Event Reporters – Ben Gummery & Lewis Mainwaring
This was our first ‘con’ as ‘Official Press’ thanks to Showmasters !!!! This was our third overall convention (having attended CFCC ’13 & LFCC Summer ’14). Held at the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena for the third time in a row.
Guests that attended today’s event included:- Harry Melling (Harry Potter Film Franchise), Catrin Stewart (Doctor Who – Revived series), Finn Jones (Game of Thrones), Jeremy Bulloch (Star Wars Film Franchise) & Sylvester McCoy (Doctor Who – Classic series & The Hobbit Trilogy).
Whilst not attracting as many guests as some other conventions, it was still fairly busy throughout the day – and attracted a large number of visitors from near and far.The number of Cosplayers attending the event has clearly increased since CFCC began in 2013.
There was also ‘a place for all things Comics’ in the Comic Zone and an expanded Gaming Zone for video gaming fans – located on the higher levels of the arena.
There was the usual varied range of stalls offering something for everyone, we came home with this official Breaking Bad ‘Pink Teddy-bear’.
The staff where all friendly, professional and we felt the event was well run by all staff (and Showmasters).
We found the atmosphere to be more enjoyable and less chaotic than our previous convention (LFCC Summer ’14).
The first guest we met was Doctor Who legend, Seventh Doctor – Sylvester McCoy.
He was friendly, approachable and as eccentric as his character.
We had our Doctor Who: Regeneration Limited Edition Boxset signed.
This boxset we later had signed by the wonderful Bonnie Langford (Mel – Companion to the Sixth and Seventh Doctors).
Previous signatures are Colin Baker (Sixth Doctor) and Paul McGann (Eighth Doctor) – from LFCC Summer ’14.
Later in the day we were able to secure a brief Q&A with Sylvester McCoy about Doctor Who and The Hobbit.
Throughout the day there was a number of free talks and panels available for all attendees on a first come first served basis – but there was plenty of seating available.
We attended three of the talks/panels throughout the day.
The first was with Star Wars and Convention legend Jeremy Bulloch, who entertained us with tales from the sets of Star Wars, James Bond, Doctor Who and his experiences as an actor throughout his career – he even had members of the audience up on stage, reciting classic lines from Star Wars. See the full talk here.
Our second talk of the day was with various Doctor Who cast members sharing their experiences of working on the show and being a part of the Doctor Who universe. These were Catrin Stewart (Jenny), Richard Franklin (Captain Mike Yates), William Russell (Ian Chesterton) and Bonnie Langford.
These guests have worked with various doctors throughout the shows 51 years – from the very first episode ‘An Unearthly Child’ (William Russell) right up until this current season ‘Deep Breath’ (Catrin Stewart).
The Q&A sparked some very entertaining and insightful discussion such as mishaps on the set, but also covered more poignant topics such as Richard mentioning on several occasions working with the late Jon Pertwee (Third Doctor) and Nicholas Courtney (Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart).
They also discussed at length more recent topics such as ‘cross-gender’ regeneration (i.e. The Master regenerating into Missy – currently played by the mesmerising Michelle Gomez) and the suitability of the show for children due to increasingly ‘scary’ villains and plots.
We rounded off our day with the final talk from Sylvester McCoy. This talk was the highlight of the convention for us. Sylvester amazed the crowd by engaging in Q&A not from the stage (as traditionally done) but by going around the room himself with a microphone for the entire length of the panel.
He entertained the crowd and had everyone in hysterics with stories from Doctor Who and his other works such as his involvement with The Hobbit Trilogy with his trademark wit and charm.
He even played the spoons as he famously did as The Doctor – thanks to a member of the audience pulling them out during an anecdote.
Sylvester McCoy is a true gentlemen and we can truly say it was a pleasure to meet him and every other guest we have interacted with during the show.
The next Cardiff Film & Comic Con is on Sat 21st – Sun 22nd of March ’15 at Cardiff Motorpoint Arena with the first guest already announced Kristanna Loken (T-X in Terminator 3). For more details visit Showmasters.
See you next year 🙂
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