all manner of different places. Bex can’t keep still, she’s so excited.
‘This could be you soon,’ I tell her.
‘Can you imagine it?’ she says, beaming. ‘Even just being here is like a dream, I don’t know what it would be like to actually be involved in a show.’
At the end of the tour, we’re shown into the museum, which features mainly costumes from film and TV downstairs and Harry Potter stuff upstairs. Bex runs off up the stairs and I wander around the costumes. I can totally see what attracts Bex to all this. There are costumes worn by Bette Davis, by George Clooney and by Ellen Page in Juno . I like the history of it all. And the glamour, of course. But pretending for a living seems a little bit odd to me in a way I don’t think it does to Bex. Maybe I just think that because I can’t do it.
I’m looking at clothes worn by Blake Lively in Gossip Girl when Jordan finds me.
‘Hey,’ he says. ‘Did you enjoy the tour? Where’s your sister?’
We find Bex staring glassy-eyed at an original Harry Potter Sorting Hat and coax her back downstairs and out of the museum.
‘Alex has just got a couple more scenes to do, so we’ll go and hang out and then Jem will take you back. Unless there is anything else you want to see here?’
‘I don’t think so,’ I tell him. ‘It’s all been brilliant.’
‘Maybe… Could we just go back to the shop?’ Bex asks. ‘I’d like a T-shirt or something, if that’s OK.’
‘Oh, no problem,’ Jordan says. We walk back over there – as we go through the security gate, Bex clutches my arm again. I’m starting to understand this means ‘I can’t believe this is happening’ and it does feel pretty cool. Particularly when some people on the way in smile and say hello to us as if we totally belong there.
I buy a Harry Potter T-shirt that says EXPELLIARMUS on it for Oscar and then, while Bex is running around the shop trying to choose something, I scroll through the photos on my phone. Even though when we were there, Central Perk looked absolutely nothing like it does on TV, it looks exactly right on my phone. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. I show Jordan and he laughs. ‘Yep, that’s the magic of TV. They say the camera never lies, but when you start working in this industry you learn real quick that things aren’t always what they seem.’
Once Bex has finished shopping, we walk back to the soundstage. Alex is filming another outdoor scene. He’s repairing his motorbike and, yes, he’s got his shirt off. I saw him shirtless when I watched the show, but that was entirely different. I was watching it with my mum, for one, and also it was on the TV – he wasn’t right in front of me . Now I feel myself blush and my palms are sweating. I really hope he puts his shirt back on before he comes over to talk to us. (And at the same time I hope he doesn’t.) I even have a brief thought of quickly snapping a photo on my phone, even though we’re under strict instructions to keep our phones off on the soundstage. I’d quite like to have a permanent reminder of this moment. I’ll just have to stare really hard and try to imprint it on my memory. Instead an image of a few of the boys from home pops into my mind. Alex makes them look like a different species.
When the scene’s over, Jordan takes Bex to introduce her to the director and Alex comes over to me. He’s put a shirt on, which is probably for the best.
‘That was really good,’ I say. I’m quite surprised my voice comes out at the right pitch.
Alex smiles. ‘Thanks. This show’s kind of obsessed with showing me shirtless. It’s pretty embarrassing.’
He doesn’t look embarrassed, he looks quite pleased with himself, but I’m not surprised.
‘Yeah,’ I say. ‘I’ve seen that jeans ad. I know you’re probably actually really shy.’
He laughs. ‘Hey, that ad was art.’
‘Oh, I know,’ I say, smiling. ‘I’ve seen that kind of art
‘This could be you soon,’ I tell her.
‘Can you imagine it?’ she says, beaming. ‘Even just being here is like a dream, I don’t know what it would be like to actually be involved in a show.’
At the end of the tour, we’re shown into the museum, which features mainly costumes from film and TV downstairs and Harry Potter stuff upstairs. Bex runs off up the stairs and I wander around the costumes. I can totally see what attracts Bex to all this. There are costumes worn by Bette Davis, by George Clooney and by Ellen Page in Juno . I like the history of it all. And the glamour, of course. But pretending for a living seems a little bit odd to me in a way I don’t think it does to Bex. Maybe I just think that because I can’t do it.
I’m looking at clothes worn by Blake Lively in Gossip Girl when Jordan finds me.
‘Hey,’ he says. ‘Did you enjoy the tour? Where’s your sister?’
We find Bex staring glassy-eyed at an original Harry Potter Sorting Hat and coax her back downstairs and out of the museum.
‘Alex has just got a couple more scenes to do, so we’ll go and hang out and then Jem will take you back. Unless there is anything else you want to see here?’
‘I don’t think so,’ I tell him. ‘It’s all been brilliant.’
‘Maybe… Could we just go back to the shop?’ Bex asks. ‘I’d like a T-shirt or something, if that’s OK.’
‘Oh, no problem,’ Jordan says. We walk back over there – as we go through the security gate, Bex clutches my arm again. I’m starting to understand this means ‘I can’t believe this is happening’ and it does feel pretty cool. Particularly when some people on the way in smile and say hello to us as if we totally belong there.
I buy a Harry Potter T-shirt that says EXPELLIARMUS on it for Oscar and then, while Bex is running around the shop trying to choose something, I scroll through the photos on my phone. Even though when we were there, Central Perk looked absolutely nothing like it does on TV, it looks exactly right on my phone. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. I show Jordan and he laughs. ‘Yep, that’s the magic of TV. They say the camera never lies, but when you start working in this industry you learn real quick that things aren’t always what they seem.’
Once Bex has finished shopping, we walk back to the soundstage. Alex is filming another outdoor scene. He’s repairing his motorbike and, yes, he’s got his shirt off. I saw him shirtless when I watched the show, but that was entirely different. I was watching it with my mum, for one, and also it was on the TV – he wasn’t right in front of me . Now I feel myself blush and my palms are sweating. I really hope he puts his shirt back on before he comes over to talk to us. (And at the same time I hope he doesn’t.) I even have a brief thought of quickly snapping a photo on my phone, even though we’re under strict instructions to keep our phones off on the soundstage. I’d quite like to have a permanent reminder of this moment. I’ll just have to stare really hard and try to imprint it on my memory. Instead an image of a few of the boys from home pops into my mind. Alex makes them look like a different species.
When the scene’s over, Jordan takes Bex to introduce her to the director and Alex comes over to me. He’s put a shirt on, which is probably for the best.
‘That was really good,’ I say. I’m quite surprised my voice comes out at the right pitch.
Alex smiles. ‘Thanks. This show’s kind of obsessed with showing me shirtless. It’s pretty embarrassing.’
He doesn’t look embarrassed, he looks quite pleased with himself, but I’m not surprised.
‘Yeah,’ I say. ‘I’ve seen that jeans ad. I know you’re probably actually really shy.’
He laughs. ‘Hey, that ad was art.’
‘Oh, I know,’ I say, smiling. ‘I’ve seen that kind of art
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