Rubbing Shoulders with the Hulk

This article originally appeared in Strangehaven issue #18, September 2005.

LONDON FILM & COMIC CON 2005

I was at the 2005 London Film & Comic Con at Earl’s Court (25-26 June). Not the sort of event I usually attend as either guest or punter; far too many minor actors from long-cancelled TV shows selling their signatures for some vastly inflated price and not enough comics-related talks or guests for my liking. In fact, the closest the 2004 event had to a comics guest was ’60s TV Batman Adam West, and as much as I loved that show, he’s actually not much to do with comics directly.

So it was with some suspicion that I greeted a formal invitation to attend as a guest, a mere week prior to the event itself. I decided to accept, mainly because I don’t often get invited to shows as a guest (i.e. expenses paid, as opposed to paying for table space which is usually the case); certainly none so close to home.

So close in fact, that I didn’t need a hotel room, making the journey from Leigh to West London in a little over an hour (what a beautiful drive it is along the Embankment early on a summer’s morning), and having the luxury of driving home for pizza on Saturday night to sleep in my own bed before whizzing up again on Sunday morning.

As it turned out, the organisers of the convention were making an effort for the show to live up to its name by putting greater emphasis on the ‘comic’ part of its title and invited a number of actual comic creators, including newly weds Leah Moore and John Reppion as well as their Albion artist Shane Oakley, V For Vendetta co-creator David Lloyd, Al Davison, David Hine, Phil Winslade, Mike Carey, Duncan Fegredo, Pat Mills (looking rather disturbingly like Jon Pertwee) and Brendan McCarthy with advance copy of his fab-looking Swimini Purpose.

Representing the new wave of British small press were Solar Wind and Future Quake. Elsewhere with their own booth displays were Daley and David, the creative team behind Brodie’s Law and Richard Emms with his new British line of APC comics.

The event was considerably enhanced (from my point of view) by access to a “green room” with assorted complimentary refreshments and the chance to rub shoulders with TV Hulk Lou Ferringo, Star Trek Voyager’s Kate Mulgrew, Hellboy Ron Perlman, Hobbit Billy Boyd and joy of joys, TV Hitchhikers Sandra Dickinson and David Dixon. You could spot the big celebrities, even if you didn’t actually have any idea who they were specifically. They had a kind of sheen about them. Even Elvira.

It was an (unexpectedly) enjoyable weekend and one which I hope to repeat next year.

[PHOTOS TO COME]
left: a big thumbs up for Strangehaven from David Dixon, aka the Ford Prefect from the original 1981 TV series Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
above: Leah Moore and John Reppion taking time out from signing copies of Wild Girl and Albion to hold Arcadia.
left: Dandy Duncan Fegredo.
right: Magnificent Mike Carey.
all photos by Gary Spencer Millidge