Well, you’ve all been asking and now that life has gotten back in order, I’m ready to share my experience at TIFF17 and meeting Jamie for the first time with you. Unscripted and exactly how it happened.
Things got off to a rough start on Friday, when the brand-new car I bought broke down on me shortly after my departure from home. Luckily, I have amazing parents and the vehicle was still under warranty (it better be!) so I was able to get it towed back to the dealership and into a rental at no cost. It was lucky that Karoline and I had agreed to leave a day early and that I wasn’t too far out of the city, otherwise the weekend could have gone horribly awry.
I got back on the road and made great time, even beating Karoline to Toronto. After meeting up at the hotel and settling ourselves in, we went out for some dinner and drinks (OK, I drank) and headed back to the hotel to rest up for Saturday.
Saturday morning we woke up with a fire inside of us, ready to take on the day ahead. We made it downstairs for breakfast and hit the road, headed for downtown shortly after 9am. With Timmie’s in hand, we started making our way to Roy Thompson Hall, the theater in which Mary Shelley premiered.
Toronto is a beautiful city and although it’s Canada’s most populous, it’s always breathtaking whenever I visit, which is quite often. The streets are closed, filled with fans, pedestrians, workers, volunteers and the like, all embracing the festival and eager for what the day holds.
We were chatting with festival workers and volunteers when out of the corner of my eye, I spot this girl with bright red lipstick. Maria. It’s Maria! (@JamieDornan360) Maria and I have been online friends for years and although we’ve had ample opportunities to meet up, it hadn’t worked out until now. I ran up to her, arms open wide, glad to finally meet this beautiful girl! Maria introduces me to Emily, her fellow JD360 teammate, who is sweeter than pie. She has so many exciting stories and as she told them to me and showed me pictures and autographs from her travels, I found myself hanging onto her every word. I in turn introduce Karoline and voilà! New friendships are born.
We take our place in line, hours before the premiere. The sun is brilliantly shining, not a cloud in the sky as we talk animatedly, share ideas and thoughts, make Timmie’s runs together, sneak out to find other celebs, eat, take pictures and thoroughly soak in each others company.
Hours pass quickly and before you know it, we’ve been given wristbands and head towards the red carpet, unaware we’d be right beside the 360 camera. We met even more friends, Lydia and Shay, and snapped a selfie together as we waited, another memory created.
Jamie and Amelia are, of course, the last to arrive to the red carpet. I heard one girl scream bloody murder when he stepped out of the car. Based on that reaction, we knew who had arrived.
As you all saw, Jamie looked refreshing; comfortable, happy and carefree. But we were there to support Amelia and she was every bit the angel we believed her to be. I couldn’t believe how much more stunning she was in person. Both of them, to be honest.
Jamie signed a quick autograph while Amelia made her way up to speak with reporters. Jamie steps out of the spotlight and smiles from the sidelines, admiring his wife. The way he looks at her is… palpable. That’s love.
Jamie and Millie make their way down the red carpet, stopping for no one.
While waiting to pose for pictures at the TIFF backdrop, Jamie steals a kiss from Millie and wraps his arm around her. We manage to snap some pictures while they’re waiting to be photographed.
We head into the prestigious Roy Thompson Hall, snap a picture with our tickets and take our seats, eager for the film to start.
Millie was introduced as the composer of the film and joined her fellow comrades on stage. The cast and crew then made their way to the top balcony where they’d enjoy the film with us. I watched a movie with Jamie and Millie. Hell yeah.
I quite enjoyed this telling of Frankenstein’s author, the comedic relief especially. And the score was brilliant; a true testament to Amelia’s unequivocal talents.
The film ends and is saluted with a standing ovation while the cast themselves take a bow. We gather our things and make our way to the Mary Shelley afterparty. We sadly miss Jamie and Amelia arriving and leaving the party, leaving us a little frustrated. We decide to head out to the InStyle After Party however, the crowd is huge; fans everywhere, celebs right, left and center, paparazzi standing on stools obstructing the views of the public – it was chaotic.
Most people may be ok with that level of disorder but I come from a very small, remote… ok I live in the bush. Although beautiful, big cities are quite intimidating to me and I find myself losing patience quickly. With that said, we quickly called it a night, finally eating for the first time since breakfast, at 3am.
The next morning was rough. Karoline is ready to start the day and go on a Jamie adventure. I however, am discouraged beyond belief. We decide that I would drive Karoline to the airport so she could take a shuttle downtown. She wanted to see if we could find Jamie and take photographs of the city for her photogrpahy class. I’m ready to head home, so after dropping her off at the airport, I would make my way back to the hotel, shower and get on the road. I just wanted to go home.
We make our way down to the parking garage, Karoline ready to go, me in my pyjamas still. Thank goodness for Karoline’s patience and understanding with me, because as we were sitting in the car ready to head to the airport, she convinced me to give it one more shot. What did I have to lose after all? Nothing, with everything to gain. So, with her support, we headed back up to the hotel room where I got ready to head downtown. We check out of the hotel, grab our bags, make a Timmie’s stop for my large double-double, double cupped (Karoline loves that) and head south on the 401.
We park the car and make our way up the busy downtown streets of Toronto. We find the Varity studio, just outside the Momofuku Tea Bar. (Unaware at this time that this is where Jamie would be) We notice a barrier with a few fans, no more than a dozen, and decide to stop. Karoline is taking pictures of the Toronto area when celebrties start to enter and exit the bar. Emma Thompson, Douglas Booth, Elle Fanning, Diana Agron (to name a few) stopped for pictures before getting into or out of their cars. I had ample opportunity to ask each of these stars for their picture but I was too shy. Their lives are already impeded by fame, and I didn’t feel comfortable contributing to it.
We strike up a conversation with a gentleman there who tells us that if we want to bump into Jamie, we’re in the wrong spot, and should head around the corner. We’re not even thirty feet from where we had been for nearly 3 hours already when Jamie comes barrelling around the corner with Millie and some friends. From what I can remember, it looked as if he was horsing around with a friend, being boys if you will.
Karoline slaps me out of my reverie and says “Holly, it’s Jamie.” all nonchalantly. I looked at her like she’s grown a head and say “No it’s not,” because really, Jamie and Millie are casually walking around Toronto. Yeah, ok. “No Holly, it’s really Jamie!” Karoline says again and approaches him like he’s an average Joe. I can’t believe what I’m seeing, but I’m seeing it now. Karoline sparks up a casual conversation with him and the second I hear his voice, I knew it was him. That familiar Northern Ireland accent is in my ears and I can’t believe what I’m hearing, and seeing!
Karoline asks for a picture. Jamie asks “Are you good?” (to take the picture) and Karoline replies “No.” Jamie says “My arms are longer than yours,” and since K is quite short, she rested her head on Jamie’s shoulder and ended up with one of the sweetest fanpics ever.
Taking the lead for me, K ‘introduces’ me to Jamie and says “You know her! She has Everything Jamie Dornan,” which Jamie seemed to acknowledge but what do I know, I’ve blanked out; Karoline had to tell me all of this afterwards.
I ask him how he’s enjoying Toronto to which he replied “Well, thank you.” I as well ask for a picture. I wish he had taken it because I still couldn’t comprehend what was happening. We thank him and express our love of Mary Shelley to Amelia who is very shy. I make a heart symbol with my hands which she acknowledges when Jamie resumes his place by their side, where they continue to make their way into the Tea Bar.
Karoline looks at me, I look at her and I give her a giant hug. “Thank you,” I say to her because if it wasn’t for her persistence and coaxing, I never would have come. I am indebted to Karoline for persuading me to go.
Sitting on the benches of the hotel, we’re in awe trying to assimilate what’s just transpired. I don’t know who to tell first. My mom. My mom is my biggest supporter and although our families don’t always understand why we do what we do, they support us wholeheartedly. My mom is ecstatic for me. My boyfriend mocks me with an “OMFG!” but is truly happy for me.
We share our photos with you, come down off our high and it’s time to say goodbye. We make our way back to the car where Karoline grabs her bags to take the train back to Pearson. I thank her again, profusely, eager for when Jamie and Millie will bring us together again. I hug her and watch her walk away from me. I jump into my car, set the GPS for home and call my mom who is beyond thrilled for me.
After what began with uncertainty and admittedly pessimism, the weekend was more than what we could have asked for. Not only did we get our selfies with Jamie and basked in Amelia’s ambiance, we made friends and memories that will last for a lifetime. I wouldn’t trade any of the ups or downs for a different result. Everything happens for a reason and we make our own destiny sometimes with the help of our friends.
Today marks one week since our encounter with Jamie and it still feels like yesterday. I am beyond blessed for my fandom friends and the likeminded people I’ve grown to know and love. Nothing I or we or EJD does would ever be possible without your love, support, companionship and friendship. I hope to meet many more of you and forsee many adventures together in the future.
We also put this video together, highlighting our time at TIFF17.
We’re working on uploading our own HQ photos. We’re hopfully we’ll be able to share them with you early this week.
Thank you for reading and coming along with me to TIFF17. Until next time.
Holly
