Jim Haysom | This Is Your Life an internet professional in digital advertising

Celebrity spotting at BBC Children in Need party for free beer

Last night I had the very good fortune to attend an invite-only private Children in Need 2009 party in the studio next to the one with the filming at the BBC television centre.  The annual fundraiser by the BBC, hosted by Sir Michael Terence Wogan, yes the veteran most commonly known as Terry Wogan, climaxes with the Friday night "Pudsey's Big Night In" programme full of comedy, music and entertainment.

After a very nice meal at Balans restaurant at the incredible Westfield London shopping centre, two colleagues from work and myself walked up Wood Lane to the BBC's studios.  On entering the grounds of the studios, the lights were circling the skies once and we walked past the Helios statue in the centre of the courtyard which used to be a fountain.  It now has this 3 metre high gilded bronze figure designed by TB Huxley-Jones, which symbolises the radiation of television light around the world and below it two reclining figures which represent sound and vision.

Once inside, the party was already in full flow.  We were in Studio 6, next to the studio where the filming was talking place, and featured a stage which the Nolan Sisters performed on later in the evening.  We mingled amongst the crowds of people from the third sector, partners of Children in Need, employees of the BBC and a whole host of celebrities and famous people.

Earlier in the day, I'd been challenged by a client via email with the following;

This is formal notification that should one, Jim Haysom, encounter a celebrity that has featured on either a) Hello! b) television and (but not limited too) a radio program, photographic evidence is required.  If this evidence is to be of substantial quality (i.e. no cardboard cut outs apply), Jim will be rewarded with several free beers (happy hour prices only apply) on Monday the 23^rd of November.

I couldn't resist that challenge, so below you will find my collection of celebrity photos.

Theo Paphitis - click for more info

Deborah Meaden - click for more info

Calum Best - click for more info

Justin Lee Collins - click for more info

Ricky Whittle - click for more info

Bill Turnbull - click for more info

Pudsey Bear - it wouldn't be complete without this photo!

There was a bunch of celebrities that I'd spoken to during the night but didn't get a picture of.  The most well known was Peter Jones, from Dragons' Den.  Jeez, he was so tall - 6 foot 7 inches in fact.

One of the famous people mentioned in conversation his website, and it made me think... How many of them actually have their own websites?  The links above, if you've not already clicked on them, take you to Wikipedia pages of them proving that they have some fan base at least or some interesting information about them.

But to have your own "official" website puts you in another league and up another character in the alphabet-list rankings;

Official Celebrity Websites

• Theo Paphitis: http://www.theopaphitis.com and on Twitter
• Peter Jones: http://www.peterjones.tv and on Twitter with very cool background
• Deborah Meaden: http://www.deborahmeaden.com
• Calum Best: http://www.calumbest.co.uk and on Twitter
• Justin Lee Collins: No website (that's really surprising, sort it out JLC) but on Twitter
• Ricky Whittle: http://www.rickywhittle.com and on Twitter
• Bill Turnbull: No website either but on Twitter
• Pudsey Bear: Doesn't seem to have his own dedicated site but is on Twitter.  You can also add Pudsey bear to your avatar on Twitter here, and show your support for Children in Need.  Pudsey bear will be in the corner of your profile photo.

The appeal had raised £20,309,747 at the end of the show, a ridiculous amount of money, but all for good causes.  If you missed the show, you can watch BBC Children in Need 2009 on the BBC iPlayer.  I will be taking some time next week to watch some of the highlights.

Finally, a thank you to both Nick's for the invite and the celebrities who were ever so kind to have their pictures taken and tell me what the last thing they bought on eBay was.  I will make sure that I cash in my free pints on Monday next week, but in the meantime I've also done my bit and donated via PayPal with a £15 donation.  With the average price of beer being £2.05, I've donated the equivalant to 7 pints - a pint for every photo above.

Or why not bid on a celebrity signed Pudsey Bear on eBay...