okay... i have a lot of patrick stewart stories, so i'll throw one up on blue because i can see his passing has made us all very sad. firstly... he would have wanted you to remember whatever it was about his time here that made you happy.❤️ he loved you back. with all his heart. here's a story... late 90's—still lots of trek happening and the man is busy as hell. he talked a good game about smoking weed in private, but it made him hungry, so i'm pretty sure he was abstaining for the most part because he was trying to fit into spandex. i needed him to do v.o. on a documentary about whales. i was working wi' a grumpy (very talented) new yorker called roger payne who also knew patrick and made me ring up from his office. mid call (explaining the necessity of moving up the schedule) roger takes the phone, tells patrick "get over to the dammed studio now!" and hands me back the phone. all i hear on the other end is giggling that turns into laughing and an (almost inaudible) squeaky voice say: "darren... i'm high... at present." i say "fuck me." he squeaks "you're much too ugly." i tell him there's a car waiting for him and he says "understood. i will be there. worry not." the office was in encino, the studio was called "record one" on ventura blvd just up the road. i bolted there and made sure we had a lot of coffee ready. an hour later... patrick shows up, cardigan, jeans, shades, operating as if nothing was wrong. he was absolutely 100% old seasoned pro. except— instant he saw me, he smiled and said "i'm still considering it." i had no idea what he meant until he asked my assistant if he should fuck me... even though i'm "a bit on the ugly side." "just a bit." he started asking everyone and everyone had an answer because he's patrick bloody stewart... ...even roger chimed in — "he's already fucked if we don't get this tape today." the only way we got through that session was by having patrick bluster every line like picard giving an order. because he was stoned and feeling melodramatic. nevertheless... it was beautiful. we finished on time. on the way out, we discussed the work and he told me i was a good sport. i told him i'd changed my mind anyway. he stopped, put his hands on my arms, grinning ear to ear, and said... "oh thou! my lovely boy who in thy power doth hold time's fickle glass his fickle hour!" he was an amazing man.