Nice easy day today. New Years Eve. Spent the day writing my script, and tweaking the book proposal I have to get in some time next week. Watched a few movies for research purposes while doing so, in particular "Vampire Lovers"and "Countess Dracula", two lovely old Hammer horror movies from the 70s.

Both movies star Ingrid Pitt, the wonderful Polish actress, who as I recall from my youth was the subject of countless sexual fantasies for both me and my peers. Man alive, at 32 when those films were made she was what you would call today "well fit" although as I've always said (being a child of the 70s) "a nice bit of crumpet". I love that phrase. She still makes steam come out of my ears even now.

Watching the movies I remembered the events of a couple of months ago, on hearing that Ingrid was in hospital for an operation I emailed her web site "Pitt of Horror" to find out how she was. Her people told me that she was ok, but wasn't going to be attending the NEC Memorabilia show in November... I told them I was crushed because I was probably going to be there. Turns out I couldn't make it in the end, so it all turned out okay.

So anyway, I decided after watching the movies to check with her people if her operation went ok. And Ingrid answered my email personally! Ingrid Pitt! It's amazing how 70s sex goddess film stars have the ability to turn a seemingly mature man into a gibbering schoolboy. I had the same thing when I met Valerie Leon. Long boring story, but - Cor woof! (Ahem!) After I calmed down and stopped running around the room, I replied to the email and told her I was just watching those two movies and how I loved her performances in them.

I bet she gets that a lot, especially from guys of my age, ie. over 40. But then she did set the tone, a role model almost, for a generation of young men as to what they looked for in a woman. She's one of my special favourites of that era, that's for sure. She's in a lot of my favourite movies too, like "Where Eagles Dare" with Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton. She's great. And she's still very beautiful even though she must be over 60 or so by now. Sigh!

Okay, snap out of it, bozo! (SLAP!) Time to go over to Matt and Ali's for New Year's Eve. More tomorrow.