cliffshadowsconvention.com

Hi my name is Julie and I have been a fan of Cliff Richard since 1980. We have two businesses one which is an Entertainment Agency which has been a family business for over 25 years now. The founder of the business being my Dad Jim Sandwell and we are a highly respected and established business based in Thornton Cleveleys  Nr Blackpool.

My sister company is Theme for a Dream Events which you guessed it I named it after a very well known Cliff Song.  On one of the many occasions I have had the opportunity to meet Cliff I told him about my business and he said:

Quote – Cliff Richard

 “I have never known anyone to name their business after one of my songs" I then gave him the sheet music to Theme For a Dream and he signed it and wished me the best of luck with the business. Other occasions I have met him are at his Heath cliff Press Release in Manchester, then at the Millennium Concert I was lucky enough to be invited backstage. This came about because Russell Watson who was touring with Cliff at the time was one of our acts his name was Russ Watson and we were one of the first agencies to book him in fact my dad gave him the opera records that he listened to which he did and Russell Watson was born this was partly due to my Dad and I am sure Russ would agree. Meeting Cliff was amazing  even though I could not even speak at first and I was even invited to the after show party but I was worried about missing the coach. I really regret not going now but as I was in a strange town and had no transport I think I did the right thing. I even managed to be on Cliffs DVD of the Millennium Concert. The next time I met Cliff was at the Arora Hotel opening in Manchester to which I was an invited guest and I even ended up appearing on the biography Channel on Gloria's Greats talking about the hotel and how much I liked Cliff. That was an unforgettable experience.

The next time we met was at the Ball at the Runneymede Hotel which was a celebration of Cliffs 50 years in Show business.  Jimmy and I went to meet him in the green room this is wheree he signed my sheet music. When Jimmy met him Cliff treated him like an old friend and you could tell that he was more than happy about Jimmy being a Tribute to him .The ball was organised by Joy Passman and you could not wish to meet a nicer person but maybe you will because she is going to be at the Cliff and Shadows Convention on June 27^th 2010 and there is another Ball at the Dorchester Hotel at July 3^rd 2010 and Jimmy and I will be attending that too and I think there may be tickets still available.

Not longer after meeting Cliff at the Runneymede Hotel I went to his book signing in Reading , after he had signed my book he said your welcome Julie and it was amazing Cliff actually remembered my name.  Jimmy also met Cliff and the Shadows backstage at one of last year’s concerts and Jimmy said:

Quote Jimmy Jemain

“The Shadows and Cliff could not have been more welcoming and he had a chat will them all. When he spoke to Cliff he told him about our Convention and where we were holding it near the place where Cliff spent some of his childhood and Cliff told Jimmy he would love to be there”

Now how I met Jimmy well Dad booked him for a private birthday party not long after he had appeared Stars in Their Eyes. I was determined to try and meet him and I asked my dad if he would ring the person who was having the party and ask if I could go. My Dad said:

Quote My Dad Jim Sandwell

“Don’t be so cheeky I can’t ask if you can go to someone else’s birthday party “

As you can imagine I was very disappointed by this and I could not let an opportunity like this to slip by so one day when my dad was out I went into the office and I found his card system, (we didn’t have a computer then) and I found the card which I needed I wrote down the phone number and immediately phoned it before I lost my nerve.  A lovely lady answered the phone who is now a personal friend of mine and I said:  “Hi my name is Julie and my Dad has booked Jimmy Jemain the Cliff Richard Tribute from Stars in Their Eyes and I know this is a strange request but is it possible for me to come to your Party to meet him.” She said yes and I got to meet Jimmy for the very first time and he was even nicer than I imagined and since then we have become good friends.  By the way my dad soon forgave me for inviting myself to the party. The next time I met Jimmy we had the business and I was arranging a charity event for a hospital where I had been a patient and it was to raise money for an MRI scanner. I asked  Jimmy to do the event and he said yes and he travelled all the way from Norfolk to do it and we have booked him ever since and are now his Sole Agent.

The story of how the convention came about is I went to a Buffy and Angel Convention with my friend 10 years ago and all the time I was there I kept thinking that there should be a Cliff Convention. I have also been a judge several times at the very successful Elvis Convention in Blackpool and this was another event that helped me finally decide the time was right for the Cliff and Shadows Convention. One of the reasons was it would be following the very successful Reunion with The Cliff and the Shadows Tour and another was to thank Cliff and the Shadows as without their succesful careers there would be no Tributes to either of them. It is also an opportunity to raise some money for the Caron Keating Foundation as we are donating our raffle and auctions profits and a further donation to this very worthwhile charity.

All I had to do then was to persuade Jimmy Jemain to become involved and I did and I am finally organising the Cliff and Shadows Convention and I am determined to make this the best Convention of them all.  I am sure with the help of the Cliff and Shadows Fans I will. The interest which has been show in our Convention not only from the UK’ but also from abroad has been phenomenal and the tickets are selling fast.

Theme for A Dream Events

Our company uses 20 years of experience in order to successfully manage the creation, development and management of your event. The service we provide takes all your requests and we create the dream for you and then when the day arrives we co-ordinate the event from start to finish allowing you to relax and enjoy the experience.

We offer a wide range of events from corporate events, team building, conferences, private and hospitality whether large or small.

How much we are involved is up to you.

You simply give us a date and a budget and we will create a range of ideas for your event. We then work with you to create the right idea for you. Other people contact us with ideas already in place and we create the event from their base.

It doesn’t matter how much help you need - we, as a company, can use our vast knowledge and experience to help create the ideal event.