YSWA, The Two Gingers - Gayle Telford Stevens and Gary Hollywood

Let’s Talk Weddings EP 5

Welcome to Let’s Talk Wedding with Your Scottish Wedding. I’ll be your host today, Lesley Trainer, and I am so excited. I’ve got the beautiful Gayle and Gary in the studio today. Hi, guys. Hi. Hey. Aw. This is very Oprah, isn’t it? Oh do you like it, this- It’s very posh. Oh it is. It is, very much. If nothing changes- Nothing changes.

It’s lovely. Thank you for having us. Uh-huh. No thank you for, for coming on. I’m so excited. We’re not used to posh places, are we? No no. I’m sure you are. ‘Cause yous have obviously led a very glamorous life, have you not? Oh that’s a lot of rubbish. Is it? What are you talking about? Well your acting careers and, like- Oh.

I paid her to say that. Did you, aye? Thanks. Thanks for that, Taylor. No bother. No bother. Not as glamorous as you would think. So is it just what we see then that, that looks very glamorous, whereas in the background it’s just not glamorous? Like- Les, I’ll have you know, it’s hard work. Oh I know it’s hard work, 100%.

Yeah. Like, 100%, I get that. No it, it’s, it’s lovely. I mean, being an actor is is not for the faint-hearted, put it that way. No. Especially when the world is a-changing, eh, Gary? It’s changing very much. No it’s, it’s, it’s tough. Mm. And you need to be well, you need to be thick-skinned at points- Mm. Yeah.. and be tough, ’cause, you know, you, there’s a lot of, lot of, uh, refusals- Told you’re shite sometimes

and knock-backs. Yeah. but we’ve been lucky enough. Oh listen, really, we’ve been very lucky. Uh-huh. Very lucky. Uh-huh. Maybe, I mean, you’ve been doing it a long.. You, child. Can I tell a story? So really quickly- Oh here we go. Shut up. So- See you. Right. Can I just say before you start the story- Yeah.. so just so that people know, so Gayle, you were in River City for a long time.

Yeah. And Gary, you were in Mrs. Brown’s Boys. Yes. Yes. Yes. So just so that people know that. So- He was also in Take the High Road. << Daew, naew, naew, naew >> Oh. But yes, that, that’s- So my very first-ever boyfriend’s wee brother was in Take the High Road. What’s his name? And I went to go on set. It was so my boyfriend’s name was Barry Brown.

I can’t remember his wee brother’s name. It made that much of an impact on you, Lesley. Ah, that was a- Little wee pest. Little wee pest. But do you know what? Take the High Road just was my school because I lived down in, I’m from Bredalbane. Uh-huh. Uh, and I live in the Vale. Yeah. And they would obviously film round about us- Yeah

and that was the kinda local school, the Vale. Yeah. And they came down to film, and we would do wee bits and bobs as extras. I mean, and I had to say a line. They were like, “Can you just say bye-bye to..” And it was your sister, the girl Shona, who were in the school. Oh and you were up on the season with her.

Yeah. And I was like, “See you later, Sarah.” Like, gave myself lines, right? But Gary was there, and I remember you were like that, “Hi. Hi.” You were dead nice, actually. I mean, and then you turned out to be- Well yeah, nice.. and then I turned out to be this. Yeah. Nice. Aye. But I remember it being, I was probably about 13, 14, Gary, when I first clapped eyes on you.

And then it was years, and years, and years later until we actually finally got together. Destiny brought youse together. Well and the color of her hair. But uh, the two gingers. But uh, no, I, as Gail said, I started when I was 12. Mm-hmm. Were you 12? 12. Right. And The early, uh- Child, child actor.. a child actor.

Uh-huh. Tell

the story about the audition and- I know, the audition. So I remember it was back in 1992, and what was happening was that STV were going around various schools looking for kids to, to go and audition, but it was blonde-headed boys they were looking for. Right. And my drama teacher, Terry, had.. and Mandy had said, “Oh I’ve got a blonde, but I’ve also, I’ve got a ginger.”

Uh-huh. And they said, “Oh well, send him anyway.” And I- You’re more strawberry blonde, to be fair. Yeah. I, no, I was lot, lot, lot ginger then. Right. Just gray now. And I was going, going white now. Tell no porkies. And uh, hanging about with you. And uh, so we, we went.. I remember saying to my mum, because I had never from a background of acting- Yeah

we were a working-class family, and- You’re a Pollok, aren’t you? Yeah fae the Pollok. Oh sorry, the Pollok. And uh, and I said to my mum, “I’ve got this, uh, chance,” and, uh, off we went. I remember it was at Goldbergs at the time. Yes. Do you remember Goldbergs? Off I went to get a new rig out. Aw. A style card, mum.

You had a style card. We had the style card. Well I’ll tell you this, that’ll tie in with what I’m gonna say. And off I went to the Pollok center, now Silverburn, get a new rig out- Yeah.. and jumped the 48 bus to Cowcaddens, and there I walked into a room of 50 children, all blonde, and me. Right. So the- So so the good thing is you stood out.

Yeah exactly. Oh I certainly- Exactly.. I certainly stood out. Cut a long story short, a couple of auditions, and they offered me the, the job. Amazing. And it changed my life. Yeah. It changed my family’s life. Wow. And uh, great memories. Martin McManus, James, and Blythe. It was a fantastic, uh, opportunity, uh, and a lovely time.

Yeah. From that job, I was able to pay my mum’s style card off. Yes. And that was- And that was the Taggart.. my proudest moment. And that was from Taggart. Absolutely. Yeah that was Taggart. Uh-huh. And I remember you saying- Aye, wee Betty was no longer in any debt. Uh-huh. She’d been.. I was the baby of the family.

Uh-huh. She’d been paying this card off for years. Forever, I know, because the interest on it was so high. It was. It was. Isn’t that so lovely? But no, and that was me, that was sort of me put on the road to, uh, uh, to acting, and that’s when I got the bug. How great is that though? so that’s, that’s the lad up.

And that’s a very proud moment, isn’t it? It was. To, to help your family. Aye, I was proud and, uh- You’re very giving.. the wee boy fae Pollok- Yeah doing a police drama He’s made good. He’s made good. He’s, he’s, he’s still doing the drama. Do you know, the m- the most I’ve kinda done for my parents is I’ve, I’ve, I have got them a couple of holidays to Tenerife.

Lovely. Not, I’ve not paid any cards off or anything like that. You could have bought them a couple of Vesta curries as well. I mean, come on, don’t be hard on yourself. But now I’m out of job, I’ve not got much to offer anymore. Oh no, you’re only having a rest. You’re gonna get snapped up- I’m having a rest, aye

so you’re not gonna be out of work for too long, lady. Oh good. So don’t, don’t. ‘Cause you’ve got lots of.. But so, and we always gonna touch obviously that, you know, River City’s now finished. So what’s next for you? Because are you now, am I right in saying that you’re training to be a celebrant? Is that right or is it wrong?

So- Oh she’s past that point now. She’s past that point. There’s no returning. She’s past that point. She has her wings and she’s flying. So I think- Amazing.. as a, as an actor I do a l- well, myself and Gary host Yes.. a lot. We, as we do for you- Yes yes.. at Your Scottish Wedding Awards- Yes.. which we had a total ball.

Last year was our first year. The best, the best. And it was great, wasn’t it? And uh, yeah, we are obviously, we do this and we’re obviously, yeah, we’re, we’re out there available. And I think as a, as an actor, you need to wear a lot of different hats. Of source. So Gary- It does, uh, celebrate funeral celebrancy Yes And I said, “I quite fancy that.

That’s a really nice thing to do for someone” Oh. So I got lumped with it. So from February I’ve been going out shadowing him, and let me tell you when I tell you he is the best in the business no, it’s- No you are. Shut up. So he’s really good- Uh-huh.. and he’s been such a great mentor. Yeah. And I’ve done maybe about 10 funerals now.

Have you? And I’ve enjoyed it immensely, just being for the families. What a special thing, though, to do for somebody because it’s one of those things, isn’t it, where you’ve lost a loved one and you just don’t really know who to reach out to. Uh-huh. And if you can get somebody- Aye.. who’s going to be incredible at telling that human being’s story.

Such an honor for a celebrant- Yes.. you know, for us to be given that role. Uh-huh. You know, I sort of fell into it. I’d lost my brother six years ago, and then my dad three years ago. Left Mrs. Brown. Yeah. Uh, I’d moved back to Glasgow, and I was just- And we’re glad to have you back.. well, thank you. Uh, but I was just lost.

And of course- Yeah.. when I look back now really, you know, we’re coming out of COVID. I’d just had a, a baby who was premature. I didn’t obviously have the baby, my wife did. Yes. Lost my brother then- Yeah.. you know, everything was just all- A lot.. on your plate. Yeah. Uh, then Dad passed, and it just something, you know, I had many people in my life that passed.

Yeah. And of course loved them and missed them. But something with a parent, it just- Yeah.. something dies with you. Yeah. Yeah. and it was a, a friend of mine, uh, my cousin’s, uh, husband who’s a funeral director, and he said, “You should possibly look into doing this.” Uh-huh. “I think you would be good- Uh-huh

because of Jared and your dad. You can be empathetic, et cetera.” Yeah. Or not find a public speaking. Absolutely. All this carry on. It’s using your skillset as well. Yeah. Like mostly- Absolutely.. and actually I remember saying to Gary a couple of months ago, “Gary, you’ve got such a good why you do this.” Yeah.

“And I don’t know what my why is. And- Then when I started, ’cause I’m quite an analytical person, right? And I thought about it, and when I go to a funeral, sometimes you don’t know any more about the person when you go in to when you, you leave. Yes. And it’s their last show, it’s their last send-off.

Absolutely, it has. It’s really a special thing. It’s, it’s their celebration of life, isn’t it? Yeah and it’s a big responsibility. Yeah. And actually, that’s where my why came from, ’cause I would, I would always be like, “That was shite.” Like, give the, give that person the best that they should- Yeah.. you know, work hard on the eulogy and writing it- Absolutely

and actually using your skillsets. Yeah. Public speaking- Yeah.. writing, being creative- Yeah.. with the stories that you’re fed from the family. Yeah. And you’re only given a short snippet of that person’s life. I know. Because you can’t fit it in- Of course you can’t.. to just one service. No of course. But it has been, it’s been an eye-opener.

It’s been quite a beautiful experience, actually. Yeah. And it’s lovely when you walk away as, as we do- Yeah.. and the family are so grateful. Yeah. And they’re so.. They can’t thank you enough. Absolutely. You get the wee message the next day. Yeah. That’s nice. “You made it so special.” I always wait on that, you know?

And you walk away, ah, you walk away, and you just think, “Okay that’s why.” I think it takes a special person, though, to do that job, whereas I couldn’t. I would just be a blubbering mess. I’d be reading everything. Well I am sometimes. And I would just be crying. I honestly would be crying. Like, if somebody cries- Yeah

in front of me- Yeah.. I immediately just cry. Actually, you’re emot- you’re emotional. Because I’m like, “Oh my goodness.” Like they’re, they’re hurting, or they’re sore. Yeah so I couldn’t do it, so hats off to you guys for, for going down that. No thank you. And- We, we need more people like you in the world.

No as they say- Yeah.. as I always say to families, you know, they say, “You enjoying it, Gary?” And I say, “If we can use the word enjoy, I enjoy giving back.” Of course. I enjoy making you walk away from your loved one- Yeah.. knowing that you have done your loved one proud- Yeah yeah.. just by the help of, of me.

Absolutely. We’re there to narrate their story. Yeah. and of course, as Gayle’s saying, the experiences and comedy may be pulling into that empa- Yeah.. being empathetic, all those little things. And here we are falling into that. Uh, will I ever act again? Never say never. Absolutely. But for me, and this- Door’s always open.

Uh-huh. For, for me, doing this journey was, it was, that’s what I found I had to do. That’s where you were, the place that you were at. Yeah yeah. and it’s turned into this is a, a new business. A career. Uh-huh, which is very exciting. Yeah. But you’ve also written plays, Gayle. Like, you’ve.. Was it just last year you did that?

Like, share. Last month. So well, last month, and actually I did, uh, an adult panto, so that was a bit more risky. Love it. It was very. So tell us, so where did the inspiration for that come from? Like- Well I think, uh, I mean, it’s just, it’s working class humor, isn’t it? I mean, sometimes it can be a bit smutty, but, uh, I don’t think anybody ever goes, wakes up in the morning and goes, “I’m a writer,” right?

Unless you’ve, you know, you’ve went to university. Yeah yeah. You’ve done a, kind of, writing course. Yeah. I’ve just, kind of, fallen into it. And I think, like, when I’ve spoken to production companies or maybe been in something- Uh-huh.. they’re like, “Gayle, do you have voices in your head?” And I’m like, “Well aye.”

You know, characters. Yeah yeah, yeah. That’s what I mean. And I think that- Beautiful.. yeah, I just I think, uh, yeah, just starting something, having a vision, having characters in your head, like really- Uh-huh.. analyzing people. Uh-huh. I enjoy that. Very creative though. Yeah. And I, I, it was actually the l- the one last month was in Aurum More.

Right. And I’d written it with a lovely guy, Mark Pye, and working class story about bingo, but it was about friendship, love, like, you know- Nice.. stakes are high. Like, you know, all the, the working class themes that we expect, and then the adult panto was an absolute godsend. It was a hoot. Yeah. And that was probably..

I’m really, really proud of that, ’cause it was good, wasn’t it? No it was very funny. It was funny. I, I got to see it. It was very good. Yeah. So will you resurrect that again this year, or- Yes. We’re doing, uh, Jack with a Big Beanstalk. Oh. Uh, that’ll be going out in February actually. I have no idea what you’re talking about.

Oh she, she needs to wash her mouth out. That’s what she needs to do. But do you know what? It’s like you can go anywhere with something like that, and actually the beauty of that was that when I f- first put that out and you do a table read, you’re like, “I don’t know how this is gonna go.” Yeah. And actually when the first night we went up, it was like bang, bang, bang, and then you would land a joke.

Yeah. And I thought, “Right okay. All of that’s working. It’s all right. You’ve learned as you’ve went along in your life.” Yeah. Because you don’t know. Yeah. And you did enjoy the audition process, finding Jack and the big beanstalk. The beanstalk and his big beanstalk. That was, kept you busy. But it was, it was actually the wizards were the big boss.

And we had Sanjeev Kohli in, uh, play the big boss. It was hysterical honestly, and it was really good, and everybody was really on board. Yeah. I, it was just a, it was actually just a lovely team to work with. Uh-huh. I think I would talk to Gary when I was writing the panto- And I was like, “Gary, it’s gonna be shit.

It’s gonna be this, it’s gonna be that,” and oh, and I’m walking in this park, walking the dogs, and he’s like, “Will you cop yourself on? I’m burying people every day. Go and see a ward of dying children and then you’ll know what the..” You know? Absolutely. That is nothing. And he does, he puts me in my place- Yeah

for that because you’re in- So that’s perspective, isn’t it? And you’re put, and you’re- Not very much.. you’re creating, you’re making people laugh. You’re- Yeah.. you’re giving back as well. Yeah. Yeah. That’s it. But you’re entertaining. Like, you’re having a laugh. Like, come on. Yeah. It’s not that deep. And- There’s a lot worse things going on

I know. And you also don’t know that what that laugh might do for somebody. Like, that might be the worst day of their life or, you know, maybe something, they’ve just had a crap day. They wish they hadn’t got out of bed. And then you’ve just made.. You’ve turned that around because you’ve made them laugh.

Well I do that for Gary every day. We speak every day. Oh the phone bills are increasing and increasing. Three, four times a day. And see if it goes straight on the answer phone, I just ping it right back. I go, “Oh no, he’s put it on DND so he doesn’t need to stop and talk to me. I’m just calling that again.”

You do. Do you do that? Short dial. No. Yes you are, pal. Boys. I know. Man talk. Love it. Oh. So obviously we’ve, we’ve touched obviously on your careers and stuff like that. Is there anything else? Like, if you could go back to, like, your sort of 16-year-old self.. Well you were 12, so you’d need to go back further than that.

I’ll go back to 16. Like, is there anything in life that yous would change? Is there anything that yous would have done differently? Or would you have gone into acting? Would you not have? Like- I mean, you know, the acting- What would you tell yourself? I would probably tell, you know, that 16-year-old to- Uh-huh

to not worry so much. Yeah. You know? I, I think with my kids now, I say, “Please don’t worry.” No. And especially the job I’m doing now. Uh-huh. That life is so short. It is, and it’s precious. Don’t worry. Yeah. Enjoy. And I wish I’d, you know, been more relaxed back then. It was always, I grew up so, so quickly- Yeah

within the acting world. Yeah. I, I, I.. Yeah I was, I wish I’d went on the boys’ holidays and just relaxed more. Uh-huh. and again, don’t be frightened about making mistakes, because you learn from mistakes. Of course. But at that time you don’t think that. And of course at 16- Yeah.. you, you thought you knew everything.

Yeah. and I, so I, I would say just enjoy and just don’t worry. Yeah. I always say there’s, you don’t fail at anything in life. It’s just a life lesson. Yeah. That’s lovely. Yeah. I don’t believe in like, you know, those losers and winners- No.. and, and all that kind of nonsense. I just think that- We’re on this planet for such a short period of time- No yeah

and you don’t know what tomorrow’s gonna bring. Yeah. So you’ve just got to- It’s so true.. ride out the storms and ride out the good times and- It’s so true. And even now, you know, the, the, since losing Dad and, and, and life has changed. Yeah. It’s, uh, changed me, uh, that my outlook is now I don’t people please the way I used to.

Yeah. I do things that suit me. Yeah. Uh, I look after my children and, and the timeframe. Yeah. I spend more time with them. I make them more priority. Yeah. I’m not chasing career. Yeah. I’m not chasing money. Because all of that really- It’s irrelevant.. yes. Isn’t it? The big grand scheme of thing. When you look at the big picture.

Yeah. And you just think, “Okay let’s slow down now- Uh-huh.. and enjoy time with friends- Yeah.. time with family- Yeah.. doing things for you.” ‘Cause it’s so precious, isn’t it? So precious. It really is. It really is. It really is. Life is precious. But I do think sometimes you get hung up with- You do.. “Oh I need to get the car.

I need to get the house. I need to do the..” Yeah. That’s it. So ’cause when I obviously started Your Scottish Wedding up- Yeah.. like, I sold my house. I sold my beautiful big house. That was huge though. It was, and we lived in a cara- we lived in a caravan for a year and a half. In a caravan. That’s it, in the caravan.

I know, I love them. is it- That’s right.. those thingy giants? What do they call it anyway? Yes. but yeah, so, so I did that, and I thought, do you know, like, we’ve had all that, but we started with nothing. Like, Ted and I genuinely started with nothing. I was 21, and we built everything up ourselves.

And I thought, do you know, you can always make money. Yeah. Like, I really, like, you really can. That outlook, because I think that, you know- Especially from somewhere like, like you’re asking would you change anything, and the worry is definitely something, or not people pleasing, or even chasing.

Now, I was always gonna act, but, uh, uh, but you chase a lot. And you possibly go into circles that you don’t actually feel you belong. Right. Okay. And that’s another thing about our industry as a whole. Whereas I’ve really stripped that back and I suit myself.. definitely. And there’s, there’s always that kind of, you have to be on on call for anyone or, like, you know, maybe be seen.

I’m not very good at that networking thing because it’s like you have to go to be seen. I, I could not. Thank you. No passed all that. I know. But I’m past it. I know. And I don’t want to be past anything. Like, I feel as if I’m quite a young-spirited person, but- Absolutely.. you know, talent doesn’t just speak for itself- Yeah

and hard work. Yeah. It’s so much more than that in our industry. Absolutely. Yeah. It’s not about that. Yeah. And especially nowadays, it’s about followers, shite like that, you know? Yeah. And that’s not to say that somebody isn’t talented that’s got all that. Yeah. Yeah. But it’s just not as simple. Yeah. And actually, do I think that if I just kinda rocked along and just kinda..

Maybe my life, I would’ve had more kids or you know, I’ve only got, uh, one wee girl. She’s amazing, and maybe that’s the way my life was meant to go. Yeah. But you know, maybe I would’ve lived a wee bit more of a family life, because I remember when I dec- when we were having Stevie, I remember saying to Jack, like, that, this is the only time we are gonna get the opportunity of a normal life- Yeah

if I’m in this career. Yeah. Because this is so, it, it, it’s beyond anything that my, my man could ever, you know, even go into, because he just didn’t understand it, right? Yeah. Yeah. So it was obviously my career would take away from him. Yeah. And actually, I didn’t never want to, I didn’t want to do that to him.

No of course. So so having Stevie really did give us a normal life- Uh-huh.. in this kinda crazy business- Uh-huh.. that you’re part of. Yeah. So would I change? I would probably just- I would probably just experience a wee bit more actually, and not pin all my stuff on- Yeah.. that career. Yeah yeah. Because you talk to people, Lesley, and they’ve had, like, five jobs.

I know. And like, I’ve had one job my whole life. No. And I go, like- Yeah.. I’ve maybe missed out on something else. So true. Yeah. Because you’ve been so like, “But I, I want the part, and I, and I forget this opportunity.” Yeah. And it’s like, but what have you left? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right? No it’s, uh, it’s so true. It’s funny, isn’t it, reflect, to reflect back and y- y- ’cause, yeah, ’cause I’d never, ever thought that I would own my own business.

I was just always brought up to, you buy a house. That’s, uh- If you buy a h- you’ve got to have a mortgage, you’ve got to be with the one company, ’cause my dad was with the same company for, like, 40 odd years. Yeah. Maybe even 50 years. And and I was just like, God, that sounds so boring. Yeah. I’ve always wanted more for myself.

Yeah yeah. Like, so so yeah, it’s funny looking back and you kinda go, gosh, I.. But here we are today, and, you know, we’re all doing the things that we want to do, and like- That’s it.. where, where we are. Happy. Uh-huh. Happy. Contented. I think it’s like we’re pivoting. Uh-huh. P- like, we’re, like, I suppose I, I’m really at a crossroads where I’ve, I’ve spoke to you about it.

Like, you’re, you’re pivoting all the time. Uh-huh. But does it really matter if you’ve got the big motor and the, the cad and- It’s only stuff. It’s only stuff. I know. Whether you drive a Micra or whether you drive a Maserati- Yeah.. it’s four wheels and it gets you from A to B. I think just not- No

catastrophizing life is a

really good thing. Uh-huh. So true. Just to go like- Uh.. you know what, it’ll come and it’ll go. Absolutely. In this job now, when you’re dealing with families, and when you meet families- Oh.. and it’s not a big, about the, the big house- No.. or the fancy cars. No. Do you know, the most touching thing is when you’re reading a eulogy or you’re meeting a family and you’re discussing the, the memories, it’s the caravan holidays.

Yeah. Absolutely. The camping trips. Yeah. The day to Largs. Yeah. Yes. The fish supper- Yeah.. and the pissing rain. Yeah yeah. And you think, wow. Yeah. That’s what everybody remembers. It’s things that cost no money. Not the Maldives. No it’s not the Maldives. It’s not, you know, look at my lovely, you know, marble kitchen.

Yeah. People don’t remember that. No they don’t. And and so by doing this, it’s, it’s just, it’s changed everything, my whole outlook on everything. Yeah. and, and I feel, and, uh, certainly my family, we’re much better for it. Uh-huh. And and we’ve, we’ve been so privileged to w- you know, I’ve worked for 36 years.

Yeah. You know, not unemployed, battered through it. Yeah. Chased a career. Yeah. Uh, finances, all this with it But when you took a step back, I thought, ah, I’ve missed out on that pissing rain with a fish supper with my boys on the beach. Yeah. Yeah. So that’s what we’re doing now. Doing now. Very true. Yeah. I love that.

I’ve I’ve got a friend who is a multimillionaire. And they say in order to keep ourselves grounded, we go back to when we just started dating and we’re going to the beach- Oh right.. with, you know, the wee disposable barbecues. Barbecues. And they have sausages and a can of beans- Mm-hmm

and that’s our dinner. I love that. Aye. It is. I love that because we’ve all started from somewhere. Yes, you, you grow into whoever it is you’re gonna be, but I do. I’m like, you’re a multimillionaire. You could literally have a chef in your kitchen, but you choose to go into the the beach- That’s quite humbling

and have- That’s special I, I think that is because they’ve never lost- No.. touch with where they started. Well as my mother and father say, “Don’t lose your old arse.” Aha. Aye. Don’t forget your old arse. Don’t forget your old arse. 100%. I’m not a multimillionaire by any means, but I mean, I remember in the days of, we called it poverty pasta.

Right. And jack- What was that?. tuna pasta. And I was like to Jack- Oh yeah, I’ve never heard of that.. “Do you, do you want tuna pasta?” Oh tuna pasta. And he’s, “Ah, nah, that reminds me.. That’s poverty pasta. That reminds me of the poverty days.” And I’m like, “All right. Okay. That’s what he calls it.” So we never have tuna pasta in our house.

I’m laughing. Do you not? But I’m like, I quite fancy- Oh God.. tuna pasta now. Are you? I mean, I quite fancy it. Wow, Ollie loves that. Aye. Me saying that, here’s Ollie- Poverty pasta.. and his poverty pasta. So aye, we’ve not quite went back to the poverty pasta, but yeah. So we call water council juice. Council juice.

Aha. Aye. Council juice wa- Yeah.. waters at the tap is council juice ’cause we buy bottled water now. But you know what? I was talking about, like, phones, and I’m really interested in that kinda like, you know, everyone’s, like, absolutely stuck in their phone. And even with, like, Stevie growing up, she’s 14 now, and- Yeah

and she went on a guide camp last year, and I said to her, “Right what’s your, uh, rose and what’s your thorns? What’s your peak and your whatever? Like, what’s your good thing and your bad thing?” Uh-huh. And uh, she said the good thing was that nobody was allowed their phones. That is good. And that we were outdoors because- Or were they all full of anxiety because they didn’t have their phones?

Well, ’cause they had enough to get on with- That’s good.. ’cause they were doing a lot of activities. That’s good. But she said, “You know, when you’re in a group of people, Mom, and they’re all on their phones- Yeah.. the only thing for you to do is go on your phone.” Yeah. True. Whereas everybody was in the same boat- Uh-huh

and they come off their phones. Yeah. So true. And I thought that, I don’t even know. Is that even relevant to what I was saying? Anyways, it doesn’t matter. Have you seen the ban, though, kids can on- Oh I can’t wait. I know. What’s this? Liv- The ban.. so they’ve banned, so, so kids under the age of 16- Yes.. are now not allowed to be on, like, TikTok, Facebook- Ooh

Instagram. They’re not allowed to have accounts. So you’re gonna be fine. No social media. I will be fine Yeah they are, you know But going back to the basics- I do.. that’s what I meant by that about obviously the, your friend on the beach with the beans and the- Yeah.. the sausages. Yeah. I mean, I’m not too keen on the sausages, the lips and lugs and that.

L- But I can, I can identify with the fact that there’s basic stuff- Yeah.. that makes you actually, that really you enjoy. Yeah. Yeah. And actually can’t wait for the ban. Yeah. Don’t know what they’re gonna do. There was a wee girl interviewed the other day, and the, she had her face on her like- Oh.. like smacked her.

No happy.. like she was raging. And the interviewer’s like, “So what was your screen time last year?” And she was like, uh, la, uh, yesterday, and she was like, uh, 12 hours. Oh. Something like that. 12 hours in a day, by the way. Hours. Mine’s about seven in a, in a week, right? So anyways, this wee girl was interviewed and she was like, “Oh my screen time was 12 hours in the one day.”

And the, the interviewer said- That’s a lot.. “And what are you gonna do then in place of that time?” And she went, “Stare at the four walls.” Like, she was raging. And I thought, “I get it.” But that worries me because- I know.. the youth, as we did in our days, not so much phones, but we always find a way around of- Uh-huh

that, so it worries me that, that things aren’t getting monitored. Yeah. That our kids are.. I mean, I try and say no. Well it’s like an ele- electronic babysitter, isn’t it? Yeah. Well it can be. I mean, we’re all, we’re all guilty of it. And we’re all guilty of it, of course we are. Yeah. Yeah. You want peace and quiet for your own kinda like- Well maybe so much that, but you know, like when we’d be traveling a lot when we lived abroad, we’d be s- the first thing we’d do is there’s an iPad- Yeah

for him to watch a movie- Yeah.. so that nobody else in the plane-.. was disturbed and that we could- Yeah yeah, yeah.. relax. Yeah yeah. Or in a restaurant. Yeah. I get all that. Yeah. But social media’s different because your, their attention spans are like that. ‘Cause they’re just flicking. I know. And I sound like an old- But you are Okay.

Yeah she’d be bottled up, honestly So that’s okay. I cannot work with him. Let me tell you, Lesley, that these, these awards are gonna be absolutely brilliant this year. I was just about to say, so we’re not doing the awards together then. Oh we’ll do it together. The two gingers have split. We’ll do it together.

Yeah they’ve split. Well sorry, what were you gonna say? No I’ve got nothing to say. Right. So that naturally just brings us onto the awards actually- Oh.. because Can’t wait.. you joined us last year, which- Yes.. I was, I was absolutely ecstatic when you guys said yes. I was like, “Oh my God, we’ve got them.”

’cause we needed a wee change. We always had Elaine C. Smith and then we just needed a wee change because you can’t, I think, keep using the same people- No.. time and time and time again. Yeah. ’cause people want to see a change. Aquavitae shelf life. Yeah. No of course. so yeah, so you joined us last year.

You’re here again this year. Yes. So the date is the 22nd of November. It’s at DoubleTree- DoubleTree.. by Hilton. Yes. in Cambridge Street again. so yeah, so do you want to tell us just a wee bit about who the opening act’s gonna be this year? ‘Cause I’m very, very- On you go. On you go.. excited. Oh it’s the super sexy, the super talented Callum Beattie.

Drum- Oh I was gonna say drum roll. Ah-ha. I mean, what, what a thrill. Callum Beattie’s, he’s- Yep. Callum Beattie. He’s a fallen sweetheart. He’s so- Yes.. brilliant. He is. And do you know what? He’s a cracking guy into the mix, isn’t he, Gary? What I love about.. I met him years ago, uh,

and his manager Dave. We became great friends. Yeah. What I love about him- Lovely.. is that in this industry you can be affected and you, you know, things can change. Yeah. He’s, he’s growing- Yeah.. and his popularity, his fame’s growing. Yeah. Yet he has not changed one bit. He doesn’t change. He’s gonna be out doing himself in schools.

Oh loves that. He’s just amazing. Isn’t he? They do so much for charity. I love that. He’s just a genuine guy. Yeah. Uh, and that’s what, uh, just makes him extra special and, uh- Yeah.. they’ve agreed to s- I know.. well, we’ve managed to tie the date down. Yeah. I’m so, so happy. I know. Thrilled. And just what an entertainer, though.

I know. And that’s such- Imagine that having your a- your, your opening act. But that’s the thing- Yeah.. because l- I mean, last year the entertainment was brilliant as well. It’s always, it’s always incredible. Such a great night. Yeah. I mean, before the dinner we had those light up things. We had everything.

Remember all of that? We were having a rave- As we was having the meal.. before we even had the chicken. It was brilliant. And actually the food was amazing. You had you’d chosen it all. What was it? It was a something Wellington. I think it was like chicken Wellington. The chicken Wellington. Yeah. It was a chicken Wellington.

Beautiful. Because usually you get your function chicken or your shin of beef, you know? Yeah. So- Whereas it was really different.. yeah, so we usually do a beef dish just because I always think beef is a wee bit more Like high-end than- Upmarket.. than chucking. But but yeah, so, and I thought we’ve done, we’ve done beef again, like for all these years- Yeah

so we’ll change it up. And chef said, “Look, don’t think that chicken’s a, a, a different or a bad option.” So he- he’s always.. Stuart, I’ve got to give Stuart a shout-out because h- he is the head chef at the DoubleTree. And he’s such an incredible human being. Like, I always go in every year and go, “I want something that nobody else has ever had.”

Yeah. And he goes, “Well here she comes.” And he’s like, “Oh no.” Absolutely. and he just always takes that brief and he just runs with it, so he’s incredible. So so yeah, I’m really excited for this year ’cause we’re, we’re five. Yes. This is- That is five years.. big year. Uh-huh And it’s been a, it’s been a big journey, but like what you’ve done- Oh it’s been a slope

in the last, like year as well. But I mean- It’s not been easy.. no, but I do think it’s all coming good.. and nothing is, but- And it’s actually such a great night. Like we had, we had a ball. No it was a genuinely a brilliant night. Uh-huh. Yeah. Everybody in the room- Yeah.. everybody knew why they were there. Yeah.

Uh-huh. They were there to enjoy. Yeah. Yeah. It was a big party. Yeah. It’s a posting awards ceremony. It went so quickly. Celebration. Yeah. When we, when we got all the papers through and looked at the scripts, it’s, “Oh my goodness, we’re gonna be here all, all, all night.” And it was like, yeah. It flew by. Yeah.

And then it just partied. And we took the cars last year. We’re not taking the cars this year. I was gonna say, you’re not bringing the cars this year. No. No. We’ll- No.. we’ll- We’ll all stay over.. maybe sh- I’m not allowed out. She gets two Proseccos and that’s her. No listen, I’m the same. I go and I say my speech, and then I come off.

The shoes are kicked off- Yeah.. and I had my flip, had my flip-flops on last year. But there’s, there’s a, there’s a, a reel of me in my flip-flops, and I was like, “I need to get nice wee sandals for this year.” Nice wee sandals this year. I’m not, I’m not doing flip-flops. Use the style card. Nice wee sand- I’ll get you a nice pair of sandals.

Oh do you know what though? It is such a great night, and it’s lovely for the whole industry to celebrate, isn’t it? ‘Cause it’s like where they let their hair down. Yeah. I think that having somebody like Calum Beaton, and we’ll obviously have a DJ and- Yeah.. that kind of thing. Yeah. And we, but that guy, that sax guy was brilliant as well.

I know, I know. He was- He was something.. Conrad. He was, he was- Conrad was great.. Conrad was amazing, yeah. he is.

The whole package was brilliant, and, and we’re so looking forward to it. Oh yeah. Yeah. So looking forward to it. Yeah so I think, like this year we are five, so we’re just pulling out all the stops for it. Yes. I’m thrilled that you guys are gonna be there again. We’ll have a couple of games as well flung in there.

We cannot wait-.. to absolutely mortify these guests. Yeah. How’s your donkey? Yes absolutely. Honest, we’re doing well. Sorry. yeah, and, and we might do a few wee competitions and stuff like

that. Yes. So so nice wee prizes- So much looking forward to it.. will be in there as well. So so yeah I’m so excited for this year. I, I genuinely am. Like, and also Like I started the awards because I’m so passionate about this industry. I genuinely am. Like, like You can see that. No you are. And I, you know, when we first met you, I couldn’t believe how passionate you are.

I could actually cry just now, you just talking about them, honestly. Like I came into this industry years and years ago started in venues and then went to Scottish Wedding Directory for 17 years. And I, that was my dream job, dream job. And then when it closed, devastated, which is obviously why we’re here now.

so for me it was important to To really have a voice for the industry because they work so hard. I mean, honestly, these people are up at, like, sometimes 4:00 in the morning, sometimes 2:00 in the morning to get to a venue or to set up or- For someone’s special day.. and then they’ve got to go back the next day- Yeah

and then collect all that stuff, and they maybe already got another wedding on that day. So I just think that’s all the things that people don’t see- Yeah.. the, the graft. They don’t. Ah. The amount of work that goes into it. Uh-huh. They just see the pound signs because obviously th- these things cost money.

Uh-huh. But it’s like the graft that goes into that- Uh-huh.. is phenomenal. Uh-huh. Yeah. And it really upsets me, like, when m- potentially wedding couples will say, “Oh why is a cake £600?” or, “Why is that £1,000 and why is that?” And I’m just like, “Because you don’t see what actually goes into it.” Yeah. No like- They’re not..

It’s just not just standing at a, you know, your kitchen sink whisking up a few- It’s not a Victoria sponge we’re talking about here, you know It’s not a Victoria sponge. These are- Lego cake. No. Ah, like, they’re making the flowers, they’re making the petals- Yeah.. they’re making- Yeah.. absolutely everything. so yeah, so I’m so passionate.

If I can give them a voice and show them, you know, like, they are genuinely.. You know, I want to look after them. It’s not my job to look after them, but I just want them to have- You’re appreciated. I want- Give them a pedestal to be seen. Uh-huh. I want them to have a night just for them. You know, get glammed up.

Yeah. It’s just for you. Let’s go, all go out, have fun. and win an award. But if you’re in that room, I genuinely.. Like, we do so many checks, like, so many checks, so if they are in that room, it’s because they’ve, they’ve ticked a lot of boxes. Yeah. You know, they deserve to be there. Yeah. So for me, this night is an incredible night just for, just for us to give back.

It’s a great honor. It really is. So important. And you can really see that, and they do really use it as their- Yeah.. their night out. It’s, it’s like a big Christmas night out, isn’t it? They go wild, and why not? And everybody’s lovely. You know- They’re like the like the-.. genuinely lovely people. Uh-huh. Oh they are.

They are. Like, this industry is incredible. Yeah. Incredible. Like, if someday, if something happens they will just swoop in to help. Yeah. Yeah. That’s kind. Like, you know, it’s everybody’s got everybody’s back, and I love that. That’s, that’s one of the things that I absolutely love. Yeah. And it’ll be here before we know it.

I know. November. And then after that’s Christmas, of course, you know. I know. Yeah. Oh I know. What you wearing that night, Gail? Oh I don’t know. Maybe something, you know, a wee skimpy number. Just- Oh.. couple of nipple tassels. Oh no. A wee, a wee thong. No again. No again.

Aw. It’s been an absolute pleasure. Thank you so much for being here. No thank you. And thank you so much for hosting again this year at Your Scottish Wedding Awards. No thank you. I really can’t wait for it. It’s like we cannot wait. We’ll have a fantastic night. We’re gonna have a great time. We certainly will.

Thank you. Yeah. And we cannot wait to see Calum and do all the The hosting and- I know.. and all, it’s all the carry on that we love, the carry on We do, and I can’t even see your new pair of sandals. They’re lovely. I know. They’re lovely. I’ll have my big heels on at the start, and then they’re getting chucked to the side.

They’re getting tossed. Ah, they’re getting chucked to the side- Good on you, Lesley.. as usual. Good on you. And then it’s just Prosecco all the way for me. I’m just like, “Right my job is done.” Whoop, whoop. My job is done. Yeah. I can’t do anything else. I’ve organized it. I’ve planned it to the, the Nth degree, so yeah.

That good on you. Yeah. And that’s not forgetting Ted either. Oh wee Ted. Wee Teddy. Poor Ted. I know. He’s the one, he’s sorting out the awards at the side. He’s my rock. Oh I know. He is your rock. Yeah. He’s amazing. Whenever I have a meltdown, he’s like, “Listen, you got this. You got this.” Aw. And I go, “Right okay.

Yeah I’ve got this. Right. Okay. That’s fine.” Jesus. He said it, so I’ve got it. Yeah. No you have got it. Amazing. Yeah yeah. Absolutely, Lesley. Yeah. You’ve done so well. Yeah. So you should be very proud, and we are so excited to see you at the five years as well. I know. Five years. Honestly, it has- Unbelievable

zipped by, zipped by. Yeah. It’s been an incredible journey. And it’s a huge achievement, so well done. Oh thank you so much. Big round of applause. Aw, thank you. Here’s to the next five years. I know. Yay. Here’s to the next five years. I’m so excited, yeah- On that note.. ’cause we got, we got big plans. So yeah thank you so much for coming on the journey with us.

No not at all. Thank you. Thank you. Really appreciate your time. Thank you. Thank you. No problem. Thank you. Take care.