A Hallowe’en tale of CDs and soap stars

Back last century, when Hallowe’en wasn’t a second-hand American fancy dress festival, trick or treating meant kids knocking on doors in their neighbourhood and residents stocking up with sweets to hand out to those kids or optimistic teenagers.

One year, I had forgotten to stock up. What I did have was a mountain of promo CDs left over from writing reviews for the local newspaper.

So… instead of sweets and candies, the trick or treaters got themselves CDs which were either dreadful indie landfill, or end-of-contract fulfilment albums or C-list soap stars’ hopeless attempts to launch what they hoped would be Kylie Minogue levels of fame and fortune.

When one trio of young Hallowe’eners knocked on the door, I picked up the first box from the slush pile. Looking at the well groomed singer on the front, my first question was: “Do you like Adam Rickitt?” (Rickitt was a young actor who had starred in the UK soap opera Coronation Street and was hoping to climb on the first rung of the pop star ladder – I had been sent his first single to review.)

“Do you like Adam Rickitt?”

“She does!” came the reply from one boy, pointing to someone I assumed to be his sister. I handed over the CD. The boys looked disappointed, the girl looked confused, all three turned and left.

That week I was due to review the single, but instead of writing about the soap star’s singing, I said I had given the CD away on October 31 and if the girl who received it fancied writing a review I’d print it.

Which of course she did.

It was a lovely piece, a touch naive and verging on the sycophantic in its three lines, but held up the CD as worthy of more than a cursory listen. And that Adam was a lovely bloke too.

So she took it as a treat, rather than a trick.

But what happened to Adam?

Rickitt possessed an unwavering optimism. After his pop career failed to set the world alight (not helped by CD reviews in the provincial press coming from nine-year-old girls), he turned to politics and failed to be selected as the Conservative candidate for the safe seat of Macclesfield. Apparently, the incumbent Tory had other ideas.

So Adam is back, acting and singing. Hopefully to more substantive reviews.