Alien Amongst You In London 4 - It's Just A Jump To The Left...

When I was a child, there was a programme on BBC TV called "The Record Breakers" hosted by the legendary Roy Castle. It was all about world records - any kind of record - and occasionally they would attempt to set new world records in the studio. I used to love watching the show, and still can remember Roy's song at the end of each episode, reminding us that if you want to be a record breaker, "dedication's what you need". I never in my wildest dreams thought I would be involved in breaking a world record myself, but on October 31, 2009 - Hallowe'en - GroupieGirl and I were up early and catching a train to Brighton to attempt just that.

We were heading to the south coast seaside town to take part in a mass "time warp" dance from the Rocky Horror Show and hopefully break the record for the most people doing it at one time. Melbourne, Australia were the current holders with a little over a thousand, and Groupie and I were determined to do our best to help capture the record for Britain.

Down at Brighton beach it was fairly easy to spot where we had to go - I remarked on Twitter at the time that I'd never seen so many people in lingerie and fishnets in public, and that was just the men! Although we didn't dress up, we did both buy the souvenir T-shirt so we had something suitable to dance in. Once we'd been registered and had our official timewarp wristbands we started rehearsing the steps in earnest. Every now and again the music would play and we'd be shown the steps we had to do, and we kept doing it till we got it as good as we could.

At 12.00, no less than Richard O'Brien himself came out on stage along with the cast of the Rocky Horror show currently playing in Brighton, and it was time for everyone there to strut their stuff for real!! A special version of the song lasting precisely five minutes was used for the attempt, and we had to keep moving all through the track (not just the "time-warp" parts) for the record to be valid. Also, we had to do it twice, just to make sure. We were a little unsure about our steps in the rehearsal, but we were both confident it would be "alright on the night" and that proved to be the case. The energy rush was incredible, especially since we knew there were TV cameras there filming the event (if you're in the the UK, it'll be shown on Paul O'Grady's show on Channel 4 in the near future) plus a huge crowd of onlookers.

Once we'd completed the second attempt, it was announced that the record was officially ours!! Groupie and I hugged each other tight and sang Roy Castle's song together. We had done it! The final count was 1,635 time-warpers - absolutely smashing the previous record. We went for some celebratory fish and chips on Brighton Pier, wearing our pink t-shirts with pride. I'm keeping that shirt till the day I die - they may even have to bury me in it!!

Talking of which, there was a parade of the undead all through the streets of Brighton that afternoon. If we'd heard about it sooner, we'd have got made up and joined them, but as it is we found ourselves in amongst them in the town centre as the sheer number of zombies stopped traffic and made movement all but impossible for a while. Where's Shaun Of The Dead when you need him?

On the way back we stopped off for a quick drink with an online friend and fellow blogger, who I've known "digitally" for a year or so but had never met until that night. I had hoped she'd accompany us to Brighton but sadly her diary was full as she was moving house. She also was going to a Hallowe'en party that evening, but found time to meet up with us at a pub for a while. It's weird meeting someone online "in the flesh" for the first time, but it went really well in the event (she and GroupieGirl looked like they really hit it off) and hopefully we'll meet again sometime, somewhere. Good luck in your new home, vanilla chick x

A Hallowe'en to remember, I think. So far we had been surprised how warm it was for October, and had packed jumpers that remained in our suitcases all week!! But November 1 brought cooler temperatures, and rain - although only in the morning, in the event. We waited it out in the hotel's internet cafe scouring the web for news of our record attempt... attention-seekers? Us? Never! :)

Sunday afternoon found us at Warwick Avenue tube station (and seeing a girl not unlike Duffy waiting there...) to go on a walking tour around the Little Venice area of London. The rain early on probably put a lot of people off going, as there were only two other couples on the walk with our tour guide, who was a former actor - and had played, amongst other roles, Frank-N-Furter in the Rocky Horror Show. Everything is related, isn't it?

Little Venice (and neighbouring Maida Vale) is a really classy area - a lot of very expensive houses lived in by a lot of celebrities, past and present. One of my heroes, Alan Turing, was born there, and past and present residents include David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, Annie Lennox, Joan Collins, Bjork, the late actors Arthur Lowe and John Inman, King Edward VII's "groupie" Lillie Langtry, and Richard Branson, who started his Virgin empire on a houseboat on the canal (which is still there, and used by his son) It was weird to see social housing flats right in the middle of all this, but our tour guide explained that after World War II, some of the mansions were purchased by the council to alleviate the housing shortage caused by the Blitz. I bet the tenants there have a lot of celeb-spotting tales to tell!!

Our trip was almost at an end, but there was one treat left - another trip to the cinema to see the latest instalment of one of the greatest horror franchises ever - Saw VI. No spoilers - but let's just say there's still some loose ends from the Jigsaw story to tie up in this picture. Richly enjoyed the film, as always. Groupie said she was holding out for a Saw VII next year - to be honest, I think we've taken the story as far as it can go - but then I've been wrong five times before, so what do I know? And it appears she is right - there will be a seventh instalment, in 3D, next October...

This was almost certainly the last trip I'll make to London (or anywhere) this side of the new decade. My first experience of London was in 2000 - I fell in love with the place immediately and that love has grown stronger as the decade went on. Hopefully there'll be many more visits to the place in the next ten years, and many more fun experiences - though I doubt this week can be topped!

If you've read all four of my rather lengthy entries about the trip, thank you - I did warn you there'd be a lot of text! Normal service will resume with the next entry (unfortunately) but let's finish this off with footage from one amazing morning in Brighton...