Big star, small town = big buzz

A small British Columbia community is still basking in the glow of a weekend celebrity encounter with talk show queen Oprah Winfrey.

Winfrey was travelling on a yacht belonging to B.C.-based billionaire Jim Pattison on Friday when it docked in Alert Bay, a picturesque community on Cormorant Island off the northeastern side of Vancouver Island.

Oprah Winfrey, seen here in New York in May, set Alert Bay abuzz with her short visit. Oprah Winfrey, seen here in New York in May, set Alert Bay abuzz with her short visit.

(Evan Agostini/Getty)

Word quickly spread amid the approximately 1,500 residents that the Chicago-based talk show host had dropped into town, and many rushed to find her.