Carrie is our galactic hero
Fans pay tribute to Star Wars actress
Movie lovers in Rutherglen and Cambuslang who had met Carrie Fisher have paid tribute to the star following her tragic death last week.
Best known for playing Princess Leia in the original Star Wars trilogy, Carrie passed away on December 27 at the age of just 60.
Just days earlier, she had suffered a massive heart attack on a flight from London to LA.
Carrie had attended a number of Star Wars celebration events over the past few years and touched the hearts of all who met her.
Iain McDougall, 34, from Rutherglen met Carrie at the Star Wars Celebration London event earlier this year.
And the former Stonelaw pupil admitted it was an experience he will never forget.
He said: “They always say never meet your idols but Carrie, even with all her past demons, was so sweet and kind while we got a photograph together.
“You could see in her face how much it meant to her seeing little girls dressed as Leia wanting to meet her.
“But the old renegade in her was still strong as she kept leaving her photo-shoot to randomly go around the convention by herself and meet the fans.
“I think she would have most definitely been a first crush for a bunch of guys and girls my age, growing up with Star Wars.
“She was ‘the’ princess after all and she always will be in my eyes.”
Another local to have met the star was Ewan Allan.
In March this year we reported the 15-year-old Cathkin pupil had collected 500 celebrity autographs and his dad Stephen this week said Carrie’s was in his top 10.
He also revealed when Ewan met Carrie, she introduced him to her beloved dog, Gary: “Ewan met Carrie Fisher back at an event in London in 2014 . Like most high-profile guests we rarely get time to speak with the stars, but as Carrie was signing a photo for Ewan he asked what the dog’s name was. She smiled and said ‘this is Gary, he goes everywhere with me’.
“A few hours later, Ewan had a photograph with Carrie and sure enough Gary was in the shot. Carrie did a wonderful pose with Ewan and Gary stuck his tongue out.
“We passed Carrie again at Celebration Star Wars in London of Summer 2016 just after we bumped into Gareth Edwards by pure fluke. Sure enough, she was carrying Gary again and gave us a wink as she passed.”
As well as being an iconic actress, Carrie was also well- known for her writing. She battled addiction throughout her career as well as mental illness but her razor-sharp wit and honesty won her millions of admirers.
She had recently appeared in the seventh Star Warts movie, The Force Awakens, and will appear in episode eight later this year.