would be so much more difficult; Matt Cutler jokingly
posed the question: “Where did he come from? Get back down there!” And
our lounge jumped from an already incredible 1700 plus postings to over
3500 in less than a week. To quote Hellypot: “I’ve never really got
into previous Strictlys until the later stages, but he had me hooked
from the start. See-through shirted, salsa-ing Gethin was responsible
for me seeking out other people to talk about him with!”
And
it wasn’t a one week wonder either, following up with a top-scoring
American Smooth and Jive - Lightning-slide-thunder-slide - woe betide
any DJ who refuses to play ‘Knock on Wood’ when the GG’s are on tour!
More converts slid across, the thread marched onward and upward. With a
powerful Paso Doble and steamy Argentine Tango wowing us all - we enjoy
them with mixed feelings, of course - still more fans arrived,
unannounced but bearing chocolate (they’d taken note of the initiation
process before joining!)
Much
credit is due to Camilla’s musical choices throughout the competition -
they proved irresistible, totally engaging the audience whenever they
took to the floor. Grab’em by the ears and their hearts and minds will
follow! Combined with a down to earth, funny, talented and gorgeous
fella, what wasn’t there to love?
Tuesday 12th February
Birthday Messages
No
champagne
or wine, it's well known you don't drink
What to get for your birthday, that's quite hard let me think.
Oh a trek up a mountain, that is probably the best
But I've heard it's pure chilly, hope you pack a thermal vest.
Keep your eyes looking upwards, whatever else don't look down
You will soon be back safely, on solid firmer ground.
Now whatever the weather enjoy your day, have some fun
Celebrate with family and friends when the day is all done.
Let us all sing Happy Birthday and give a glorious great cheer
Gethin Jones is now thirty and has passed another year.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GETHIN
Happy
Birthday to You
We love you that's True !!
You look like a dream and you dance like one too !!!
Wishing
you a very happy birthday - 30's nothing - I am sure you
have yet to reach your peak!
As
you celebrate your birthday,
Remember what you've learnt,
Now you can dance the night away in style,
In the trousers that you burnt!
So take care up those mountains,
And use a compass bearing,
We'd like to see you back here soon
To give that see-through shirt another airing!
Happy Birthday Gethin!
ODE
TO THE MODERN MAN
Us GG's have compiled a list of attributes required
to make a modern gentleman universally admired...
1. Be loving to your parents and attentive to your sis
(from what we've seen we have to say you score ok on this)
2.Be honest and hardworking, and not a moaning bratt
(well unlike some that we could name you get top marks for that)
3. Be brave, heroic, steadfast, and in a crisis, calm
(through yomping, cresta runs and fires, you haven't come to harm)
4. Have talent in creative arts
(now lets see how you do.....
well music gets a great big tick, and now there's dancing too!)
5. A sense of humour is a must to bag a girl these days
(with Dolly quips and cheeky winks you've brought us 'Happy Days')
6. A manly man with a feminine side
(there's nothing wrong with that - you still play rugby with your
mates, but
know 'bout 'Touche Eclat')
7. Take a set-back on the chin, be gracious in defeat
(Just like you did with Strictly, even though unfairly beat)
8. Be good with Kids
(for ladies always like to plan ahead-
you see Blue Peter as your job, we see 'training' instead!)
9. Speak another language
(gosh, you're romping home with this, for girls DO love to find
themselves a
cunning linguist....)
10. And finally, we have to say it doesn't hurt a bit
to be tall and dark and handsome, and very very fit!
So Geth, you score a perfect ten, in attributes of gentlemen
No wonder then, if gossip's true, a certain KJs fond of you..
We wish you well, and hope you've found
a partnership long-lasting
But should it cease, the GG's
will be here, just for the asking!
Penblwydd
Hapus i ti!
Happy
Birthday Geth - Have a great day!
Happy
Birthday Gethin
May all your dreams come true
Not
very good with poems etc, so just a simple but effective and
in my loudest voice!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GETH
And
in a tiny whisper - so he has to come up very close -
Hi there Geth - Happy Birthday..................
Happy
birthday Gethin. May all your wishes come true,
*bigwetsloppykiss*
Saturday 9th February
Ain't No Mountain High Enough
On February 12th
Geth
will celebrate his 30th birthday by climbing one
of
the four highest
peaks in the British Isles. On
February
14th he, Zoe and Andy will
be here in Scotland to
climb Ben Nevis, the last of the four.
If they make it to the top and the weather is
clear the views will make all the hard work well worth while. They will
see Carn Mor
Dearg, Aonach Mor,
and Aonach Beag, and to the south, beyond Glen Nevis and the rocky
ridge of the
Mamores, the mountains of Glen Coe.
Although, at 4406ft or 1344m Ben Nevis is the
highest mountain in the country, it is still one of the most popular
climbs. It
also has a reputation for being one of the most dangerous. Every year
numbers
of climbers are air lifted or carried off its slopes, so I hope they
have taken
their training seriously.
According
to the statistics, Geth will have
only one chance in six of good visibility from the top of the mountain,
so the
Blue Peter team needs to know how to use a map and a compass if they
want to
avoid walking off some of the 2000ft drops along the summit route. (I
know we GGs would
volunteer to catch him
– but where to stand?)
Many
thousands of walkers climb Ben Nevis
each year but it is still a serious undertaking and it is important for
the
three to dress properly for the mountain. Scotland's weather changes
very
rapidly and when the mountain isn’t snow covered it can still be cold,
windy
and often wet. This
will all be
familiar to Gethin and Andy, but Zoe has spent a lot of time in a
bikini
recently.
If
they have been tasked to walk the easiest
route they will probably start at Achintee Farm, or the Youth Hostel,
in Glen
Nevis. The first half of the climb is fairly easy. Then the path
zig-zags up
the rounded dome of the upper mountain. The going becomes rough and
rocky but
they will have views which stretch out to the south, west and north. At
the top
there is an emergency shelter in which to eat (Gethin will be pleased),
and the
ruins of an observatory built in 1883.
A
practiced climber can take around four
hours to get to the summit using this route, but in September each year
there
is a race to the top and the record is under one and a half hours for
the round
trip. Sounds
like another challenge for
Geth.
Other ways to the top are more difficult. The
2000ft cliffs on the north east side of Ben Nevis have long been a
favourite
for serious climbers, both in summer and winter. The training the guys
have been doing might suggest
that they
will take this more dangerous route?
The upper part of the mountain
can be
approached by leaving the easier route and taking the path round the
back of
Ben Nevis and up onto Carn Mor Dearg. They would then traverse the
narrow rocky
ridge of the Carn Mor Dearg Arete which leads on to a climb to the
summit from
the much harder eastern side. They will
need to understand the local weather, and be very fit, if they choose
to
reach the summit from this direction.
Sounds
like an average day out for our Gethin
then! He’ll end up tired, aching, wind blown and very happy.
And any of Gethin’s fans who spot him will have
had a glorious
Valentine’s Day treat!
Wednesday 6th February
Will The Real Gethin Jones Please Stand Up
We know a few thingsabout Gethin Clifford Jones (yes, his
middle name really IS Clifford!). First
of all, we know him as a Children’s TV programme presenter.
Though this was also his job back in Wales,
it was in Blue Peter that he came to the attention of a wider
audience. Then, he stole our hearts as a
semi-finalist in Strictly Come Dancing 2007.
But who exactly is he? He seems to have so many sides to his
personality, that I admit to
being
a little confused at times – or maybe he really is just perfect!
Action Man
He is Blue Peter’s ‘Have
a Go Geth’, (he likes to be called
Geth, so, Geth it is - more of that later). We have watched his pain
and personal struggles in the Royal Marine
Commando Yomp (a 30 mile walk/run carrying full kit and weaponry),
we’ve seen
him tackle a high dive, try out sports like wrestling and boxing, fly
planes,
play rugby and wear kilts, all in the name of childrens’
entertainment. So, ‘Action Man’ is one label we can give him,
and thank heavens for it!
Sportsman
After leaving
University, he had trials for a professional rugby team, and there have
been a couple of newspaper articles expressing mixed
feelings about not having been able to continue in this vein. Sports
have obviously always been important
to Geth, and he has said that rugby helps him by giving an outlet for
aggression. He may occasionally regret
not going down the sportsman route, but life seems to be treating him
just fine
right now!
Musician
We know Geth
played
violin for many years, and he can play
piano (and drums). Rugby was his first
love, and the musical career seems to have taken a back seat.
He can’t ‘scratch’
for
toffee though!
Presenter
Geth’s been a TV
presenter for several years, presenting
childrens’ programmes, pop programmes, and acting as host for events in
Wales. This New Year he co-hosted BBC
One’s live programme, attracting over 9 million viewers. So,
Geth’s was the last voice those of us
watching heard in 2007, and the first of 2008.
Some achievement!
Dancer
….and then there
is
Strictly…….
Entering this
competition no doubt appealed as a physical
and mental challenge. It also must have
occurred to an intelligent chap that this was going to be a
profile-boosting
opportunity. However, this is one that
could have, as many of his friends apparently predicted, ended in
disaster by
leaving in week 3.
Craig Revel-Horwood
summed up his view of Geth (and many of
us ended up agreeing with him – in itself a first!) that Geth was
possibly the
sexiest celebrity ‘Strictly’ had ever seen.
Right from the beginning, Geth put his all into this
competition.
That commitment (OK, and the fact that he is
just a bit attractive) meant that each week we sighed or yelled in
triumph as
he passed through to the next week.
The judges gave him ahard time from week 1, expecting a lot
from our ‘Action Man’. Through the
weeks we watched him progress, taking criticism seriously and
stoically, but
making us laugh, though some of what hit him must have been hurtful.
Gentleman
Gorgeous Gethin, Gethin the Gallant
Geth did a great job on
the ballroom dancing. Philip Jackson – technical commentator
-
regularly singling his posture, hold and footwork out for
comment.
Arlene called him by some of her alliterative
names…..Bruno got quite excited by the whole thing and called him The
Prince of
Wales (on BP he is known as 'The Prance of Wales’). He had
problems with intimacy, causing much hilarity from
Camilla….(which makes him a normal British guy, not shy!)
In interviews
and
training clips, he came across as a
genuinely nice man, self-effacing, generous to other competitors,
polite, gentle
manners, tough on himself and, amazingly, having no inkling of his
sheer
‘presence’. Hearts were breaking all
over the UK!
The Loin King –
from Geth
to Gethin
Breakthrough week came
after a 2-hour session with an acting
coach. In the clips that we saw, Geth seemed
not to believe that anything he was doing was worth watching.
Oh boy, how wrong could you be? He adopted an alter-ego,
Gethin the dancer,
who was fearless and confident, whereas Geth just wanted to give
everyone a cup
of tea (which is very nice, too!). With
growing confidence, we saw more of that cheeky sense of humour – he
laughed and
said he was having performance problems…..and made a memorable quip
about Dolly
Parton - Oooh, Mr Jones!
The waltz was
beautiful,
but then we would expect no less from
one of the best male celebrity ballroom dancers ever to be on Strictly
(well said,
Anton!). However, the Salsa shirt will
surely go down in ‘Strictly’ history – as much as for it being so
beautifully modelled
around Geth’s fine physique as for the fact that he genuinely seemed
not to
realise that it was see-through. Sheer
energy, exuberance and some fine hip-swivelling – what HAD happened to
the
bashful boy?
Mindful of judges’
comments, Geth and Cam worked hard for
the following week, and produced a stunning American Smooth, and a jive
with ‘the
longest knee-slide in the history of Strictly Come Dancing’.
Happy
days, oh yes, very happy days!
Passionate Man, the Prince of
Darkness
The semi final came round, and Geth danced the Paso and the
Argentine Tango, giving both as much as he could, and we loved him for
it. Controlled aggression in the Paso and barely
controlled passion in the AT – well, where did the boy from Wales with
intimacy
and performance issues go? He even wore
pink for Camilla.
The dance off left Geth
out of the competition, but not out
of our affections. We saw him deal with
defeat with stoicism and good humour, but also with truth – he was
gutted, so
were we!
Bad cook, but our hero!
So, we are all now
watching Blue Peter for the first time in
quite a few years, eagerly awaiting his next challenge and fervently
hoping
that BBC producers are well aware of the asset he has become. We’ve
also seen the self-confessed terrible
cook (now that’s on the pitifully small list of things he CAN’T do) on
cookery
programmes, with a wave and a smile! He
has also been gracious enough to acknowledge his fans, with some humour
(‘That
wasn’t weird at all’), it has to be said, but also with enthusiasm.
What next for Mr
Jones?
Whatever it is, we will be following his progress. Increasing
in confidence, we hope, as
fearless in showing more of his personality as he is in taking up some
of those
hair-raising challenges and on the rugby
pitch. Somewhere in
there, though, I suspect that there is still a
remnant of the geeky kid who wore thick glasses, braces on his teeth
and a pudding
basin haircut. Perhaps that’s what will
keep him as the nice guy and gentleman we know he is!
Ladies
and gentlemen, the one, the only, Gethin Jones!