Colin is so Miami nice; Cinema.

Byline: KAREN HAMBRIDGE

FOR some reason Colin Farrell was firmly under my radar until recently. Fool, I hear the cry from a thousand female lips.

Well I'm just being honest. I'd watched films with him in and not especially taken notice.

I guess somewhere I'd thought, "he's quite cute" but there was never a thunderbolt moment.

Then Miami Vice came along. As a child of the 80s who had a monstrous crush on Don Johnson I suppose it was only fitting I fall for the updated version, despite the greebo hairstyle and scruffy facial hair. It's the eyes you see, dark and piercing under thick brows, even a dodgy moustache can't detract from those perfect peepers.

When an invitation for the Miami Vice screening arrived in the office I didn't realise for the first hour there was actually going to be a press conference and Colin, Jamie Foxx, Michael Mann and Gong Li were going to be there.

Observant I know, call yourself a reporter. Then it hit me. There was a chance of actually being in the same room as Colin Farrell, the sexy dude from Dublin.

I didn't sleep much beforehand, fitfully running through scenarios where Colin whisked me off in a private jet to Paris for a romantic lunch.

I sat through the two hours of the movie, scribbling a few notes but mainly thinking how gorgeous Colin was. Afterwards we were transported by a fleet of taxis to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge for the press conference.

I was in the fourth row, one seat in, strategically placed to have a straight-through sight line to Farrell. He arrived in a khaki T-shirt and jeans, hair spiked up, sporting a trendy leather wrist cuff.

He sat down and scanned the room and he stared straight at me - well it might have been the long-haired blonde behind, but anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

And the stare went on for ages, or it seemed like ages. Time stopped as our eyes met across the crowded room. Oh, the delight.

The rest of the conference sailed past in a blur of questions and all too soon the conference was drawn to a close and Colin and co departed.

So, realising my Farrell adventure was at an end I made my way to the hotel foyer to depart. And who should be stood at the concierge desk but Colin, by golly.

But he was with some dark-haired woman and fearing he might already believe me to be a mad stalker 'cos of the conference stare, I shyly slipped down the stairs and out of his life.

But all I want to say Colin is if you're out there and you read this and you ever come to Coventry, I'm yer gal. At least if my husband says it's all right.

CAPTION(S):

HEARTTHROBB... Colin Farrell star of the new movie version of Miami Vice (1155).