Angel

The Day I Met My Angel An Encounter for CoA Staff Member, SueAngel

November 11th, 1999 is a date etched on my memory as that is the eventful day that I first saw and fell in lust with the man who was to become my Angel - Mr David Boreanaz. Usually I avoided watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer as I am not a big fan of Sarah Michelle Gellar but one night whilst babysitting I happened to find myself watching the Season 3 episode "Enemies". The moment I set my eyes on the man with the mind-melting chocolate orbs, deliciously chiseled cheekbones and knee-trembling smile, I knew I was smitten. I became obsessed with finding out as much as I could about the tall, brooding and unbelievingly handsome man who had invaded my TV screen as well as my senses and within a few short weeks, (and after a fair amount of money had passed hands), I had caught up on the back story of the vampire with a soul. The rest, as they say, is history.

I have been following Angel’s journey towards redemption ever since, watching episode after episode of both BtVS and Angel, reading books, collecting magazines, writing fan-fiction as well as becoming involved with CityofAngel.com. At the turn of the year when I heard that David was making his first appearance in the UK for more than a couple of years, I knew that I had to make the pilgrimage to meet the man of my desires. Here is my story.

Dear Diary Friday 29th August - The Day Before

Early start today for me and my friend Andrea (known on the CoA boards as either Binnsy or Lil Boo) as we arrive at Manchester Airport for our short flight to London. See CoA Citizen, William the Bloody 1860 in the airport terminal and assume that he too is going to the David Boreanaz Event and follow him into departures. Turns out we were mistaken as we are embarrassingly told by an airport official that we are in the wrong building and forced to walk back through the large crowds of holidaymakers, our heads hung in shame. Eventually Andrea and I board the plane and chat excitedly all the way much to the dismay of the poor businessman seated next to us. Arrive at Heathrow Airport to find Nicola (known as the infamously evil CoA staff member Bluebear) waiting to drive us to Brighton. As we make our way down the motorway, Dido’s song White Flag plays on the radio which only enhances our anticipation of what is to come in less than 24 hours !

We pass the Brighton Convention Center before checking in to the Metropole Hotel just two doors down from the event venue. Spend the afternoon relaxing and trying not to think about the fact that David Boreanaz is only a few feet away ! Meet up with friends and CoA Citizens, Laird, Avie and FaithLouise for a drink and some small talk, whilst also indulging in a very nice piece of toffee cake that Laird has brought for his birthday. Must admit to being a little bit worried about some of the rumours coming from today’s happenings but try to put them out of my mind as I retire early hoping for a good nights sleep. Can’t believe that after almost 6 months of waiting, my date with destiny is just around the corner. God I feel sick.

Dear Diary Saturday 30th August - 4 :00am D-DAY Woke up at 4.00am this morning, (unbelievably not because of Nic’s snoring), and unfortunately couldn’t get back to sleep. Stay in bed as I watch Andrea get ready to join the queue that is already building outside the arena. She leaves at the unearthly hour of 6.30am to catch up with Laird, FaithLouise and Avie. Stomach is in knots as Nic and I await the arrival of our friend Lisa before making our way to the VIP entrance at the rear of the Brighton Convention Centre. Must admit to being a little amazed by the number of Access All Areas pass holders I see in attendance. Considering only 10 AAA tickets were supposed to have been sold per day, there must be close to 25 people waiting for their up close and personal moment with David. As we arrive, we get introduced to Louise and Carly who are going to be our Event Hosts for the day. Also meet up with new friend Denise, whom Nic and I met through the Jealous Events board, as she is also working the event. As we await the arrival of the Man-of-the-Hour, the ground rules for the day are set and we are told that :

We are not allowed to touch David. We are not allowed to talk to David during the autograph sessions, unless he talks to us, as we must keep the queue flowing. We are not allowed to touch David. All of our bags must be checked into the locker room for security reasons leaving us only with the items for signature and our phones. We are not allowed to touch David. Our passes (an unused Silver entry ticket with AAA scrawled on it in blue biro) must be shown whenever we wish to go to restricted areas. We are not allowed to touch David. If we want to go into the guest’s Green Room at any time, we must be accompanied by a member of the Jealous Events staff. We are not allowed to touch David.

As soon as the regulations have been read, it is announced that David is running late - again ! Apparently rain caused David to arrive two hours late yesterday as his helicopter could not take off from London. As the sun shines brilliantly outside, I wonder what his reasons are today. Not that I mind just so long as he shows up. Asked by the hosts to gather at the back of the building as the group awaits the arrival of the limousines, which are supposed to take us to our grand red carpet entrance at the front of The Brighton Center. Almost an hour and a half later, we are still waiting. News comes in that the supporting cast has long since arrived and that more alarmingly David is less than five minutes away yet still there are no limos in sight. As we line up against a wall, screams can be heard and at the thought of finally seeing David in the flesh for the first time, my stomach drops through the floor. David’s helicopter has just flown over Brighton beach on its way to its landing spot at the racecourse. Won’t be long now until the moment of truth. Five minutes later - it’s the real deal. David Boreanaz enters looking more gorgeous than even I could possibly imagine. He’s wearing a beautifully fitting pair of denim jeans, a brown t-shirt advertising Slim’s Rodeo in Cheyenne, Wyoming over the top of a white long sleeved T and a leather jacket. He’s clean-shaven, wearing his glasses and smiles as he waves at fans and poses for photos. I genuinely feel my knees buckle as he walks passed me and have to hold on to the man by the side of me who finds great amusement by my bewildered state.

As David takes to the stage in the main auditorium, the AAA pass holders are taken into their Green Room upstairs. We wait a few minutes before the door opens and in walks Nicholas Brendon greeting us all with a big, "Howdy". He’s not alone but accompanied by Kelly Donovan, Kristine Sutherland and Mark Lutz. Everyone seems to be in a little bit of nervous awe so Nick, now sporting a fetching goatee beard, tries to put everyone at ease by asking if any of us are from Iceland ! Apparently this unusual question makes reference to a dance he had done on stage the day before. To help us relax even further, Nick then commands his twin brother Kelly, (who looks more like Xander than Nick does !) to give everyone neck rubs and Kelly duly obliges. I can reveal that Kelly has nice soft hands and definitely know how to hit the spot ! Feeling easier in their company, the supporting cast agree to pose for personal pictures. I manage to get my hands on Mark Lutz (again) before moving on to Kelly. Just as I am putting my arms around him, I feel another pair of hands sneak around my waist. I look up to see Nick standing on the other side of me. "Let’s make this a threesome shall we ?" he smiles as he cuddles me. "Ah, so you’ve heard the rumours about me then ?", I can’t help but reply jokingly in return before posing for Nicola’s poised camera.

The supporting guests are then whisked off to the main stage whilst the AAA holders are taken to meet David ! Clutching my personal item in hand I nervously wait in line. Nicola is ahead of me and I watch as David signs her autograph. Suddenly the steward nudges me and it is my turn. David’s smile welcomes me as he asks me for and then says my name. I’m truly in heaven - David Boreanaz, the man of my desires, has just said my name ! For the amount of sense that is bouncing around in my head right now, I could have told him that my name was Pltz Glrb for all I know. I must have got it right however as he correctly personalises the item he signs and I lean towards him as close as I can ready for the photo. I vaguely hear the photographer telling us to smile and can’t stop the grin from spreading across my entire face as my one on one encounter with David is immortalised on film. I thank him for his time then move into the next room trying to remind myself at some point that it is necessary for me to breathe !

Dear Diary Saturday 30th August - 12 :00pm

Having now met David, I sit down on a nearby chair completely oblivious to the fact that I am now in the supporting cast’s autograph room and that I was in fact in the queue for Kelly Donovan’s autograph and photo session. Realisation hits me when Kelly beckons me, "Hi again," he says signing those exact words on my personal item. He poses for a photo and tells me he’ll see me again later no doubt. Go to see Kristine Sutherland next although Mark Lutz was actually next in line but his queue is building up nicely so I’ll bypass him for the time being. Kristine is incredibly beautiful and I’m amazed at how much younger she looks than on screen. She asks me where I am from and when I tell her she smiles and remarks about how many people she has spoken to from my neck of the woods. "Have you ever been to Manchester ?" I ask and surprisingly she tells me she has and that she loved it ! (she’s not going to tell me she hates it though, right ?). She then proceeds to say that she has travelled all over England but never been to Scotland although she has always wanted to go. The photographer waits patiently as she reminisces over a trip to Ireland trying desperately hard to remember where it was she had exactly visited.

I rejoin Mark Lutz’s queue. "Ah you again", he says as I sit down. "Actually Mark, you and I have met on more than one occasion," I say as I hand him my personal item to sign. "I know," he replies, "I recognise you." I give him an incredulous look and challenge him to come up with where we had met before. "Blackpool," he states confidently. I smile. "That one was easy Mark," I mock, "there were 2500 people at End of Days so the odds were pretty high that I’d be one of them." He frowns. "So where else did we meet ?" He thinks a while before replying, "London ?" he asks, "No", "Birmingham ?" "No," "Glasgow ?" "No". He turns to his companion who just happens to be the organiser of the 2002 Caritas tour he embarked upon with Andy Hallett. "Where else did we go ?" he mumbles under his breath before confidently announcing Leeds as his next guess. I confirm that he is right which leads to a huge smile, "Hey do you remember that unbelievable raffle draw we did in Leeds ?" he asks, "You know the one that no matter what ticket number Andy or I pulled, the same guy kept winning all the prizes". I nod, "In fact at one point you pulled me out of the audience to help you draw a ticket," I reply. Mark hands me my autograph and with a cheeky grin, he simply says, "See I told you I remembered you."

On to Nick Brendon who had already signed my photo of himself upstairs in the Green Room. "I’ve got nothing for you to sign", I say as I take my place by his side, "You have already been there and done that." "Then I guess it’s just time to smile at the camera," he replies, carrying out his promise wholeheartedly. Now the autos are over, sit around for a while, watching the crowds come through the supporting cast autograph room before being given the opportunity to sit in David’s auto room for a brief 5-10 minute spell. As I enter the room, taking my place at a table by the window to the side of him, I could have sworn David smiled directly at me and waved. I’m so taken back by his incredible grin that I don’t wave back which in hindsight is a good thing as it appears David was actually waving at Tom his manager on the table in front. See both Laird and Avie come through for their photo/auto sessions and think it is quite sweet that David saves some of his best smiles and banter for ladies old enough to be his gran.

Go off to the main auditorium in search of Binnsy to see how her day is going and to tell her about mine so far. As Nic and I sit on the front row watching the "Once More With Feeling" karaoke taking place on stage, I watch with almost motherly pride as CoA citizens Avie and FaithLouise accompanied by a third girlie belt out their rendition of Going Through The Motions. They look at me with a little bit of fear as they know that their little performance will be posted on City of Angel for all to see ! I think it was my evil grin and rubbing of hands that may have given the game away. When we arrive at the Sky lounge we are then told that David is going on stage so quickly we all race back downstairs so as not to miss his entrance as we had missed his opening ceremony earlier in the day. David was being announced downstairs on stage and thankfully we make it in time to see his arrival. He is about 10 minutes into his Q&A session, when the AAA hosts try to get us to go upstairs to the Cocktail party as the supporting cast are up there entertaining the crowd. I decline the invitation preferring instead to watch the remainder of David’s session on stage. For the whole 45 minutes or so, I am sure that I must have been sitting there with a mindless, completely besotted grin on my face which must have seemed virtually maniacal when David almost removes his shirt to prove that the Gryphon tattoo Angel has on his shoulder is a fake !

As soon as David’s feet leave the stage after his one-on-one with the audience, I’m up making my way back to the Sky lounge to await David’s arrival at the cocktail party. There is a table by the door with rows upon rows of flute glasses filled with champagne and orange juice. Just as I reach out for a glass, I look up and notice David is standing right in front of me. He moves through the room talking to people, shaking their hands and posing occasionally for photos (even though the rather large security guard had told us not to ask). I don’t remember at which point I found myself stood in front of him nor do I remember holding out my hand for him to shake. I do remember the moment he took my hand in his and held it there for a few short moments. His hand was cold to touch but extremely strong and as I look up to thank him for a wonderful day, his chocolate brown orbs look directly into mine and well, *goes into girlie dream mode*. Minutes later he was gone ! Now David-less, go back to the main auditorium to meet up with Binnsy and watch the supporting cast on stage. They are absolutely hilarious and the rapport they have with one another sees them on fine form. Once Nick and his crew go back to their auto signings, I decide to go out for what turns out to be a very eventful curry with the CoA gang before returning to the Brighton Centre ready for the evening’s activities.

Nick, Mark, Kelly, and Kristine take to the stage to open the evening’s activities. Mark talks to the crowd assembled at the front and tells them he wants to try something that has never been tried before. With the help of Nick he divides the crowd into two sections and gets an impromptu version of Row, Row, Row Your Boat going to resonate throughout the room. I smile at Binnsy, "Didn’t Mark and Andy Hallett do this at End of Days ?" she asks. I nod. "So much for it being a first time thing !" But that is just Lutzy all over ! We waited in the Sky lounge bar for a couple of hours, before being transferred to David’s green room. Of course David had long since gone, swap mobile numbers and e-mail addresses with our new chumlies before making my weary way back to the hotel. Spend the next couple of hours dressed in PJs chatting about the day with Binnsy and Nic before dozing off for a Boreanaz enhanced dream !

Dear Diary Sunday 31st August - The Aftermath

Drive past the Brighton centre on the way back to Heathrow and I just want to go back into the building to see David and Nick and the gang one more time. Board the plane back to Manchester feeling very disheartened after the excitement of yesterday and struggle to get mood back up. Although there were a fair few disappointments (most of which I haven’t catalogued here), I made a lot of new friends (as well as some CoA converts hopefully), Amanda, Annette, Buffie and Cidergurlie to name but a few. Also discovered a newfound adoration for Nick Brendon and his brother, Kelly Donovan. Kristine was lovely and it’s always a pleasure to be in the company of Mark Lutz. But most of all, I met David Boreanaz, the man who has been the object of my affection for more years than I care to remember. He didn’t disappoint and if anything he is on a higher pedestal than he was before. With my auto, photo and my green room ’souvenir’, have brilliant reminders of the day I met my Angel !