Los Angeles, March 31 – Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger took a trip down memory lane, reflecting on his youth when he received an honorary doctorate from the Ulster University in Northern Ireland.
The 78-year-old actor appeared on stage in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to accept the honor, which he noted came 60 years after his first visit to the city during his bodybuilding career as a young man, according to ‘People’ magazine.
In a humorous speech about his first trip to Belfast, Schwarzenegger noted that he spoke in English in public for the first time in his life when he won a bodybuilding tournament in 1966 and was asked a question by an audience.
He said, "People always talk about, 'It must have been difficult for you in the beginning with the Irish accent’, and I said, 'I didn't even know there was an accent’, because I didn't speak English. So the only words that came out of me was, 'I no speak English’”.
According to ‘People’, the host of the event praised him for attempting to speak in public, and he received a "standing ovation" for saying a few words to the audience.
He shared, "Everyone jumped up and gave me a great applause. And then (the host) said, 'Tell them you're going to be back’, and I said, 'I come back’. At that time, I didn't say 'I'll be back’, that was in Terminator, so I said 'I come back' and standing ovation. He said, 'Thank you very much, Arnold, that was fantastic. Your first time that you spoke in public, you did such a great job and your English was great’”.
"And afterwards I left, and I said to myself, 'Oh my God, I thought I was going to die when I spoke in front of people, but this was the most encouraging audience’”, he added.