Most of us can recall childhood rooms adorned with posters, calling radio stations to request our favourite songs and forgoing an evening loafing on street corners to watch Top Of The Pops or MTV.

Our older selves often shrug off our ardent fan-ships with mild embarrassment, but what of those who continue their intense appreciation of celebrities into their 20s or 30s? When you have a full-time job, a relationship and a mortgage to contend with, how easy is it to maintain that youthful, allconsuming enthusiasm about one's idols? We asked four super-fans who remain exhilarated and enthralled by the celebrity objects of their affection.

Jennifer Rogen, Cork Judge Judy fan Jennifer Rogen came across Judy Sheindlin as a schoolgirlf Irish channel TV3 was in its infancy, and Jennifer began to tune in. She soon realised that Judge Judy . . . a show where small claims cases are heard by the acerbic Sheindlin . . . made for addictive viewing.

"My first impression was that Judy was hugely domineering, very straight-talking, " recalls Jennifer. "I loved the fact that she cut to the chase. I'd try to guess who'd win the case in advance, and if I got it right, I was always sort of pleased that I'd be thinking along the same lines as her."

After a stint backpacking around the world, Jennifer moved to Cork where she says she had to "start from scratch".

"I spent eight months struggling and looking for work, " she says. "I'd busk in the morning and head home at 4.30pm, when Judge Judywas always showing. Each day I began to look forward to it. It was nice to have something constant when everything in my life was up in the air."

Jennifer proved her mettle as a fanatic on the popular RTE quiz show The Fame Game in 2001, and was rewarded with a trip to the Judge Judy set. "In the end, I won the quiz on the specialist round, and got five questions right out of five. The questions were things like 'what university did Judy go to?' and 'what position was she first appointed to?'."

When the time came to eventually meet Sheindlin, Jennifer was pleasantly taken aback at how approachable she was . . . in contrast to her no-nonsense, caustic persona.

"When I did meet her, I just kept smiling at herf in fact I was surprised at how quiet I was, " says Jennifer. "She was the one doing all the talking. She was shocked at how far I'd come to see her. She was so goodhumoured and pleasant. They always say, 'don't meet your heroes', as the person is always different in reality. But I'm very glad I did."

Now working in her dream job (in residential childcare), Jennifer admits that the scarcely has time to tune into the show.

"It's down to time nowadays, although I do check websites for news and I'm hoping to buy her books. But I still have the photo and autograph, and I'll always keep them somewhere safe!"

Celine Garvey, Kildare Lord Of The Rings fan Celine read the Lord Of The Rings trilogy as a child, but found that the story really came to life after the release of the series of highoctane blockbusters.

"I was enthralled so I re-read the three books straight through and an obsession took over me!" she laughs. "It was a revelation. As an artist, I fell in love with the art behind the books, and even now I use one of Tolkien's languages, Dwarvish, in some of my drawings. I feel like I could do a thesis on the trilogyf maybe I could write it in the Elvish alphabet!"

By her own admission, Celine saw each of the three installments of the trilogy up to 40 times each in the cinema.

"I'd hate to think how much I've spend on DVDs, memorabilia and going to the cinema.

I check out fan websites and if I won Euromillions, I'd be on Ebay like a flash!"

Celine has already proven her adoration of all things Tolkien by getting a special tattoo.

"My name is written in Elvish (pronounced 'Menelveh') on my neck, " she explains. "Someone else I met had a Gollum tattoo on their ankle and that seems to be the common one that people get."

Mercifully, Celine's friends are only too happy to indulge her passion for the Tolkien classics.

"I go out drinking with friends and we'd quote lines from the films, but it got the point where it was slightly ridiculous, " she admits. "I've been banned by my boyfriend Dave from watching it in his presence, and I'm always annoying people by pointing out stuff."

Celine even made the pilgrimage to New Zealand to visit the sets of the blockbuster film.

"It made my life, " she says. "I was there during the filming of Return of The King and got to sit up on a wall during filming and they didn't seem to mind. You can see the scene in the extended version on DVD!"

By her own admission, Celine has always dived headlong into her various passions.

"I've always been a big fan of somethingf when I was younger it was Johnny Depp, and then I got into Star Trek. I'm definitely seeing a pattern where I think I need to be obsessive about something.

"Now I'm getting into Japanese anime movies, and the Lord Of The Rings buzz is starting to fade slightly. When you go around day to day not getting to share your enthusiasm, it's frustrating. When you meet someone who's also a fan, you just want to talk to them for hours and hours!"

Ruth Kelly, Dublin Tony Bennett fan Ruth Kelly inherited her love of Big Band music from her father, and to this day her love of Tony Bennett is well-known within her circle of friends.

"I was always used to hearing the Rat Pack at home, " she says. "When I got into college, my friends were also into that sort of music. Sometimes I'd put the music on and everyone would be like, 'oh here she goes with the tea dance music again!'" Having missed out on the opportunity to catch original Rat-Packers Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra in concert, Ruth relishes the Tony Bennett live experience, and has seen him both in Dublin and Toronto.

"I found the way Tony sang really pulled on the heartstrings, " she explains. "The songs took on a different meaning entirely.

It's superb to see someone live when you know the music so well."

In 2001, Ruth got the chance to meet Bennett in Toronto. "Backstage, he's the same person as he is on stage, " she says.

"There was real trepidation there but I was so excited. When I tracked him down in Toronto, the people that surround him are warm and welcoming, and accommodated me straightaway. He couldn't believe I came from Ireland to see him. He even gave me a special mention on stage the night after. He seems to be constantly amazed by the warmth of his fans."

Currently working as a presenter in Dublin radio station Q102, Ruth harbours a dream to make the elusive move into TV.

"If I was working in TV, I'd love to meet and interview people like Tony and find out the real person behind the music, " she says.

"I think I'll always be Tony enthusiast. His warmth as a person comes through in his workf that's one way of knowing that you're listening to true music."

Yare Jegbefume, Dublin Beyonce Knowles fan Like most men, Yare is hugely appreciative of Beyonce's charms, although he is adamant that his admiration of the bootylicious star more than scratches the surface.

"When I first saw and heard Destiny's Child, it was love at first sight!" he laughs.

"Beyonce was a legend from the get-go . . .

stunning looking, vivacious and voluptuous.

"But the reason I liked Beyonce so much was because she has a distinctive voice. She never forgets where she came from and she's still close to her roots and her family and I admire her for that. I guess after hearing the music you are compelled to understand the essence and drive behind her and what makes her successful. I wanted to find out more about her once I found out how much work went into making her what she was."

Predictably, Yare describes the day he finally met the star as "definitely a great day in my life".

"I met her in the Dorchester Hotel in London, when she was doing promotion for the film Goldmember, " he remembers. "I went into the actual room where they were doing press interviews. When I stopped her we had a conversation. Security tried to move me on but she didn't want to, and that fuelled my admiration of her even more. It was pretty exhilarating.

"She was stunning, but smaller than I expected. I guess you always think of her as this Amazonian woman on TV."

Yare regularly checks the internet for updates on his idol, but prefers to stay away from fan chat rooms and message-boards where gossip and speculation are reportedly rife.

"I'm not on the unofficial websites much because I don't believe in rumours, " he says.

"I like to hear it straight from the horse's mouth. As a fan, I'm upset when I hear malicious rumours."

When it became public knowledge that Beyonce was dating bad-boy rapper Jay-Z, Yare was not so much upset as mildly perplexed.

"I thought it was a funny one, her and Jay-Z. It took me by surprise more than anything. She sings a lot about how she's not looking for a 'player', and he always seemed like that. I just hope he doesn't break her heart."

Jay-Z or no Jay-Z, Yare is more than happy to remain a loyal devotee to the singer.

"I'll definitely remain a fan once she keeps doing what she does and stays true to herself, " he says. "She never tries to change herself for anyone, which is great. My friends and family think it's coolf just as long as it doesn't border onto craziness!"