This Is a Strange Ted Lasso Day...
I don’t know what the universe is trying to tell me, but this was a weird day
Do you ever have strange things happen that you can’t explain? Not necessarily coincidences or deja vu – just strange things.
For example, in the late 1990s, I saw actor Andy Garcia filming on the streets of New York City.
Two weeks later, we were sitting in adjacent booths at a restaurant in LA. What are the odds you’d see someone (even a person you actually know) on opposite sides of the country just two weeks apart?
It’s weird, right?
But at the time, I shared the anecdote with my dinner companion, because why would I interrupt Andy Garcia’s meal to share this fun fact?
“Hi, Andy, we’ve never met, but I saw you in New York two weeks ago and now I see you in LA! What are the odds? How’s your burger?”
I was reminded of that story two weeks ago – when a similarly odd thing happened.
I was having a conversation with a friend about the TV show, Ted Lasso. Like a lot of TV fans, I believe Ted Lasso is the breath of fresh air we need on television. And as an optimistic Midwesterner who moved to London, I relate to the lead character, Ted, an optimistic Midwesterner who moved to London.
At the end of last season, the normally upbeat Ted suffered a panic attack, and the show’s most recent episode had featured Ted suffering from another panic attack. This episode showed that the feel-good comedy was diving deeper into the mental health conversation.
And I think that’s great.
The more people talk about it, the more we’ll learn and be better able to empathize and support each other.
And that’s what I was telling my friend. I also told her that the episode had been written by Brett Goldstein, who plays the grumpy (but loveable) character Roy Kent on the show.
And then I went for a walk.
And five minutes after entering my local park, I saw him.
Roy Kent.
Or rather, Brett Goldstein, the actor who plays Roy Kent, kicking a football with another man.
No one else was around. No TV cameras, no crew. No other castmates. Just Brett and another guy playing.
I was *just* talking about this guy.
How weird is this?!
I wanted to compliment him on his writing in that episode, on the show’s bravery to tackle the subject of mental health, and tell him how I love the little pop culture references that I know few in the UK will get. (Practice? You wanna talk about practice?).
But I kept walking.
Because I started my career in entertainment in Los Angeles. I worked with actors every day, and when you do that, the ‘fame’ part really disappears. They’re just people. And I can still remember the time I was eating dinner with an actor friend, and how strangers constantly (and unapologetically) interrupted our meal to meet him.
I didn’t want to be that person.
Brett was exercising. He was with a friend.
Plus, I had just eaten an omelette with onions and had no gum.
So I texted two friends in the US who watch the show to tell them about my sighting.
Then I came home and told my husband about it. He agreed it was strange, but shrugged and said, ‘They’re probably filming around here.’
I went about my work, and later that day went to run an errand nearby with my husband. As we’re walking down the street, my eyes met a young man who looked familiar.
But wait, I don’t know any young men!
Why is this guy familiar?
My eyes widened as I twigged. I looked at my husband as we passed the young man and said:
“That’s Colin!”
Or rather Billy Harris, the actor who portrays the player Colin on Ted Lasso, just walking down the street.
“They must be filming,” my husband said again.
“But these are different areas of town!” I countered.
We walked home and I wondered if I’d complete the hat trick by running into Jason Sudeikis when I picked up my kids from school.
But alas, the story ends here.
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Beth Collier loves writing about the intersection of pop culture and business. She helps leaders and teams improve their communication and creativity skills through coaching and team workshops. Her clients benefit from her global business experience, her Midwestern optimism, and her endless supply of pop culture references.
She’s also notoriously curious, and shares stories that show the power of creativity (it IS a business skill) and curiosity in her weekly newsletter, Curious Minds.
Checking the measurements at the gym for the State Finals in Hoosiers