Barbra Streisand responds to fan letter Richard E. Grant wrote her when he was 14
Richard E. Grant’s gotta be feeling good. First, the beloved British actor scored an Academy Award nomination for his turn in last year’s Can You Ever Forgive Me?, and now, after 48 long years, he’s finally received a response to a fan letter he sent when he was 14.
Grant tweeted out the letter yesterday morning, sharing it alongside a photo of him outside Barbra Streisand’s house. The letter, addressed to the Funny Girl actress, offers her a stay at his family’s home in South Africa. “I read in the paper you were feeling very tired and pressurized by your fame and failed romance with Mr. Ryan O’Neal,” wrote a heart-eyed, 14-year old Grant. “I would like to offer you a two-week holiday, or longer, at our house, which is very beautiful with a pool and a magnificent view of Ezulwini Valley.”
His fandom, it appears, hasn’t wavered. “As a lifelong fan of someone you’ll understand what it meant for me to take this snap outside the home of @BarbraStreisand,” he wrote. “Asked Security for permission & he replied ‘It’s a public road, but thanks for asking.’ Wrote her this letter when I was 14. My wife is very understanding!”
What Grant likely didn’t expect was a response from Streisand herself. (Nobody that famous runs their own account, right?) “Dear Richard,” she wrote. “What a wonderful letter you wrote me when u were 14 ! And look at u now! You’re terrific in your latest movie with Melissa congratulations and love Barbra.”
Grant sent a slew of heart emojis in response, but his love for the actress resounds infinitely more in a photo he subsequently posted of his reaction to Streisand’s reply. “My ‘Message in a bottle’ miracle,” he wrote alongside photos of him all “crinkle faced” and teary-eyed. Adorable.
It’s nice to know fandom—which has taken on some gross undercurrents over the last few years—can still be sweet, yeah?