Gyles Brandreth played to a small, but very appreciative audience at the Wyvern this week. A former MP and Government Whip, actor, broadcaster, raconteur and now a reporter on BBC’s One Show (obviously the pinnacle of his success to date) Gyles has definitely grown on me. How much of my new found appreciation is due to a change in his style or my advancing years, I’m not sure. I fear it is probably the latter.

In a variation of the 1927 song ‘I’ve danced with a man, who’s danced with a girl, who’s danced with the Prince of Wales,’ Gyles shook hands with a young woman in the front row. When he told her she was shaking hands with a man who shook hands with A.A. Milne, who shook hands with Christopher Robin …I just hoped it would not end in a lavatorial reference, but of course being Gyles it couldn’t possibly.

An inveterate name dropper, I did wonder how many of his stories were actually true. However, on checking his resume I discovered that he has written two Royal biographies - Philip & Elizabeth: Portrait of a Marriage and Charles & Camilla: Portrait of a Love Affair so I guess the Highgrove anecdote in which Camilla paced the garden drawing on her ciggie was true, although I remain unconvinced about the Queen, Prince Philip and the Full Monty.

Like Gyles, I’d like to name drop as well – yes I know it’s sad and probably a reflection of my deep seated insecurities and traumatic toilet training.

‘Don’t you know, Maureen Lipman stopped me for a chat in Cheltenham last summer.’ I don't actually speak like that, well not all the time, but one feels it is required when name dropping. The fact that I paid to see her and then queued up to buy her book at the Cheltenham Festival doesn’t have quite the same kudos.

When I was a teenager I once saw Wayne Fontana (of the Mindbenders fame) walking through Kensington Gardens. Well I’m sure it was him but of course my parents were no help in corroborating this story as they didn’t have a clue who Wayne Fontana was, with or without his Mindbenders.

And in a New York bar last summer, did you get that, a NEW YORK bar, I’m sure I saw David McCullum from the 1960s series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. better known today as Dr Donald ‘Ducky’ Mallard from NCIS. Unfortunately both daughters were sitting with their backs to him, so again, I am alone in my certainty.

And my dad used to work with a man who lived in a flat next door to Helen Shapiro - but maybe that’s scrapping the barrel.

Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here

Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here