Glitz and Glamour at the Spectacle Wearer of the Year Awards 2014

If you’re into fashion and trends, you’ll know that glasses have their very own niche in the style world. Spectacles have become a popular fashion accessory and we noticed this more than ever after attending the Spectacle Wearer of the Year awards in London a couple of a weeks ago. We hung out on the green carpet (in keeping with the Specsavers theme) to have a chat with some of the celebrities before they went in to take their places for dinner. Here's what we found out… 1)      In real life, Dawn O’Porter is every bit as lovely as you would imagine. 2)      TV star Rylan Clarke has one impressive SPARKLER of an engagement ring. 3)      Saturdays star Vanessa White is so petite that we felt like proper giants beside her. 4)     Strictly Come Dancing routines are every bit as tough as they look. Dawn was positively glowing in a printed vintage maxi dress which she teamed with a gorgeous pair of specs. We grabbed her for a quick chat, where she said: "I wouldn't usually wear glasses to an event, just for driving or watching TV. These are my TV glasses, but they're the only ones that match my dress". She also spoke about her new company BOB which she was over in London to launch, "it's a website selling both vintage items and new designs. It's my first business feature so I'm excited". Having lived in LA for seven years, Dawn said it’s pretty much home now but that she wouldn’t rule out a return to the UK at some point in the future. We had to ask about her pregnancy and how she’s feeling to which she replied that her and Chris (O’Dowd) can’t wait to meet their little one. Dawn was JUST lovely We also talked to Rylan Clark and were nearly blinded by the new piece of bling on his engagement finger. His boyfriend Dave proposed to him in Paris recently and he’s one man who is very much in love. To be honest, Rylan is so friendly that we could have stayed talking all night but we had to wrap it up. The This Morning regular also spoke of how important it is to be “nice” to people and that’s what’s got him where he is today. "If you're nice to people, they will be nice to you". We had to ask Vanessa White how the Saturdays found their last tour with all the babies on board. Una has Aoife Belle and another on the way, Frankie has a son named Parker and Rochelle is mother to a little girl named Alaia May. Vanessa was all chat about her fellow bandmates Vanessa said that it’s “like one big happy family” and everyone gets on great. We quickly asked how the band feel about Una taking on a judging role for the Voice of Ireland to which Vanessa replied “Una’s perfect for it. We know she will do a brilliant job”. Next up was Strictly Come Dancing's Ola Jordan who was a little tired as she had come straight to the event from a training session for the show. We grilled her about all things Strictly and asked if you can ever be confident about making it into the next round. Ola told us that you can never take if for granted saying "you're never sure, it doesn't matter how good your dance is or how far up the leader board you are, you can never be sure. I've made that mistake before". After meeting the various celebrities, it was into dinner before Gok Wan took to the stage to introduce each winner. We met Gok earlier this year and he is just a bundle of energy. With a laugh and a witty remark for each contestant, he had the audience in the palm of his hands. Gok Wan is a complete sweetheart Our very own Darren Kennedy joined him on stage to present our Irish winner, Jenny Keane, with her award. Jenny was declared Spectacle Wearer of the Year 2014 earlier this year and you could not meet a more deserving winner. After the awards, former Girls Aloud star Kimberley Walsh took to the stage to perform. Kimberley, who recently gave birth to her first son Bobby Jay, is a huge fan of showband tunes. Kimberley looked fantastic and sounded amazing... She performed Somewhere from West Side Story and Another Suitcase in Another Hall from Evita. Acclaimed actor and singer Ben Foster, well known for his role in Jesus Christ Superstar, then joined her on stage to sing Glen Hansard’ s Falling Slowly, which fans will recognise from the musical Once. All in all, it was a night to remember and if Specsavers will have us, we will be back again next year with bells on.