Thick wet snowflakes had begun to coat the road outside the Royal Spa Centre when the members of the audience who had paid an extra few pounds for the Meet and Greet part of the evening with Sir Geoff Hurst began to arrive in the foyer.
We took comfort in the shelter and the warmth. A huge poster advertising an upcoming Evening with Anton du Beke and a flyer for a show called Totally Tina stared down at us from the walls.
I bought a couple of signed retro shirts – one West Ham, one England – from a memorabilia stall that had been set up on a trestle table.