Well, gentle reader, I finally reached the landmark birthday.
My big Five Zero, which had been lurking darkly on the horizon and was as welcome as a tropical storm at a garden party – it came and went.
Believe it or not, I enjoyed myself immensely. Granted, I have refused to act my age for a very long time and seem to have dodged the middle-aged bullet that normally involves golf and talking about schools at dinner parties.
Perhaps a more conventional 50-year-old would have celebrated the event with a discreet gathering.
So naturally I did the opposite and threw a loud and lively bash with the theme of ‘Rock Gods, Biker Chicks, Soul Sisters and Divas’ at an old friend’s restaurant in Puerto Banus. As a disclaimer I just want to add that he’s known me for over 30 years, so knew damn well what he was letting himself in for!
One of my best friends, who I refer to as ‘Hobson’, flew out especially for the event and we made his beachfront Marbella house, ‘Base Camp’ for the weekend’s festivities. And we didn’t put a foot wrong – managing to cram in chiringuito lunches, dinners and even a quick caña in the Old Town over a 48-hour period.
The party itself was a riot, with some fabulous outfits on display – none more so than from Hobson himself who was splendidly dressed in a look he described as ‘Hendrix – the Vegas years’.
Hobson is renowned for never missing an opportunity for giving a speech, and this was no exception. Having been at my 40th during what I refer to as my, ahem, ‘interesting’ period, he made a rather brilliant observation about my radio career.
“In those dark days, when Giles would end up sitting in a room talking to himself in the early hours of the morning, would he have ever thought that he would carve a successful career out of…..you guessed it, sitting in a room talking to himself in the early hours of the morning!”
With close family and friends – including a number of surprise visitors from the UK – and rock legend Russ on DJ duties – my 50th was everything I had hoped it would be.
So here’s to the next 50. You have all been duly warned!
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