Back from a brilliant day. Left home at 5.30am to drive to Deb .. arriving at an unsocially early hour .. lol .. Then later off to London for the TV show, where I got a front row seat .. right in front of where Meat sang IACBTMN.
When Meat first came on, although I'd say the Meat fans were by no means in the majority, we gave him a huge and noisy welcome
He decided we could do even better and made his entrance again :) I believe we did!!
After the song, he went to the rather uncomfortable sofa which was piled with cushions and threw most of them off .. lol .. He talked about Jimmy, the album, the origins of IACBTMN, his singing partners .. although as he was listing them Alan Titchmarsh (who was guest presenter standing in for Paul O'Grady) interrupted him and got him waaaaay off track just after he had mentioned Cher .. and they never got back to the subject .. So if anyone wonders why he omitted Patti's name .. he was hoisted from his point ..
He was on stage for the whole show .. very funny of course, very entertaining. The other guest was the brain-dead bimbo who won what she described constantly as Big Bruvver .. Embarassingly stupid she wittered on in her shorter section of the interview stage of the show .. Meat's face was a study of polite, kind expressionlessness as he listened to the bizzare nonsense she was spouting .. until she answered the question "What next?" with "I fink I'd like to win an Olympic gold medal" .. at this point his brow just tightened slightly and the corners of his mouth gave a wee twitch .. before he asked her how old she was .. "Twenty" .. "Well dear .. " he then went on to enquire as to whether she had identified a sport to win a medal IN .. and pointed out with gentle humour that most medal winners had been practising that sport for quite a few years before they reached twenty ..
They had a segment when they brought on a "bodger" who wittles wood .. Alan was holding a miniature chair about 6" tall .. Meat a very large carved pelican .. I wondered if he'd tell the joke about what a pelican and a tax-collector have in common .. (They can both shove their bills up their arses ..) But he just said "Mine's a lot bigger than yours!!!" .. He wore his protective apron like a cloak, hanging down his back .. and when invited to have a go at the wittling lathe .. instead took a piece of wood and attacked it with his teeth!!!
He gave Alan (who was I think a bit nervous about hosting the show anyway) quite an easy ride .. although I think he scared him with his impression of a fierce anti-Rock preacher when they were talking about the tenacious D movie
After Meat had left the set and Alan was just doing the trailer for the show he shook his head and said "Meat Loaf .. I'd call him Pepperoni!" .. and I thought .. well yes, he's hot stuff .. and as the Pepperoni ads here say .. a bit of an animal .. (but in in the nicest possible way .. rolling ...)
After the show lots of people who had come not knowing Meat was a guest, and not "fans" per se were saying how entertaining he was, and how glad they were now that they had still come to the show even when told Paul O'Grady was not hosting it .. and one old boy said to me as we were leaving "That lad (Meat .. lol) has some energy! I wish I'd had as much when I was his age!!" .. then reflectively "I expect he'll still have it when he's my age!"
And really that says it all ......
Thanks to Deb who drove round London with a speed and verve that would put the most experienced cabdrivers to shame!!
And as Meat leaves my turf to go back to America, I was thinking .. my life feels a little greyer tonight .. but my album arrived today, and that will bring colour and light into it
It's been a wonderful ride with Meat these last weeks .. and next year the tour
Caryl