Alison's Diary

Sep 28 2008

Great Scot

GREAT SCOT!

Still in a state of collapse after the Great Scots. What a fantastic night! Arrived for rehearsal at 2pm and met Andrea McLean, the gorgeous TV presenter, who was my co-host for the evening. First things first - what are you wearing? She had gone to get her favourite black number from the dry cleaner only to find out it was ruined, so she was panicking because she had dug out something she hadn't worn for ages. She needn't have worried - she looked stunning, as you do when you are about 35 and 8 stone. In fact, shoulder to shoulder, we looked like the before and after of a Scottish Slimmers' plan. We got on like a house on fire, which made all the difference because it was a long night and we both wanted it to be a huge success in tribute to the brilliant people who were attending and receiving awards.

WHAT A STAR

The real stars of the show were the Unsung Heroes who all came up on stage to accept their awards and be given the Spanish Inquisition by myself. It is nerve-wracking enough to win an award and go up to accept it without some daftie like me stuffing a microphone under your nose but everyone took it in their stride. It really was a privilege to meet all the award winners. The Great Scot 2008, 13-year-old Jenna Speirs, of Rothesay, brought the room to its feet as she accepted her award for raising over £300,000 in memory of her twin Calum, who died after a year-long battle against cancer. Flanked by her mum and dad, she talked about Calum's Cabin, which they have designed and built for other families with terminally ill children to use. What an achievement - what a girl!

BRILL BOYS

I am no expert on the joy of football but I certainly understood the amazing achievements of the Scottish Cerebral Palsy Football Team who were more than worthy of their Sports award after they went to Brazil and beat Argentina and are now sixth in the world. Some of the boys weren't here because they were still on their way back from the Paralympics in China but the ones who were had their award given to them by Old Firm managers Walter Smith and Gordon Strachan. As they stood there sharing the stage, grinning from ear to ear with Walter and Gordon, I asked the team if they would like to give them some tips. They declined but Walter and Gordon laughed and took it in the spirit of the night. Thank goodness.

GORGEOUS GUYS

A special award was given to the Scots Guards for their unique version of Nickelback's Rockstar, which you can see on YouTube. Though it was filmed in Iraq, they are now stationed at Catterick in North Yorkshire and had come up for the night. When they all climbed on stage in their formal red-jacketed uniform - my heel popped through the material covering the stage and I stumbled against one of them. Honest, it wasn't intentional. Having said that, they were gorgeous. Seriously, though, what an honour to share a stage with those brave men. As you would expect, they brought the house down.

ROCK-SOLID SUCCESS

The music award went to Biffy Clyro - the Glasgow band set for world superstardom, no doubt about it. This year alone, they have played with The Rolling Stones, The Who, at Glastonbury and their gig at SECC in Glasgow on December 20 is sold out so the fact they played two songs exclusively for us was fantastic. Lead singer Simon and the other two are lovely, gentle guys who entered into the spirit of the night and were well chuffed with their award, which was handed over by Leon, the X Factor winner from last year. What a cutie he is, still with that coy look which melted the hearts of millions of X Factor fans including myself.

MY NEW MATES

Having stayed on water until the ceremony was over, I had catching up to do. Dave and I were staying so there was no rush and we were in the bar till 2.30am, having a right good laugh. Dave clearly enjoyed the fact he was chaperoning Andrea too. A lot of people stayed late and the atmosphere was great. A lot of the Sunday Mail staff were kicking back after organising the event. I met lots of new pals. One girl got me in arm lock and told me: "You have your Dynamite Di and I have my dangerous Debs! Come and meet her". And with that, I was steered through the crowd to meet Dangerous Debs. Next time, I promised to take Dynamite with me because she would have had a ball. In fact, knowing her, she'd still be there. Had a good blether with the cast from Black Watch, who won the Entertainment Award. I had to explain to a few folk they are not real soldiers, just extremely good actors. The director was a hoot and a few swallies were enjoyed. They are off to Dublin with the production so, if you get a chance, go! The gorgeous Kathleen McDermott was in the bar, Michelle Mone looked incredible, Gemma Atkinson had the longest legs in Europe, Duncan Bannatyne, of Dragons' Den, was accosted by people with "fantastic ideas", Tam Cowan cheeky as ever, lovely Cat Harvey, Glasgow's Lord and Lady Provost, and last but certainly not least, Sunday Mail readers. In fact, as we dropped Andrea off at her room and wandered back to our own, we agreed it was a brilliant night. I can't wait for next year!