The glitz and glamour of Hollywood beckoned when Sue Heath was invited to attend the glamorous London Premiere of the film Beyond The Sea. But would she finally meet her hero, Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey?

IT'S not every day a girl gets a party invitation from Kevin Spacey. Well, not actually from Kevin himself, but the invitation does have his name on it, and it's his party, to follow the European premiere of his biopic of Bobby Darin, Beyond The Sea.

My daughter Kate works for the video and DVD distributors, and goes to premieres all the time. She's always ringing me on her mobile just as I'm getting ready for bed, to hiss "You'll never guess who's sitting at the next table!"

Now it was my turn as, fortified with a bottle of champagne between us, we glammed up for Kevin's party. In my full-length, sparkly black dress I felt like a million dollars. Slipping on my slingback evening shoes I sashayed up to the mirror, leaving a shoe behind. What was this? The shoes had been tight so I'd worn them in the house with socks on, to stretch them a bit. Now they fell off with every step. Oh well, we were getting a cab so I wouldn't be walking anywhere, and as we set off I was confident I could cope.

We reached Leicester Square, where hundreds of people had gathered outside the cinema to see the stars arrive. I clopped slowly up the red carpet between the barriers because my shoes were slipping off. People must have wondered who this poor woman was. We'd meant to plant an accomplice in the crowd to shout "There she is!" at our approach, so they'd take our photograph, but in the excitement we'd forgotten. The crowd fell silent.

At the entrance I passed three or four well-dressed lads and Kate was squeaking "Westlife! It's Westlife!" But I had eyes only for the man in the tux, smiling in welcome - it was Kevin Spacey. Sadly his welcoming smile was for co-star Kate Bosworth, arriving just behind me and politely allowing me to mince in ahead of her.

During the film I begged some chewing gum from a friend of Kate's and stuck some inside the heel straps of my shoes in a desperate attempt to keep them on - dead sophisticated, me. But it seemed to do the trick and as the film ended and we made our way to the nightclub for the party, I felt my confidence return.

The opulent venue had scores of little tables on three different levels with a stage in the centre surrounded by fake palm trees in frosted white. It had three different bars and tables groaning with sumptuous food set out on the dance-floor. Because it was Thanksgiving Day, the food had an American theme. Ham and beef, turkey with traditional American stuffings and accompaniments. Ice sculptures overflowed with seafood, and for dessert, miniature rounds of pecan or cherry pie, Key Lime cheesecake or Mississippi mud pie. There was a fountain of liquid chocolate, with dishes of fruit, fudge, marshmallow or doughnuts and the idea was to spear a morsel on a long stick, let the chocolate flow over it and then pop the coated goodie into your mouth. It took me several goes but I eventually got the hang of it.

In separate rooms they were serving hot dogs with onions and hamburgers with fries, and enormous sundaes. Casually-dressed, attentive youngsters circulated with trays of appetisers and salads, refilling our champagne glasses whenever they were empty.

Numerous glasses of free champagne later, and feeling no pain, we visited the powder room where a young lady from Revlon offered to refresh our make-up from a comprehensive range set out on a table, all free.

We went for a wander, encountering familiar faces wherever we looked; actors from TV and film, hopefuls from the X Factor, established stars such as Steven Tompkinson and Orlando Bloom - I couldn't believe I was really there.

We returned to our table just in time to catch Mr Spacey launching into his cabaret, accompanied by a deliciously bouncy big band, doing songs from the film as well as some of his personal favourites. He was joined for one song by Westlife, with a lot of hugging and backslapping.

Glancing over my shoulder I realised that Richard Branson was sitting very close to me, and I boldly asked him to turn his head for a picture.

He obliged, and planted a big kiss on my cheek. Kate reckoned I should have slapped his face!

When Kevin had performed two encores he left the stage and made his way through the crowd where Kate and I just happened to be standing. I was speechless, but Kate had the presence of mind to call his name and he stopped. I wished him happy Thanksgiving and told him that I remembered Bobby Darin, and I thought he had the singer off to a T. "That's very nice of you, thank you," he said, and then "Whaddaya want? A picture? Let's do it!" He draped an arm round my shoulders and posed, with me beaming stupidly at the camera. Then he turned to me and tapped his cheek for a kiss; I was happy to oblige and stepped back, dazed and bemused as he continued on his way.

Oh wow, Kevin Spacey! Not only is he an amazing actor, has a really good singing voice and, dances up a storm... he is also generous with his time and leaves respectable middle-aged ladies totally besotted. And I can tell you that from experience.

Published: 07/12/2004