[ Virginie's Report: Meeting Nicola in London, October 2012 ]
The first time I remember seeing Nicola Walker was about 10 years ago when Spooks (or [MI-5] as the series is called in France) was aired on French television. I had seen the first season which was really good and then the second season began! With Ruth Evershed! Such a great character, the kind of woman I would have loved to be: strong, independent and intelligent. I watched the whole second season and the beginning of the third season and then, for a reason I can’t remember, I stopped watching. Until last year (2011) when season 8 was aired in France with it’s heartbreaking first episode. Nicola was so amazing; her relationship with Harry so complicated and yet so beautiful… And finally there was her Luther episode which just left me completely shaken up. Nicola’s performance was just the best of all time! So I’ve decided to watch the whole 10 series of Spooks and became addicted to Ruth and of course of Nicola Walker.
Thanks to twitter and the Nicola Walker fansite, I knew that she was going to star in the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time in London. But unfortunately I hesitated too much and all the performances were sold out! However, in August, the play was extended until the end of October! So I checked the availabilities and didn’t hesitate; I bought two tickets (for my husband and myself) and found myself to be the happiest woman in the world! I was going to go to London and be in the same room as Nicola Walker! So the great adventure began on the 10th of August 2012 for me when I bought the tickets.
I had been to see a play in London before (A Doll’s House in 2009 with Gillian Anderson) and the stage door was just awful; overcrowded and nearly impossible to take pictures so I was afraid it’d be the same for the Curious Incident. But a lot of Nicola’s fans online reassured me and told me she wasn’t as famous as Gillian Anderson so usually her stage doors were great and quiet!
The time between day I bought the tickets and the day of the performance, were the longest two months of my life! During this time, I followed all the other fans’ experiences and I just wanted to be there as well. I knew it would last for only a few hours so I was thrilled and sad at the same time. Strange feeling…
Next big question : where to stay in London? When we come to London with my husband, we usually go to beautiful hotels because we always want our journey in this wonderful city to be exceptional and our trip this year would coincide with our 8th anniversary so it had to be special! Then I watched one episode from Spooks in season 7 when Lucas meets the new CIA agent and he asked in which hotel she is. And she answers “Claridges”. So I told myself : “you’re going to see Nicola Walker who you first saw in Spooks so you must pay a tribute to this series”. So our room at Claridges was booked. Incredible!
When we come to London, we usually take a flight but this time, we decided to come with the Eurostar, also to pay a tribute to Spooks because some of the episodes were shot at St Pancras. I counted the days, every day ! Everybody at work or in the family knew I was going to London. But nobody knew Nicola. It was so frustrating not being able to share such a big joy with someone else (so it’s a good thing that Twitter and fansites like this exist).
And then the day came! When we arrived in St Pancras, I immediately thought about this episode with Ros and Lucas in which they try to save a teenager and he finally gets shot in the lift. So I took a picture of the lift. When we were queuing to show our passports, I thought, “MI5 and someone doing Ruth’s job is going to know we’re here!” It felt so Spooks being there. Were there any MI5 agents in the station? Probably. Any CO19 agents? Probably not or I think we would have seen them !
Thanks to twitter and the Nicola Walker fansite, I knew that she was going to star in the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time in London. But unfortunately I hesitated too much and all the performances were sold out! However, in August, the play was extended until the end of October! So I checked the availabilities and didn’t hesitate; I bought two tickets (for my husband and myself) and found myself to be the happiest woman in the world! I was going to go to London and be in the same room as Nicola Walker! So the great adventure began on the 10th of August 2012 for me when I bought the tickets.
I had been to see a play in London before (A Doll’s House in 2009 with Gillian Anderson) and the stage door was just awful; overcrowded and nearly impossible to take pictures so I was afraid it’d be the same for the Curious Incident. But a lot of Nicola’s fans online reassured me and told me she wasn’t as famous as Gillian Anderson so usually her stage doors were great and quiet!
The time between day I bought the tickets and the day of the performance, were the longest two months of my life! During this time, I followed all the other fans’ experiences and I just wanted to be there as well. I knew it would last for only a few hours so I was thrilled and sad at the same time. Strange feeling…
Next big question : where to stay in London? When we come to London with my husband, we usually go to beautiful hotels because we always want our journey in this wonderful city to be exceptional and our trip this year would coincide with our 8th anniversary so it had to be special! Then I watched one episode from Spooks in season 7 when Lucas meets the new CIA agent and he asked in which hotel she is. And she answers “Claridges”. So I told myself : “you’re going to see Nicola Walker who you first saw in Spooks so you must pay a tribute to this series”. So our room at Claridges was booked. Incredible!
When we come to London, we usually take a flight but this time, we decided to come with the Eurostar, also to pay a tribute to Spooks because some of the episodes were shot at St Pancras. I counted the days, every day ! Everybody at work or in the family knew I was going to London. But nobody knew Nicola. It was so frustrating not being able to share such a big joy with someone else (so it’s a good thing that Twitter and fansites like this exist).
And then the day came! When we arrived in St Pancras, I immediately thought about this episode with Ros and Lucas in which they try to save a teenager and he finally gets shot in the lift. So I took a picture of the lift. When we were queuing to show our passports, I thought, “MI5 and someone doing Ruth’s job is going to know we’re here!” It felt so Spooks being there. Were there any MI5 agents in the station? Probably. Any CO19 agents? Probably not or I think we would have seen them !
So then we went to the hotel and it was the most beautiful hotel I’ve been and seen in my life. From the outside, it looked so Victorian. We were about to go into the sliding doors but the porter stopped us by saying good afternoon and he asked us if we were checking in. Since we said yes, he took our luggage and our name and said he’d have our luggage taken directly to our room! Then we went into the hotel and it just took my breath away. It took me a few seconds just to realize where I was and how beautiful everything was. The walls, the ground, the ceilings, the furniture, the huge ceiling light… It was just so gorgeous. It’s not the world I’m used to living in but it felt so good being there!
Then another employee from Claridges welcomed us and took us to the lobby to check in where someone else took care of us. So many people at our service. The room wasn’t ready yet so they suggested we went out for lunch and they’d call us when the room was ready. The weather was great so we had lunch outside and then got the call from the hotel. We were taken to our room (Was there really a couch in the lift? No I’m wasn't dreaming! And there was also an employee to select our floor for us and close the door! Oh my god!!!). Our room was huge and absolutely magnificent and the bathroom... No need to give you a description; the pictures speak for themselves!
Then another employee from Claridges welcomed us and took us to the lobby to check in where someone else took care of us. So many people at our service. The room wasn’t ready yet so they suggested we went out for lunch and they’d call us when the room was ready. The weather was great so we had lunch outside and then got the call from the hotel. We were taken to our room (Was there really a couch in the lift? No I’m wasn't dreaming! And there was also an employee to select our floor for us and close the door! Oh my god!!!). Our room was huge and absolutely magnificent and the bathroom... No need to give you a description; the pictures speak for themselves!
I took some time there
to write a note to Nicola. I had bought a postcard representing the castle
which is the symbol of the city where I live. I thought that the postcard would
be a good idea instead of just a piece of paper. And in a red envelope so that
she could see it! I wanted to write so many things, to tell her how I admired
her, but there wasn’t enough space on the postcard. It would have to wait for
after the performance, if I managed to see Nicola.
It was time then to go to the National Theatre to pick up our tickets and leave a note for Nicola. On the tube, of course I kept thinking about Spooks and I must have smiled at one moment because my husband asked me why I had this smile on my face ! I told him he couldn’t understand : there was an indication on one of the window s of the Tube “CCTV in progress.” MI5 is everywhere! And when we were walking into the Tube, all these cameras… Was there a Ruth Evershed or a Malcolm or a Tariq looking at me ? Nostalgia…
So we got out at Embankment and the National Theatre was just in front of us. So huge. And on the right, the London Eye and Big Ben, and Whitehall (was Home Secretary Towers there?). It was the end of the day so we managed to take beautiful pictures.
It was time then to go to the National Theatre to pick up our tickets and leave a note for Nicola. On the tube, of course I kept thinking about Spooks and I must have smiled at one moment because my husband asked me why I had this smile on my face ! I told him he couldn’t understand : there was an indication on one of the window s of the Tube “CCTV in progress.” MI5 is everywhere! And when we were walking into the Tube, all these cameras… Was there a Ruth Evershed or a Malcolm or a Tariq looking at me ? Nostalgia…
So we got out at Embankment and the National Theatre was just in front of us. So huge. And on the right, the London Eye and Big Ben, and Whitehall (was Home Secretary Towers there?). It was the end of the day so we managed to take beautiful pictures.
When we arrived at the
NT, I was thinking "perhaps Nicola is here already". The great moment was
approaching. I collected the tickets at the theatre and then went looking
for the stage door to give my red envelope. I recognized the place thanks to
all the pictures I had seen from other fans on the internet. So the woman who
was there told me she would make sure that Nicola got my note and put it in
Nicola’s pigeon hole.
Then we took the time to have a drink by the Thames; the weather was so good for the time of year and the atmosphere was so fantastic : people just seemed happy to be there, music was playing, the sun was shining… A perfect day. We were happy… Well, at least I was happy.
We went back to the hotel to get ready for the play. An orchestra was playing music for the guests in the lobby and in the restaurant. If was just so nice and perfect. I wanted to stay there forever in one of the cosy armchairs! But Nicola wouldn’t wait for us and I wanted to be pretty for the occasion. When the time came to return to the theatre, we took the Hungerford Bridge near Charing Cross station ! It was so nice from here. The London Eye was illuminated in blue and the NT is several different colours, and people were rushing not to be late for one of the NT performances!
So we arrived at the Cottelsoe Theatre. Many people were there already so we went in. A nice young woman helped us to find our seats and when she showed us where we were supposed to be, I knew the performance would be amazing and I’d be the happiest woman in the world ! We were just in the front row. My feet could touch the edge of the illuminated scene (which was really beautiful by the way !). And then the play began !
For those who have seen it, no need to say how good it was. We’ve been amazed by the performance of Luke Treadaway. So realistic, so powerful… And then Nicola arrived on the stage and my heart stopped! She was so great! And her voice: I was expecting to hear Ruth Evershed. But yet, it wasn’t her because the vocabulary used by Nicola in the play was different from the vocabulary used by Ruth. But it felt so weird to see Nicola so close, to hear her voice live! And two scenes took my breath away : when she reads the last letter in which she explains why she did what she did, I almost cried! If it had lasted 10 more seconds, I would have for sure. Even my husband told me his eyes were wet ! I was so proud of Nicola for that, for showing him her talent, her genius… Then there was the scene when she finds out Christopher’s dad said she died and she breaks down and starts crying : it just reminded me that scene in Spooks in episode 8.1, I was so sad at that moment with all these images from the episode in my head. At one moment, she was so close to us, I could see her eyes were completely wet : she was living her role, again, even if she’d be playing it for more than 2 months ! I was so in awe of her. Then she sat on the edge of the scene just in front of my husband! She was just there, so close…!
Of course when the play ended, we gave a standing ovation. Not the whole audience stood up but I did, for Nicola and for all the other actors who had been just perfect.
Then we took the time to have a drink by the Thames; the weather was so good for the time of year and the atmosphere was so fantastic : people just seemed happy to be there, music was playing, the sun was shining… A perfect day. We were happy… Well, at least I was happy.
We went back to the hotel to get ready for the play. An orchestra was playing music for the guests in the lobby and in the restaurant. If was just so nice and perfect. I wanted to stay there forever in one of the cosy armchairs! But Nicola wouldn’t wait for us and I wanted to be pretty for the occasion. When the time came to return to the theatre, we took the Hungerford Bridge near Charing Cross station ! It was so nice from here. The London Eye was illuminated in blue and the NT is several different colours, and people were rushing not to be late for one of the NT performances!
So we arrived at the Cottelsoe Theatre. Many people were there already so we went in. A nice young woman helped us to find our seats and when she showed us where we were supposed to be, I knew the performance would be amazing and I’d be the happiest woman in the world ! We were just in the front row. My feet could touch the edge of the illuminated scene (which was really beautiful by the way !). And then the play began !
For those who have seen it, no need to say how good it was. We’ve been amazed by the performance of Luke Treadaway. So realistic, so powerful… And then Nicola arrived on the stage and my heart stopped! She was so great! And her voice: I was expecting to hear Ruth Evershed. But yet, it wasn’t her because the vocabulary used by Nicola in the play was different from the vocabulary used by Ruth. But it felt so weird to see Nicola so close, to hear her voice live! And two scenes took my breath away : when she reads the last letter in which she explains why she did what she did, I almost cried! If it had lasted 10 more seconds, I would have for sure. Even my husband told me his eyes were wet ! I was so proud of Nicola for that, for showing him her talent, her genius… Then there was the scene when she finds out Christopher’s dad said she died and she breaks down and starts crying : it just reminded me that scene in Spooks in episode 8.1, I was so sad at that moment with all these images from the episode in my head. At one moment, she was so close to us, I could see her eyes were completely wet : she was living her role, again, even if she’d be playing it for more than 2 months ! I was so in awe of her. Then she sat on the edge of the scene just in front of my husband! She was just there, so close…!
Of course when the play ended, we gave a standing ovation. Not the whole audience stood up but I did, for Nicola and for all the other actors who had been just perfect.
After the play, we went out and waited at the stage door. I was so nervous. My husband checked the settings of the camera : it wasn’t the time to have a problem with it, not now! I checked I had everything ready : pen, picture… My husband asked me if I knew what I was going to say to her! Of course I had so many things to tell her and to ask as well but I knew it would be impossible because when she’d be here, I’d lost my means ! Some of the actors went out very quickly by the stage door and just after 10 minutes waiting, I saw Nicola in the hall of the stage door. She was there and she was coming out. She came towards me saying “I’m looking for Ruth.” So strange to hear that from her mouth with Ruth Evershed’s voice! Turns out, another fan named Ruth had left a note the previous day and Nicola knew she should come out to meet her. (Note: You can read Ruth’s report here.)
So I waited while she finished her conversation and was then about to go back inside the stage door because some friends/family were waiting for her. I couldn’t possibly let her go back inside without having a chance to tell her how much I admired her. So I called her name and she stopped and turned back towards me with a smile on her face. I asked her if she had got my note and she said “What note?” I explained her I had left a postcard for her during the afternoon around 3pm. She explained she was already in the theatre so she hadn’t gotten the postcard yet but she would go and get it just after our meeting! It was so surreal: Nicola Walker was just in front of me! I couldn’t stop looking into her beautiful blue eyes; they were just bewitching ! I was wearing heels so I was just exactly her size. And she was looking at me straight in the eye which wasn’t helping my concentration !
As I had predicted, I couldn’t think of just one thing to ask her, about Spooks, about her next project, about anything… Total blank. But Nicola knew what to do, so she was the one who started the conversation! She asked where we came from and how long we were staying. I told her I got lucky to be able to buy tickets for the play and that was a shame that the NT live performance of the play at the beginning of September hadn’t been aired in France. She was surprised and disappointed for me and she told me she’d have to ask why the it hadn’t been aired there. But I told her that finally it was a good thing since it gave us the occasion to come and see her live, which was much better! Then she asked us where we were staying. So I told her that we wanted to pay a tribute to Spooks and we had booked at Claridges. She stared at me and started to laugh! Then she said “Wow, I’m not sure we’ve ever filmed in that hotel because we didn’t have the budget for that, so we probably took another beautiful hotel and pretended it was Claridges!” So funny.
I told her, I would have to watch the episode again and compare with what I had seen if it was the same hotel! Then of course I congratulated her for her performance in the play which was amazing ! She told us we were lucky because tonight’s performance had been very good ! She told me that the play had such a great success, the producers wanted to take it to the West End and abroad as well, in France perhaps. But she didn’t have any more information about that. Then I asked her if would sign a picture for me and she asked me what I had brought for her to sign. While I was taking out the picture from my folder she said “Oh that’s me! Oh and this jumper… !” I told her that her jumper was more than ok and she laughed.
So she asked for my name (which is Virginie) while she was ready to write. And for just a second, she stopped and hesitated probably thinking “Okay, how am I going to write this?” so she looked at me, and while I was starting saying, “Like Virginia but we an e at the end”, she said exactly the same thing at the same time. It was just amazing! So amazing that I forgot to thank her when she told me that I had a very lovely name! Nicola Walker complimented me and I didn’t thank her… The picture I had printed was in black and white and the pen was black as well so she hesitated on where the best place to write was. So I told her, “On the jumper” and she laughed again. She started writing my name and she stopped at the end to be sure and I spelt the last 2 letters for her. She wrote such a lovely message for me.
Then I asked her if it was okay to take a picture and of course she was pleased to do it. My husband told her he wasn’t a paparazzi despite the big camera, and she told him that he looked very professional. So she came close to me and we took the first picture! I was so thrilled that I look very weird on the picture. Nicola wanted to take another one because she wasn’t “smiling” on the first one! She looked at me and showed me her lips that were closed and told me “I’m like that” but with her lips closed. It was so funny! So we took another one (on which I still look completely weird!) on which Nicola is really smiling, without her lips closed.
So I waited while she finished her conversation and was then about to go back inside the stage door because some friends/family were waiting for her. I couldn’t possibly let her go back inside without having a chance to tell her how much I admired her. So I called her name and she stopped and turned back towards me with a smile on her face. I asked her if she had got my note and she said “What note?” I explained her I had left a postcard for her during the afternoon around 3pm. She explained she was already in the theatre so she hadn’t gotten the postcard yet but she would go and get it just after our meeting! It was so surreal: Nicola Walker was just in front of me! I couldn’t stop looking into her beautiful blue eyes; they were just bewitching ! I was wearing heels so I was just exactly her size. And she was looking at me straight in the eye which wasn’t helping my concentration !
As I had predicted, I couldn’t think of just one thing to ask her, about Spooks, about her next project, about anything… Total blank. But Nicola knew what to do, so she was the one who started the conversation! She asked where we came from and how long we were staying. I told her I got lucky to be able to buy tickets for the play and that was a shame that the NT live performance of the play at the beginning of September hadn’t been aired in France. She was surprised and disappointed for me and she told me she’d have to ask why the it hadn’t been aired there. But I told her that finally it was a good thing since it gave us the occasion to come and see her live, which was much better! Then she asked us where we were staying. So I told her that we wanted to pay a tribute to Spooks and we had booked at Claridges. She stared at me and started to laugh! Then she said “Wow, I’m not sure we’ve ever filmed in that hotel because we didn’t have the budget for that, so we probably took another beautiful hotel and pretended it was Claridges!” So funny.
I told her, I would have to watch the episode again and compare with what I had seen if it was the same hotel! Then of course I congratulated her for her performance in the play which was amazing ! She told us we were lucky because tonight’s performance had been very good ! She told me that the play had such a great success, the producers wanted to take it to the West End and abroad as well, in France perhaps. But she didn’t have any more information about that. Then I asked her if would sign a picture for me and she asked me what I had brought for her to sign. While I was taking out the picture from my folder she said “Oh that’s me! Oh and this jumper… !” I told her that her jumper was more than ok and she laughed.
So she asked for my name (which is Virginie) while she was ready to write. And for just a second, she stopped and hesitated probably thinking “Okay, how am I going to write this?” so she looked at me, and while I was starting saying, “Like Virginia but we an e at the end”, she said exactly the same thing at the same time. It was just amazing! So amazing that I forgot to thank her when she told me that I had a very lovely name! Nicola Walker complimented me and I didn’t thank her… The picture I had printed was in black and white and the pen was black as well so she hesitated on where the best place to write was. So I told her, “On the jumper” and she laughed again. She started writing my name and she stopped at the end to be sure and I spelt the last 2 letters for her. She wrote such a lovely message for me.
Then I asked her if it was okay to take a picture and of course she was pleased to do it. My husband told her he wasn’t a paparazzi despite the big camera, and she told him that he looked very professional. So she came close to me and we took the first picture! I was so thrilled that I look very weird on the picture. Nicola wanted to take another one because she wasn’t “smiling” on the first one! She looked at me and showed me her lips that were closed and told me “I’m like that” but with her lips closed. It was so funny! So we took another one (on which I still look completely weird!) on which Nicola is really smiling, without her lips closed.
Then it was the time for her to leave us because her friends/family were still waiting for her. So I told her again how glad I was to be here with her and how wonderful she was. She seemed so embarrassed when I told her that and she thanked us back for being here. And while saying goodbye and thank you, she did an amazing thing which I wasn’t expecting; she hugged me and kissed me on the cheek and did the same with my husband. In France, it’s normal to kiss on the cheek to say hello or goodbye but I know this is not common at all in the UK to do that. And even if we do that in France, it’s only with people we know (friends, relatives, etc.) or when we’re being introduced to someone new. I mean, we were strangers to her. And she did that so naturally. Perhaps because she knew we were French and that we do that in France ? What a dream ! She smelt so good! J After that she waved her hand to say goodbye and we left her. It has been such a great moment. Hard to keep my feet on the ground after that… Nicola is such a lovely person. And those eyes… I’ll never forget.
The rest of our trip was just a nightmare and it started just after we left Nicola ! My husband had never taken a London cab so we took one to come back to the hotel. It took us more than 30 minutes to arrive because 2 or 3 important roads (such as Westminster Bridge) were closed and therefore we were stuck in the traffic. And we had to pay a much higher price than what it was supposed to be ! And on the following day, when we arrived at Lille in France after getting out from the Eurostar, there was a national rail services strike (again!) so our next train had been cancelled. We had to hire a car and drive 6 hours to finally get back home!
But I had my meeting with Nicola to keep my mind occupied. I wish I could keep the sound of her voice and her face in my head forever. I wish only one thing now; to see her in another play very soon. What surprised me the most about her is her size; I really thought she was taller, apparently television gives incorrect impressions. She’s much more beautiful in reality than on television or even on photos; the pictures my husband took don’t reflect the beauty I saw with my own eyes! Even if I didn’t tell Nicola all what I wanted to tell her, I appreciated every second of our meeting. And then I thought about one sentence said in Spooks which totally described what I thought at that moment (and still think) :
The rest of our trip was just a nightmare and it started just after we left Nicola ! My husband had never taken a London cab so we took one to come back to the hotel. It took us more than 30 minutes to arrive because 2 or 3 important roads (such as Westminster Bridge) were closed and therefore we were stuck in the traffic. And we had to pay a much higher price than what it was supposed to be ! And on the following day, when we arrived at Lille in France after getting out from the Eurostar, there was a national rail services strike (again!) so our next train had been cancelled. We had to hire a car and drive 6 hours to finally get back home!
But I had my meeting with Nicola to keep my mind occupied. I wish I could keep the sound of her voice and her face in my head forever. I wish only one thing now; to see her in another play very soon. What surprised me the most about her is her size; I really thought she was taller, apparently television gives incorrect impressions. She’s much more beautiful in reality than on television or even on photos; the pictures my husband took don’t reflect the beauty I saw with my own eyes! Even if I didn’t tell Nicola all what I wanted to tell her, I appreciated every second of our meeting. And then I thought about one sentence said in Spooks which totally described what I thought at that moment (and still think) :
Happiness isn’t about getting what we want but appreciating what we have