To think I was targeted as a child at a tv show

[mademewonder]

This has only dawned on me as a possibility last night around 30 years or so down the line. I don't know if I'm BU to think it was anything but innocent or if others might've had similar experiences.

Background:

As a child (11/12 years old) I went with 2 friends and one of their parents to watch a live filming of a very popular prime time show. There were gaps in filming and we were allowed by friends parents to go for a wander round the arena and I suppose, buy souvenirs and drinks etc in the breaks.

Me and my two friends were approached inside the arena concourse by two men and they asked if we were there just the three of us. My friend lied and said yes we were (pretending to be all grown up).

At this point he gave us 3 backstage passes to meet the stars of the show and said to give a message to one of them. He claimed he was the flatmate of this man and to pass a message on that he couldn't make it.

After the show we went to the backstage area and a bit of a row ensued because friends mum and young sibling were with us. Friends mum demanded to be let in with us and she was.

I can't help wondering if something more sinister was going on though. The man we took the message to seemed quite irritated in general and what are the chances that we actually did bump into a "flatmate" inside the arena dishing out backstage passes? Surely he'd just give him a message himself?

Does this sound dodgy?

@1Morewineplease what’s your point?

My husband hardly remembers anything from his childhood while I can remember lots of events or non events very clearly from around the age of 4 .
some people see pictures when they think and some people don't ... our brains are not all the same who knew!

I remember going to watch the show. I think we got the tickets via The Sun newspaper or off the back of a cereal box. We travelled by train from London to Birmingham and my brother dropped the program down the side of the seating. It was the first time we'd done ever anything like that so very memorable.

If it's the person I think you're talking about, I can believe this 100%. There's something very sinister feeling about him.

@1Morewineplease at the time I didn't say anything no. I was ecstatic at meeting a room full of celebrities after an already amazing day. Happens when you're 12

And actually, I wasn't harmed in any way so what should I have said? That nobody hurt me?

I'm assuming your point is that if victims of crime and abuse don't report instantly then they should put up and shut up? Wow

Unless it was JFI with JS, there was probably a reasonable explanation.

@geojellyfish I think the person you are referring to was the person me and my mum were talking about.

I did meet him. However, he wasn't the man that we had to relay a message to just so that's clear.

Possibly dev. I didn't feel in any danger at the time.

But if three 12ish year olds were approached in that way now I'd wonder at the very least

Unless it was JFI with JS, there was probably a reasonable explanation.

What reasonable explanation is there for asking three pre-teens if they were on their own before giving them backstage passes?

JS wasn't the only monster around at the time.

Oops! There I go jumping to conclusions

@MrsWombat brilliant wasn't it? at the time....not so bloody sure now. But it was the most exciting thing to happen to us all year at the time

Can people remember what the media was like in those days ....maybe it bypassed your household did not get red tops. It was always full of stories about teenage girls with older men (Mandy Smith /Bill Wyman anyone) page three girls celebrating being in their teens , it always seemed so wrong and male centred I remember even at a very.young age.

I'm not surprised in the slightest OP

Geo still, I've no idea who might've been involved (if any) in that room. But he sparked this conversation. Very pleasant and appropriate when I met him at the time!

Can't be Gladiators, that started less than 30 years ago... I'm so nosey

Only just (28 years).

@nitgel I'd be interested to see that article if you can find it, I went backstage a few times at their earlier gigs and did wonder if my experience was typical. Also it's a bit of a hazy memory now.

I'm 39. I was trying to be vague in my initial post.

I just reread the op. Sorry op i read it differently the first time and genuinely didnt understand what was wrong but rereading it yeah gross. I didnt even get onto the fact he said about being the flatmate which is a weird thing to say in itself.

Don't worry! I think my post was a bit rambling too

I NC and put it here because I knew I'd get some clarity. Thought I was being weird but when I chatted with my mum last night about it we realised how odd the situation was!

OP I remember recently reading a tell-all by one of the ex cast members for the show remarking that one Male had a penchant for inappropriately young females. I had assumed they meant 16/17 not 12/13 though

A friend and I used to follow Wolf around. We were obsessed!

Everytime someone asks 'but why didn't she say anything at the time' I think about all the people who did say something but weren't believed.

Lots of girls bravely tried to speak up about JS and so many others but were ridiculed and not believed. Or just 'well that's what you get if you hang around with famous men', like some kind of payback for their creepy attention. Gross.

www.thefreelibrary.com/SEX+ORGIES+OF+JAILED+GLADIATOR+WARRIOR.-a060639762 here, I didn't quite remember it right but it's fairly disturbing reading - it's an article from 1998, not that long ago, but its borderline sensationalising paedophilia.

When I was 14/15, late '70s/early 80s a neighbour worked at the BBC. She got us family tickets for show but we were desperate for audience tickets for Top of the Pops. I remember being furious with my mum because she wouldn't let us ask her for them and got cross when we moaned about it.

Many years later, Mum told me that she had asked the neighbour who had said that we shouldn't be allowed to go as 'it wasn't a safe place for teenage girls'.

What was the show, was it gladiators