I've had a few brushes with the famous, mostly from University days. Matching Helen's Art Garfunkle story, I was treasurer of the university folk club, and Paul Simon played for us, so not only did I pay him, (about £10 GBP as I remember, probably wouldn't do a gig for that now) but a few of us gathered in my flat for coffee afterwards. This was about the time of his first album.
And our maths tutorial groups were split alphabetically, so for a couple of years I was alongside Virginia Wade. We have not kept in touch.
It's fun when you recognise someone famous out of context. If you go to the Goodwood Festival of Speed for example, you expect to see racing drivers wandering around, and you might also expect to see other non-motor celebrities enjoying themselves. But meeting them on holiday, or as Helen did in a shop, seems more exciting somehow.
Rod