Sir Patrick Stewart was on the Graham Norton Show last night;. During his interview, he mentioned living in Bermondsey. That isn’t too far from here, which of course got me  wondering. After meeting Sir Patrick in 2014, I’ve always regretted not presenting him with a copy of my thesis or  getting my photo taken with him; if I could find where he lived, perhaps I could put that right. I googled his address, and today got my PA  Serkan to drive me over there. I had posted a copy of my MA thesis with a covering letter  to Sir Patrick’s talent agency a while ago, but never got a reply, so I thought it worth another try.

The address Google directed us to was in quite a plush, well-to-do area down by the river: it was one of narrow streets and old  wharfs and warehouses now converted into flats, We had trouble parking at first, but eventually we found a spot nearby the address. Truth be told, I wasn’t feeling that optimistic, but the chance to personally present my favourite actor with  a copy of my thesis and the covering letter meant a great deal to me. We walked up to the correct door and Serkan pressed the flat  number Google had indicated.

Predictably, of course, rather than the  voice of my favourite actor, we heard the voice of a rather irritated-sounding lady saying he did not live there any more. We had gone all  that way on a wild goose chase.  I didn’t feel too deflated –  I knew it was a long shot – but it was  a pity all the same. We had a coffee by the river, enjoying the awesome view of tower bridge, before getting back in Serkan’s car and heading home, thesis and  letter still in hand. Oh well, it was quite a good outing, and material enough for a blog entry.