I've always wanted to do it but never had the courage. But this lunchtime I finally did it. Skydiving? Robbery? Visiting the slums of India? No - stopping Alan Bennett in the street to tell him how much I like his work.
Working literally minutes from him home, I've seen him a lot over the years. Often chatting to neighbours, including Michael Frayn and Jonathan Miller, or passing the time of day with the postman. I'm a big fan of his work, which I know isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I recently read his Untold Stories book and I thought it was marvellous.
If you're not familiar with his work - there can't be many who aren't - he writes in a terribly entertaining way, if not a little repetitively, about the mundanities of life, family, films, illnesses, art, history, etc, and he always makes me laugh.
So a colleague and I spied him getting out of a car and took the plunge. We told him how much we'd enjoyed Untold Stories, and he seemed genuinily pleased. He remarked that it was very bold of us to stop him in the street. And we all laughed.
And, er, that's it really, but I'm really pleased that at last I've spoken to him.
*As I once heard a stallholder on Inverness Street market remark to him.
3 comments:
Now that's impressive. Working down the road from you, I too have seen him around a lot, wearing a mac and looking like he's been drawn by a child, with his neat fringe and immmaculate little tank-top, I've been tempted to stop and say 'I think you're great', But Mr B being a shy, diffident type, I've never had the guts, fearing I'd scare him off like a startled faun. My life has been tinged with the hand of Bennett; all my Leeds relatives were as if they'd been created by him, and his autobiographies used to get mentioned a lot by my psychotherapist. So maybe next time I'll shyly say 'I love your work', and hope to get invited round for tea like Morrissey did.
And then perhaps you can talk about Jimmy Clitheroe, which is apprently all they discussed at that tea.
Even if he'd only ever written A Chip in the Sugar he'd deserve a knighthood.
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