It's become
somewhat of a traditional fixture on the UK convention circuit.
Every few months, the NEC in Birmingham will be filled with movie and
sport enthusiasts, gathering to meet and greet their favourite stars and
browse the aisles of nostalgic and shiny goods, no doubt secretly
cursing their mothers for throwing all those "stupid" comic collections
away....
This exhibition
was, as ever, packed to the gills with great guests. From the
world of Star Wars we welcomed Anthony Daniels, Oscar winning costume
designer John Mollo, Warwick Davies, Caroline Blakiston, Angus MacInnes,
Cathy Munro and Phil Eason. From the wider world of entertainment
Star Trek Enterprise star John Billingsley was in attendance, as was
Hellboy and Silver Surfer star Doug Jones, plus a slew of boxers and
football stars of the 1970's.
Saturday 29th
March 2008
Mark Newbold,
Webmaster and Editor
Mark
- "Our good friends over at Jedi News were present at the Memorabilia
show on Saturday and managed to amass these excellent videos. Sit
back and enjoy the highlights of the chats from Saturdays show, kicking
off with Anthony Daniels."
Mark
- "Jedi News were also smart enough to get a great seat and film the
chat with the great John Mollo and Warwick Davies."
Sunday 30th
March 2008
Mark Newbold,
Webmaster and Editor
Mark
- "As ever Lightsabre arrived on the Sunday at around 11.30am and the place
was already buzzing. While perhaps not as busy as Saturday,
traders seemed to be doing brisk business."
The
busy halls, Sunday morning
Mark - "One
of the most noticeable sites was a HUGE Incredible Hulk statue, which
dominated the centre of the arena. There to promote the upcoming
Hulk movie, it was nigh on impossible to get a clear shot without people
taking a photo opportunity. Here we see Wonder Woman taking her
chances. Hulkie doesn't look too impressed...."
The
Hulk, not impressed that Wonder Woman was butting in
Mark - "It can be a long
day walking around the halls and Bex made sure we took the time to rest
up and get a very average cup of tea and coffee down our throats."
Bex
enjoying a really average cup of coffee
Mark - "Usually the show
is held in March, August and November, but it appears that in 2008 there
will just be the two - March and November. However, this hasn't
deterred any of the exhibitors of visitors, as the aisles were as
eclectic and full as ever. You name it, it was more than likely
there somewhere."
More
dealers...and a Yoda...
Mark - "The UK Garrison
are now event stalwarts and never fail to put on a great show for
children and adults alike. In fact, just after this was taken the
troop broke out into an elaborate song and dance number..."
The UK
Garrison do their thang...
Mark - "We were thrilled
to have had the chance to interview Oscar winning costume designer John
Mollo. We had the good fortune to meet him at the National Space
Centre last year at Attack of the Garrison and he couldn't have been
more generous with his time, a real gent."
Double
Oscar winner John Mollo
Mark - "Yep, me on full
geek-out. Anthony Daniels has practically been there since Day
One, right through to the final shot of Revenge of the Sith and beyond.
With him voicing Threepio on The Clone Wars and other Star Wars projects
it seems he'll be around for a long time yet. It was a genuine
pleasure to meet him in person, and he was also very kind with his time
chatting to us for five minutes."
Mark
and Anthony Daniels
Mark - "The DeLorean from
Back to the Future. If there's a more iconic movie car than this
then I don't know what it is, and what a great idea to display it in the
barn setting Very cool and always fun to see it out and about."
The
Back to the Future DeLorean
Mark - "We met Warwick
Davies in 2007 at Celebfest in Sheffield and he kindly gave us his time
for an interview. It was very cool being able to go over, re-introduce
myself and get this cracking photo."
Lightsabre guest Warwick Davies
Mark - "Celebration
Europe aside, the most fun I have ever had at any convention is at the
annual SF Ball down in Bournemouth. These weary looking guys are
part of the team that organise it, and rest assured the Lightsabre team
will be present at both Reunion in Coventry this September and The Ball
next February."
Those
good people from SFB Events...and B remembered me!!
Mark - "The end of the
day and as we make our way back to the courtesy bus and car park N7 we
see one of the most lethal bounty hunters in the galaxy - Zam Wessell.
Luckily my disguise holds and she doesn't recognise me. Phew..."
Zam
Wessell arrives in Birmingham on the hunt
Mark - "Once again the
show was a great afternoon of nostalgia, star-spotting and bank-breaking
fun. There can never be enough good shows like this, and it's
always too long until the next one rolls around. Hurry up
November!"
