Last week, I travelled with my venerable colleague Stuart Amos to London Bridge to record an on-the-road version of our Ealing (Road) Comedies podcast.

We met up with none other than Bees striker Charlie MacDonald to hand over his E(R)C player-of-the-year award and to have a natter about the season just gone.

I know it is often said that you shouldn’t meet your heroes, but I have never held too much truck with that notion, particularly as I learned fairly on in my life that, sometimes, your heroes can be very nice indeed.

And where did I learn this most salutary of lessons? At a hotel in Derby.

When I was about 11, the Gores went on a family trip to Alton Towers and my older brother, Tom, and I spotted one of our heroes, the now sadly departed Kevin Lloyd or, as we knew him, Tosh from The Bill, having a pint in the hotel bar.

Tom and I were desperate for an autograph and, eventually, I plucked up the courage to go over and ask him.

Please note, dear reader, that I did this all on my lonesome, as my brother is a wimp of Paul Brooker-esque proportions and refused to join me.

I am happy to say Tosh was a legend, breaking off from a conversation to have a quick chat and sign the autograpgh – it’s a shame my brother didn’t act with quite the same dignity later on.

Shortly before bedtime, when my back was turned, he grabbed a pen and tried to add, “and Tom”, to where Tosh had written “To Will”.

Thankfully, my mum caught him before he could ruin my priceless memento.

Perhaps because I’m a little older now, I don’t really have heroes like I used to.

I am sorry to say I don’t share quite the same feelings for Charlie MacDonald that I used to have for Tosh from The Bill, but that is not to say I don’t hold Super Mac in high regard.

For the past two seasons, he has been brilliant for the Bees and has been an entertaining, regular guest on our podcast, even if he is the only person we have had to use the ‘bleep’ machine on to censor out some of his more colourful turns of phrase.

I would let you know what he said, but this is a family newspaper and I’d probably end up getting bleeped out myself (too right – Ed).