Spotted

Don't be fooled: this post is not about dalmations, leopards or even polka-dotted leotards. Rather, it's about my chance encounters with people who are somewhat famous. Yep, those minor celebrities who happen to find themselves on the B list or C list, or perhaps somewhere in between like the B flat list.*

This sudden plunge into the murky world of hazy mobile phone-photographs and fruitlessly chased autographs was precipitated by an encounter on the weekend with Chas Licciardello of Chaser fame. I was sitting at a bus stop on Trafalgar St, Petersham, waiting for a bus when Chas went zipping along on his bicycle.

It's not as if seeing Chas is very special -- he doesn't really try to hide himelf -- and I didn't really get to see much of him due to his zippiness, but it was a brief moment moment of excitment as I waited for the bus. I felt like calling out to him, but all I could think to say was "Go Chas!" and this would have been quite unnecessary because he was already going, and going quite well. So I bit my tongue.

This last year I have almost bumped into two other almost-famous people -- in the supermarket. The first was Margaret Pomeranz. The first time I saw her (I've seen her twice) was just days before I had to give a presentation on Renoir's La Grande Illusion. I was thinking about asking her for some insight into the film, but then I thought that it might also be good to say "You're so much better than David" or "Hmmm I like low fat, soy, sweet chilli capsicum dip too."** I got so flummoxed trying to choose between the two that I just gaped awkardly and Margaret slipped away. She really is quite short, you know.

The second shopper of note was arguably the biggest bridesmaid of Australian cricket: the very angry Stuart MacGill. I looked at him once and turned back just to check that it really was him, and as soon as our eyes met he spun around and took off. A very angry character, indeed.

It's pretty pathetic, I know, but I want to see if anyone can beat it. Perhaps a C lister in a leopard-skin leotard. What is your worst 'celebrity' story?

* Go to the comments to see me being hauled over the coals for this awful gaffe.

** There is no guarantee that this was the actual flavour of dip that Margaret was considering. The Shadow takes no responsibility for accuracy when it comes to the eating habits of minor celebrities, although I have heard from a reliable source that Casey Donovan is a frequent visitor to KFC Pagewood, but that's a completely different . . .

Boules update: on the weekend the Reallys once again tasted victory, this time trouncing the Nearlys. Pierre was the standout. His wings were flapping so much that it was a great surprise to all that he didn't fly away (I'm sure that were he in a South American novel, he would have). The best that the Nearlys could do, however, was flap their gums (even a South American novelist would have struggled with them). Bring on the Christmas Eve Special complete with Mexican hats!