2013 – the year I met Suanne

During 2013 I’ve done a few conventions and I’ve had some amazing experiences meeting the actors from the shows I love but the one that will always stick in my mind as the most pivotal of these is meeting Suanne Braun. 

In every show I watch there’s always a ‘bad guy’ I fall for. A character who is thrown into the ‘evil’ category and who we’re meant to hate. With Stargate SG-1 it was Hathor. She may have only been in three episodes, but I loved the way she held herself, the conviction in the lines she gave and the accent. Dear Gods that South African accent. It’s so close to a true Jersey accent and that made her all the more endearing to me.  My accent has always been fairly neutral when away from home, but that South African accent is so close to the lilt I had around me growing up and on some words we have the same intonation.  It’s beautiful.

This year I found Suanne on twitter and instantly followed her. She’s so warm and welcoming and interacts on a genuine level with her fans. I tweeted her with a photo of a sketch I’d done of her, she loved it and so I posted her the sketch.  She loved my Hathor poster designs as well. And so when I found out she was going to be at Winter LFCC this year I had to go and meet her. I was meant to be working the convention for friends of mine who have a couple of tables at various conventions, but they pulled out and thanks to AH agreeing and CW plotting with me, tickets were bought, travel and the hotel were booked and so the convention was gone to.

Poor CW had to deal with my nerves. My seriously crazy bundle of nerves. They were so bad the night before we travelled to London that I didn’t sleep. I think that’s the only reason I slept on the Saturday night before meeting Suanne, physical exhaustion.  The Sunday morning involved panic as tubes were cancelled and a taxi had to be got and then we queued outside the convention, ready for it to open and the nerves were replaced with excitement.  That’s until we were inside the convention and CW told me to turn around.  There was Suanne, more beautiful in person than in any photo or on any television screen (which to be honest I didn’t think was possible because she’s always been beautiful), and with no queue in front of her. Something I still fail to understand as she’s an extremely talented actress and a wonderful human being.  I was physically shaking as we went up to meet her and I forced CW to go first.

But I needn’t have worried. Suanne finds a way to put you at your ease instantly and I got her to sign one of my Hathor posters and gave her one and a card. She hugged me across the table when she clicked who I am on twitter and was so genuinely lovely. She even tweeted me whilst at the con after I’d tweeted about meeting her. I ended up going back for a second autograph and then there was also my photo op.  She hugged me again, commenting on the fact I’d lost my sunglasses for the photo op (I have an issue with lights and my optic nerves so wear sunglasses unless in a certain level of light).  Suanne insisted on a second photo because the first one taken (the one I posted above) made us look like ‘conjoined twins’. Her words, not mine.  Suanne is a genuinely considerate and caring individual and the feelings from that convention will stick with me forever.

I wish I could have gone to see her in panto in Winchester, as it’s my old uni stomping ground, but I’m determined if she does anything live next year I will try and make it.  I’d love to see her do her stand up or in a play live. 

I’m grateful for the fact she seems to genuinely enjoy interacting with fans both in person and on twitter and I’m so happy to say that this was the year I met her.