Tales of Paul (part 5)

I read in the Liverpool Echo just after the book signing that Paul was going to re open the Bell tower at St Barbabas church, which had been renamed the Linda McCartney bells in memory of Paul’s late wife. It was due to happen some time in July and that he was to attend the Graduation Ceremony of LIPA Students at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on July 20^th.

I emailed the church and they said that it was yet to be confirmed about Paul attending the opening of the Bell tower. So I suggested to Jayne that we go to the Philharmonic hall and try and meet Paul there. Jayne agreed. We had a few months to wait still.

Jayne and I go out to the city centre every other Saturday and the Saturday before the graduation ceremony we went out as usual. As we were walking down Mathew Street though I had an accident. A police van drove down the road behind us and as it reached us we moved to one side to let it pass but it stopped instead so the policemen could chat to some girls.

I was looking over at the van and didn’t watch where I was walking and walked into a small post. My left hand hit the post with some force but I thought nothing of it and our night out carried on as normal. It was only in the early hours of the morning as Jayne and I sat in my living room talking that Jayne said ‘ Lynn, what’s happened to your hand?’ I looked at my hand, which had doubled in size and was black and blue. My fingers were stiff to move too. I put some Ice into a tea towel and rested it on the swelling.

The next day the pain in my hand was unbearable but I refused to go to the hospital, as I knew I would be waiting there all day. I agreed with my mum to go to the local minor injuries unit on the following morning, which I did. They sent me for an x-ray and said it might have a slight fracture. They bandaged it up with a support dressing and insisted I wore a sling to rest my hand as much as possible. So all week my swollen hand was rested in this sling and on the Friday, the day of the graduation ceremony I was still strapped up.

The arrangement was that we were not going to tell our families where we were going. We told them that we were going shopping in town. We got the bus into town and arrived for about 9.30 am. There was no one around except people going to work and we decided to go and get two autograph books as I needed a new one and Jayne did not have one. When we arrived back there was still no one around so we walked around the block and found the stage door to ‘the Phil’. We then went for a wander around the area and when we got back someone else had arrived. He was a man called John from Yorkshire and he was telling us how he had been travelling since 5am to get there.

It was getting towards midday and we decided to go and get something to eat quickly. When we got back there were about 6 people more so I said to Jayne that we had better not wander again as we might miss our chance. The Graduation Ceremony was to start at 2pm we heard. More people began to arrive and one called Martin told us that Paul had arrived at LIPA just down the road. As time passed, we watched as the students began to arrive with their proud parents. 1pm came and went and Joan Armatrading arrived in a four-wheel drive followed by Malcolm McClaren. There seemed to be more and more people gathering around the stage door and I realised that when Paul arrived they would all close in on him.

Jayne and I spotted Geoff Baker, Paul’s PR across the road talking on his mobile and told a young musician called Ben, who was picking up a certificate for a year course he had just completed. We watched Ben in amusement as he sidled along beside Mr Baker to get into conversation with him. When Ben returned he told us that he had said to Paul’s PR that he had a CD or something for Paul and should he give it to him now and Mr Baker told him to give it to Paul when he collected his certificate. Ben then left us to enter the hall.

The time for Paul’s arrival was getting closer and I began to doubt that we would get to meet him. Everyone was beginning to get excited and it was worrying me that when they start to push in to try and meet Paul I would get hurt so I said to Jayne what I thought might happen and told her to stay by me. As the Blue s-type Jaguar car drove slowly up the road mayhem broke out and I backed away from the crowd to near where the stage door was as the car stopped. Jayne had disappeared and everyone was going mad shouting for Paul. I stood with my camera in my right hand and my autograph book jammed into my sling with all hopes of meeting Paul sinking by the second.

I watched as Heather got out of the car and looked across to the other side of the car to see Paul being guided by security men around the back of the car. People screaming his name and pushing to try and touch him. It was complete madness and I was going to miss out on meeting him because of these mad people. To get into the Philharmonic stage door I knew Paul had to pass me so I thought ‘well just a picture of him will do’ and got my camera ready.

As he drew closer I clicked the button and took a picture and put my camera in my bag. As I did I looked up and everything started to go into slow motion. Paul was getting closer to me and he stopped in front of me and turned to face me. He smiled and put his hand out. I looked into his smiling eyes and then looked at his outstretched hand and the looked back at his face. Slowly I reached out my good right hand and felt his fingers wrap around mine. He squeezed them slightly and smiled. I smiled back. It was all I could do as I had lost the use of my brain and mouth. Then his hand was leaving mine and time went back to normal. He was walking away towards a woman in a wheelchair. Still I stood there staring. He then entered the building and everyone was walking away.

Jayne appeared beside me and I managed to say ‘Jayne!’ she said ‘You lucky cow!’ I kept saying ‘did you see him, did you? I can’t believe it, I can’t? he shook my hand, he actually stopped purposely to shake my hand’ Jayne kept replying ‘I know, I know and I missed out again!’

I felt sorry for her after that and we went into Lucy’s for a hot chocolate. I told Marge all about it and she was saying ‘oh I’m made up for you’. We then went into From Me To You shop and told Steve there about it and he said if the photo I took was any good he would like to have a copy.

After our drink we did a little shopping before heading back for Paul’s departure from the Phil. Everyone who was there before was still there. We didn’t have long to wait and I said to Jayne ‘Get in a place where you can shake his hand’ but when they came out both he and Heather rushed into the car only a man with an autograph got close by pushing a security guard and throwing his book into the car, Paul looked at it, signed it then passed it back before the car sped away.

We all ran towards LIPA because we knew he was going there and waited there. The car must have taken the long way round because it was not there. Jayne looked up the road and went to walk up towards the shop on the corner. I couldn’t understand why until I saw a figure dash out of the shop and into a waiting car, which then turned down the road. Jayne turned too and said ‘He was in that shop! Paul was in that shop!’ true enough the car that had just turned down the road arrived at the gates of the LIPA car park and it was Paul with Heather. He waved and the car drove in, parked, he got out, waved again and entered the building.

We all waited for about half an hour and he came out again but once again there was no chance of him getting out to meet us. The car drove out of the gates slowly and as it did so Paul waved to Jayne before the car sped off.

We decided to go home then and Jayne said ‘well at least he waved to me. That’s enough’ but I think she only said that to hide her disappointment. So I got to shake his hand and look like a dumb idiot and Jayne got a wave.

My hand is fine now and I joke with Jayne saying for the next time I will bandage her leg up and put her in a wheelchair to make sure she gets to really meet him. Ironically my hand was not as bad as it looked and I only wore the sling to protect it from the crowd. Thankfully it was sling that made it happen.

Our quest is not quite over because I am determined that Jayne should get the chance to shake his hand too. I also would like to speak to him properly because if I had tried then it would have come out as gibberish nonsense.

You can see the picture I took of Paul on page 34 of my web site. I gave Steve a copy of it and he was made up with it, as I was when I got it developed. Now we are waiting for our next opportunity to fulfil the quest.