Talk of the Town: Whispering fan creeps Greg out

Having now got used to people shouting Gary’s “Cheesy pasta!” catchphrase at him in the street, the actor and comedian found it was still possible for a fan to take him by surprise, with one man deciding the best way to let Greg know his work was appreciated was to sneak up behind him and whisper the words directly into  his ear, then walk away.

Greg confirmed: “It was quite creepy.”

Missed chance for some monkeying around

EVERYBODY loves a good prank, so it saddens us to hear of the opportunity missed by Tom Harrison, the LA-based composer who put “Christmas Gibbons”, a poem by disabled Edinburgh schoolboy Adam Bojelian, to  music.

While working on the track, Tom was apparently asked by his producer whether gibbon-based festivities were “a Scottish tradition” and rather than soberly nodding his head, he told him the truth.

Imagine how much fun we could have had with that one. Tut, tut, Tom.

More fun, less pun

IT was the media storm from hell that made ad bosses regret ever uttering the word ‘Incredinburgh’.

And while its rebranding today may reveal a different approach, it appears Edinburgh Airport has scaled back the use of the slogans – including naff spin-offs such as “romance-isn’tdedinburgh” – in an attempt to save embarrassment.

A sober “Spend Winter in Edinburgh” adorns the back cover of the November issue of Capital magazine, read by tens of thousands of passengers.

Perhaps city festival chiefs would do well to follow their  lead . . .

A very texty Christmas

THIS column told earlier this  week how the text message  was celebrating its 20th birthday – and now a new survey reveals the full extent of how the SMS has changed the world.

Digital security firm SecurEnvoy found that more than half of people would rather text a friend than call or meet them in person.

And with Christmas looming, it seems a jolly text on December 25 is now more likely to be received by most than a festive card.

Suppose it’s the thought that counts.