In March 2023 something must have shifted in the cosmos as a series of remarkable, but unexpected, events unfolded…
I was on my way into London on the train to a very special event. I had been fortunate to get to attend the ‘GOSH! It’s Gyles & Judi and all the Dames!’ event at The Palladium. A rare event that saw over a dozen of our great Dames from over the years congregate for an evening of conversation, fun and special performances. In a word, spellbinding.
It isn’t a quick journey into the capital from where I live and so in a quiet carriage of the train with time on my hands, I took the rare downtime to catch up on some emails. I think I was somewhere near Derby when I decided to reach out again to Gail Grainger. Gail is, and remains, one of the most popular and sought after people by Carry On fans. Over the last few years, I had contacted Gail on a few occasions and she had, back in July 2022, agreed to speak with me about her time as ‘Moira Plunkett’ in ‘Carry On Abroad’ (1972).
I knew Gail was still a busy lady with her new career but as the months had passed the chance to speak with her, let alone meet with her, had become unlikely being based miles away from each other. So, I decided to send one last email to see if, by any chance in a million, she may be free and available to meet up. I wasn’t holding my breath.
That evening in London I went to see ‘Noises Off’ at the theatre, a brilliantly funny play filled with an almost impossible energy, with the wonderful Felicity Kendal taking one of the lead roles. Then it was the usual, a few drinks, dinner and back to the hotel for a semi-early night ahead of what was to surely be a busy day at The Palladium.
One thing I rarely do is keep my phone on after a certain time when getting ready to wind down and go to bed. However, that evening for some reason I had forgotten to turn it off in the hotel. I turned the light of but spotted my phone lit up on the desk. Mildly cursing, as I was comfortable, I got out to turn the damn thing off. It was then I spotted a new email, it was from Gail. She was able to meet me the following day but the timing clashed bang on with The Palladium event. What is it they say about buses?
After a few more frantic emails backwards and forwards that evening and the following morning we were able to realign the stars. I went to meet Gail, we chatted, it was all very relaxed and informal. She had her gorgeous dog, Daisy, with her and the whole affair was relaxed and pleasant. Unfortunately, I only had about 30 minutes before I had to dive across London to The Palladium.
So, what has all this waffle got to do with ‘Carry On At 65!’?Actually, everything. During our conversation Gail had mentioned having received correspondence over the years inviting her to various ‘events’ linked to ‘Carry On’. She had never accepted, or in fact responded, as she seemed absolutely perplexed as to why anyone would want to meet HER. ‘Do you know what they call you?’ I asked her. ‘No?’ she replied, ‘The Holy Gail’ was my response. She laughed, still none the wiser though.
I explained her significance to the series and why so many fans would be dying to meet her. She remained quite reticent about the whole thing but did agree to speak with me for longer at a later date to offer me an interview about her career. Would she ever do an event though? She said she would think about it. You know the sort of response your parents give you when you’re a kid and you ask for some big label item outside a birthday or Christmas?
'Miss Plunkett you're squashing our itinerary! - the event itinerary.
A few weeks later I called Gail as planned and we had a lovely chat all about ‘Carry On Abroad’ and her career (see ‘Interview with Gail Grainer’). In the meantime, I had been contacted by Dean at ‘The Whippit Inn’ who, learning about the aforementioned rendezvous with her in London, asked if I thought we could get her to an event. No event was planned, in fact to my knowledge, apart from a few smaller gigs on ‘Carry On’, nothing special or specific had been planned for 2023 which marked 65 years on the series (starting with ‘Carry On Sergeant’ in 1958). I had known Dean and his lovely family some years, mainly from the previous ‘Whippit Inn’ events that he had run with a close-knit team. However, all I could promise him was that I would ask, but I told him that based on my previous conversations with Gail that it seemed unlikely.
The official 'Carry On At 65!' group photograph (photo credit: John Heffernan).
I am my no means perfect but I am a man of my word, I am old school in that sense, and so I asked Gail about the possibility. Dean asked me what I thought about the possibility of doing a joint venture with ‘The Whippit Inn’. Talk about a curve ball. I had never taken ‘Retroboy’ outside the online presence. It isn’t my ‘day job’ and I had a very stacked diary for the next few months. Could it work? After some reflection I was certainly willing to try.
So, as a debut we were aiming to run an event, in London, for the 65th anniversary of ‘Carry On’, in 3 months’ time with a pipedream of getting Gail Grainger as our ‘headliner’. I think I told Dean that I thought there was more chance of getting a piece of the moon.
One thing to also remember here is that ‘Retroboy’ and ‘The Whippit Inn’ events are non-commercial ventures. Neither aim to make money or a profit. They are run by fans for the fans – as it should be. Over the years any rare and small profit made by ‘Retroboy’ has been donated to charity. For any contributions that I receive through interviews or material there is a donation to charity.
The website is on a ‘pay it forward’ basis. It is fair to say that hours and hours and hours of time and personal commitment have been afforded to both ventures over the years. I honestly think that for this reason people are happy to support us. It is possibly the reason that after a short deliberation Gail said yes.
Now, I have been lucky to meet a lot of well known and famous people over many years. That isn’t a boast, it is simply a fact. After all, classic British TV and film is my passion and is mostly the basis and inspiration of this website. With that in mind I set about consulting my ‘address book’. Yes, I still keep a handwritten address book. It comes from my late nan who always kept her faux gold gilded tome next to the landline on the china cabinet. From that moment on Dean & I never stopped. We had some ‘maybes’ some ‘yeses’ who unfortunately then couldn’t do it and on we went. All I will say is that if anyone ever thinks about running their own event make sure that you are mentally (and physically) prepared, and that is no exaggeration!
However, after months of calls, emails, messages, mild nervous exhaustion, headaches, euphoria and daily challenges we were set! The event sold out. We tried to fit in as many people as we possibly could, based on the venue’s restrictions but we were at capacity. However, I have to say that out of a lot of events that I have attended over the years that I was truly overwhelmed by the love in the room that day and the reception that the event got both from the fans and from our star guests.
We were even lucky to be treated to some very rare and previously unseen footage from the special ‘Carry On’ 40th event held at Pinewood Studios in 1998, provided by my dear friend Morris Bright MBE. We also had messages provided to us by some of the ‘Carry On‘ stars who were not able to make it but who wanted to share their thoughts and good wishes with everyone on the day; these came from Jim Dale, Sandra Caron, James Pertwee and John Antrobus. Just remarkable.
Above: Our star guests prepare to face the fans at the sell-out event! (photo credit: John Heffernan).
A huge thank you to Sam Bessant for providing his creative talents for the all the wonderful graphics for the event!
Over the years I have been fortunate to attend many public and private TV & film events with celebrities from every nook and cranny of the industry. However, I have to say that it was truly incredible to see the reception that Gail Grainer got from the fans as she entered the room and joined our panel. People were in good spirits and conversations were flowing but when Gail walked in a silence descended and it was almost as if people were holding their breath. I can only liken it to when you were at school (you may still be lucky enough to be!) and the Headmaster walked into Assembly, that sort of reaction.
Later in the day as I sat with Gail at her signing session I was utterly astounded at how many of our guests thanked me for bringing her to the event, that was very kind and very much appreciated! I admit that I got a little lump in my throat. I remember one fan who thanked Gail for coming and who was clearly a little 'star struck' and amazed that she was in fact at the event. She pointed at me and retorted with a smile, "You've him to thank, he wouldn't give up!". It is true and I am glad I didn't as the reception she got made years of effort worth every second!
“There is more to being here than meets the eye. You are not celebrating the past, you are celebrating TODAY!
A few times people have said to me ‘you only live once’. To which I reply, ‘Yes but it is forever!’
So, stay cool, enjoy all that life promises you - you have only to accept it, and believe!
Who is this bloke? I thought he wrote comedy, where are the jokes? I do indeed keep writing and my new books are published by Bear Manor Media, more coming out soon!
So, CARRY ON BEING THE BRILLIANT YOU THAT YOU ARE!! And the world will catch up with you, that’s what it’s here for....
All love, I am with you in spirit”.
So many thanks for asking me to say hello to such devoted Carry On fans as those meeting with you today, and may you all have a memorable celebration.
I do hope there is a certain cab driver fan among you who may remember driving me to the stage door of the Vaudeville Theatre in London, where I was appearing in my one man show...
When we arrived I asked, “How much?”
The driver shook his head and said, “Not for you Jim, wouldn’t dream of it.”
I said, “Seriously how much?”
He said, “My treat mate."
I said, "But I insist."
He said, "A lot of good that'll do ya. Cos you Jim and the rest of the Carry On team aren’t just icons to all of us. You’re much more than that. You lot are bleedin’ icons. Now get out my bloody cab and let me get back to work.”
My best to you all and may you Carry On forever.
“So sorry can't be with you at the 'Carry On At 65' event!
I have wonderful memories of filming ‘CARRY ON CAMPING’.
As I'm sure you know it was a cold November morning when we girls were in our swimming costumes! If one looks hard enough, you can see us shivering!
However, most of the time it was a huge laugh, especially with the brilliant, funny Kenny Williams. We would sit every lunchtime in the Pinewood Studios restaurant where he would hold court, and we listened to him telling his hilarious stories!
The film was filled with some of the most wonderful character actors. For instance, the marvellous Hattie Jacques, who was always trying to find a way to play a trick on someone! She would give me a lift home at the end of the day as she lived in Earls Court, close to Kensington, where I was.
And of course, there was the great Babs Windsor, my good friend. We had so many giggles whilst filming a scene that Gerald, the director, got fed up with telling us to get on with it!
Over the years we worked together many happy times. I miss her a lot.
So, my very best wishes to you and all the Carry On fans!
Have a big success, and next time you have a get together, I promise to try and be there.”
Polite note: All images, graphics and material contained within this section are copyright to their respective owners and should not be copied, duplicated, reproduced, stored or used elsewhere without the express permisison of the owner.
Join the 'Retroboy' Facebook group & follow me on Instagram for exclusive content!
