North Carolina is the Place to Be!
By Melissa Berry
If you are a fan of EastEnders, there’s no better place in the world to be (outside of the United Kingdom, of course) than in North Carolina.
You can now attend fan gatherings at various pubs across the state in almost any season.
Dave Horne and Linda Fineman founded the Raleigh Fan Club in August 1997. With more than 800 members on their mailing list, it is by far the largest in the state.
Raleigh is in the centre of North Carolina, which means easy access for fans from the coast, which is only a two-hour drive away.
Members from outlying areas can make a day of it and enjoy the state’s capital city—if they can tear themselves away from all the EE gossip that is to be shared among members!
Web site:
www.nceastenders.com
Jennifer Allen founded the Western North Carolina EastEnders Fanatics in the spring of 1998. What started out as only a handful of members in the Smokey Mountain region of the state has now blossomed to over 60 members on their mailing list, with regular members arriving from as far away as Tennessee and Alabama. The WNC EE Fanatics meet four times a year in Black Mountain, North Carolina.
A pub quiz is one of the highlights of these “Gabfests,” as the luncheons are referred to, with prizes coming straight from the U.K. and often from the EE studios in Borehamwood, England. The club boasts one of the largest collections of EE memorabilia in the United States, often on display at their luncheons, along with an impressive lending library that includes the autobiographies of some of the EastEnders cast as well as the EE Annuals and the complete set of character related books by Hugh Miller. Visit their site for cast autographs and members tours of the EastEnders set in England.
Website:
www.wnceastenders.com
And now, the fall of 2004 brings us the third of the NC EE Fan Clubs located in Charlotte (the southern most area of the state), founded by Melanie and Mel Saunders. Saturday, Nov. 13 saw them hosting their first luncheon in the George Washington Bookstore and Tavern in Concord, NC, which is on the outskirts of Charlotte. Mel gave an exciting and very impressive video pub quiz which had to be seen to be believed!
It could have come straight from the EE writers themselves; especially as Mel is from Harrow in England! “The Mels,” as they are referred to, also boast a very impressive lending library with many DVDs of programmes that have been popular in the U.K. for many years. .
Website:
www.clteastenders.com
All three clubs are very active with the local PBS station UNC-TV, which has continued to support and air EastEnders amid growing numbers of PBS stations across the U.S. dropping our favourite programme. Each year during “Festival,” the local pledge drive, throngs of avid “Easties” fill the station to man the phones—taking pledges from other fans as well as answering questions about the programme for those who may have missed an episode. How many PBS stations can boast that they have more volunteers than they have phones for the broadcast of a show??!! UNC-TV can! It happens every year!
Website:
www.unctv.org
So if you are planning a vacation in North Carolina and you love EastEnders, make sure you check out the various Web sites for a chance to get together with some pretty great fans and have a good old natter about your favourite programme!
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