Knees-Up, Pub Quiz & Fancy Dress Fęte for NC Club

By Linda Fineman

RALEIGH, NC—All three chapters of the North Carolina EastEnders Fan Club have had an active 2006, from luncheons to screenings to costume parties. This update focuses on the Triangle group, which attracts fans from the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area. Check the next issue of the Walford Gazette for a report from the Queen City (Charlotte) Vickers on their fancy-dress fęte.

Summer Lunch Meeting

Our club met on 24 June for a luncheon to celebrate our recent success at the annual PBS fund-raiser, Festival, and to hear a guest speaker from the station. We enjoyed a sumptuous spread at the Royal China Buffet in a new private dining area with excellent acoustics (usually a challenge at past venues). Dennis Dowdy, assistant programme manager at UNC-TV, made a return appearance and delighted us with another news-packed talk and a revealing Q&A.

Dennis is a long-time friend of our club and a genuine EastEnders fan and Anglophile. He knows just what kind of insider knowledge our club members relish, and he delivers it with irresistible charm and humour. He's not afraid to speak candidly, so we don't get scripted answers to difficult questions; he tells it like it is. We are fortunate to have allies like Dennis at UNC-TV, and he has supported us throughout our 10-year association.

Following Dennis's talk, our club member and Festival on-air host, Claire Meyerhoff, presented the most creative Pub Quiz in the entire history of EastEnders. Yes, that may sound like hyperbole, but keep reading and see if you don't agree!

Claire's quiz was multipart, with winners of the three sections competing in a final sudden-death round. Here are the three parts:

1. Countdown of Lists
Ten Who Tended (bar)
Nine Counter Keepers and Stall-holders
Eight "D" First Names (Dan, etc.)
Seven in Heaven
Six "C" First Names
Five Beales
Four Cottons
Three Who Cut Hair
Two Runaways
One Unwed Mother

2. Last Names
Claire prompted us with a first name and character description, and we had to supply the surname.

3. Four Sets of Four
Four questions about Mark
Four questions about illegal activity
Four questions about affairs
Four questions about the di Marcos

Prizes were awarded for each of the above contests, and then the three winners faced off in a sudden-death challenge. Claire had actually prepared ONE HUNDRED final-round questions, but Michael Fitzgerald triumphed at question 23: "Which superbitch has been played by three actresses?" Answer: Janine!

The afternoon was a delight from start to finish, and we're all looking forward to the next gathering, planned for later this year..

Civvy Street Screening

UNC-TV, our flagship PBS station, hosted a screening of Civvy Street for EastEnders fans on 19 August. The tickets were $80 each (2 for $150) during Festival. We had all been looking forward to the event, but it surpassed our wildest expectations.

First, no one had any idea how superb the quality of the programme itself would be. Given that it aired on the "telly" during the 1980s, we weren't expecting high production values. We also assumed that our copy would show its age, but that wasn't the case at all. The programme looked and sounded first-rate, and it was especially impressive projected on a large screen. The story was riveting and perfectly cast. A must-see for any EE fan!

UNC-TV went all out to give us an East End-style knees-up. Julia Carpenter gave a rousing introduction and shared kudos with everyone present for supporting EE and UNC-TV year after year. Guest speaker Ray Templeton is a UNC-TV staffer who moonlights as a stand-up comic, so his presentation had us in stitches. We got to ask him everything we ever wanted to know about Brit programming and more.

Our own Claire Meyerhoff, EE Trivia Queen and on-air talent during fund-raisers, presented the Civvy Street introduction. It set the context of the story and clued us in on points we might otherwise have missed. The programme began with the magical EE theme, and we were transported back in time: Albert Square, circa WWII. The next hour was bliss!

While we hungrily watched the show, Julia prepared to satisfy our other hunger with an authentic British tea. She made cucumber sandwiches, scones, biscuits and sausage rolls... and then it happened. The sausage rolls cooked a wee bit too long, and the fire alarms went off. They sounded during an air-raid scene in Civvy Street, so it seemed oddly appropriate. The alarms proved impossible to disarm, so we got a friendly visit from the local fire department!

After the screening, we feasted on the delectable tea and then took a behind-the-scenes tour of the station. UNC-TV has state-of-the-art facilities, and the computers and electronics were truly astounding. We were granted access to the restricted badge-only area, where $20 million in equipment is installed. Quite an impressive operation.

The day was a complete joy and a class act all the way. We'd like to thank WLIW in New York for securing the rights to Civvy Street and working with UNC-TV to bring it to North Carolina fans. Everyone take notice: Don't miss your opportunity to bring Civvy Street to town and raise funds to support EE!

One final note for trivia fans: There is a blond American soldier in Civvy Street who tries to hit on Lou. He's played by none other than Otto Jarman, the actor whom you may recognize as Mike Barbosa from the beloved As Time Goes By. Mike is the American who buys Lionel's screenplay for a miniseries.

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