Dateline 1996,
and I had just received a telephone from Johnny Quinn, Patricia’s
nephew, asking
if I would telephone Patricia at home in London as she had a few things to
discuss. This telephone call heralded the start of another chance for
Lip Service to perform again on
stage with the one and only Miss Patricia Quinn.
On this occasion Pat was coming home to Belfast for Halloween and to visit family and friends. In light of the success of her last visit to her native city, her nephew Johnny, was planning a special Rocky Horror Halloween Ball to be staged at the Crescents Art Centre.
Slowly but surely the tried and tested Northern Ireland/Lip Service publicity machine creaked into action. Pat carried out interviews with local radio stations, Belfast City Beat and BBC Radio Ulster. The local newspapers though were not to be outdone, the Irish News, Belfast Telegraph and News Letter all carried articles, photographs or interviews with Belfast’s very own Rocky Horror Star.
Eventually the night in question arrived and the group assembled. One of the Lip Service members, Joanne, our Magenta flew home from University in Manchester for the night. Roisin our Columbia however was working in Spain and was unable to make it. Saffron, always to the rescue and no stranger to Belfast, flew over from Edinburgh to fill the vacancy. Another regular missing on this occasion was Andrew {aka Brad}, he was unable to get away from University in Reading, so Conor, our superunderstudy leapt energetically into the role, and helped save the day.
Like all best laid plans, things started to go horribly wrong. When we arrived at the venue the layout had been changed slightly, but enough to make stage entrances and exits a lot more complicated. The two or three full rehearsals with AV projection and sound had to be cancelled due something else going on in the next hall! The only alternative was just one quick run through. This fact appeared to be lost on one particular member of Lip Service, when they tried to walk of the stage because they got a bit wrong. However when Saffron and I screamed in unison from two different directions to “Keep £*%!ing going!” the matter was resolved and the rehearsal was completed.
Our designated dressing room was a small room to one side of the stage, which Patricia remarked brought back many memories of the changing facilities when she was performing as Magenta back in 1973.
At the allotted hour Lip Service were introduced by BCB’s Maurice Jay {Now of Belfast city Radio} to a suitably dressed and energetic audience. The group performed to an abbreviated version of the Rocky Horror Picture Show spaced with RHPS radio trailers. The costume changes were very tight but were achieved!
After the Belfast performance group finished their little set, the star of the evening was introduced onto the stage.
Pat started her grand finale by comparing how this Halloween was significantly different to the previous year. This year she explained how she found herself rehearsing in Holywood, Co. Down, (Northern Ireland) while last year she was in Hollywood, California (USA) attending the 20th Anniversary celebrations for the movie, with Richard O’Brien, Meatloaf and Barry Bostwick. The whole event being hosted by Twentieth Century Fox.
She then proceeded to launch into a rendition of the TimeWarp, this was quickly followed up by a rather unusual, yet very good calypso version of the TimeWarp!
The whole set was finished with a song which Patricia dedicated to an old friend, Jack Tinker of the Daily Mail newspaper who had died recently. The song she choose was “Stand by Me”. One which she explained was being recorded by Meatloaf during the filming of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
The whole event
was rounded off by a disco.
The more observant would have witnessed Pat and the members of Lip Service dancing to none other that Damien’s Time Warp!!... (For most of Lip Service this was under duress!)
Again it was back to the dressing room, with Patricia’s family, a few drinks, a couple of photographs and autographs. Patricia though had a few surprises of her own, and presented a number of gifts and autographed pressies to some of the members of Lip Service for all their hard work.
Everyone we spoke to called the evening a complete success. We all said our respective goodbyes to Pat and her family............. until the next time.
