100 replies to this topic

[SaRAWR!]

Before i comment i want to say that the whole weekend was amazing and i had the time of my life

1 tiny point though about the 'intimate encounters'

Perhaps next time, to make the system more fair ( rather than limited to those with lots of money) the number of each attendee's pass (e.g. st127) could be put into a giant tombola style draw, then the guest who is doing the encounter could pick how ever many "names out of the hat" and those would be the people who went into "intimate encounter" so that everyone is only entered once and everyone has the same chance of winning an encounter.

Cheers

Thanks for an awesome weekend xx  

[Persephone1]

But then you might have people winning who weren't interested in getting the intimate encounter. Auctioning any item is never fair on those with limited incomes, and we've all been there but I understand that the money raised from them goes to paying for guests and activities at future events which sounds like a great idea to me.

Maybe to keep people happy you could have a combination of the two ideas. Have 10 places at the encounter auctioned off and raffle off 2 places for those who don't want to bid - £1 per entry. Althought the raffle requires more in the way of admin than an auction, time which may be better used elsewhere.

[Princess83]

amyfinch, on Oct 21 2008, 01:26 PM, said:

goddessmaat, on Oct 21 2008, 01:57 PM, said:

Before I make my comment, just to say I really had a fabulous time and have already booked my ticket for the next one - but (there's always one lol) my one issue was with the cocktail party.

It was very crowded and very hot, some people did seem to be following the guests around like lost puppies, I think John did make a comment at one point to someone along the lines of "haven't I see you before" (and not in an amusing way!) We didn't get to meet Gareth, and yes by the time we realised, he had left so we didn't think that there was much point in saying anything. The only two guests we met were Kai and John, it seemed to be that they were being moved around the outside and since we were in the middle of the room we were treated somewhat like a traffic island.

Me and my friends saw this happening too.   We were under the impression the cocktail party might have been organised a bit more fairly, where people were put into groups and encouraged to STAY PUT rather than discreetly swimming around so as to 'coincidentally' bump into the guests again. My party stayed put and we were kind of annoyed by the amount of people deliberately positioning themselves in the path of John. Being considerate meant me and my friends only got to speak to Kai (he was my favourite though, luckily)!

(I'm not saying everyone did this, of course. 80% of the Gold members were wonderful and courteous!  )

I moved around a bit at the cocktail party but it wasn't to try and follow the guests about - it was to try and get some breathing space. I'm not saying that there wasn't anyone who wasn't deliberately trying to shadow the guests but I wouldn't assume that everyone who moved around was doing it for that purpose. It got very hot and stuffy in there and it was hard to get to a place where you weren't too crowded. Although I enjoyed the reception I agree that the room was simply too small for that many people and I'm not surprised to hear some attendees felt claustrophobic in there. It wasn't the best place to be if you aren't comfortable in a crowd.

Edited by Princess83, 21 October 2008 - 03:45 PM.

[reddragon]

QUOTE(Too Tall @ Oct 20 2008, 10:20 AM)


QUOTE(reddragon @ Oct 19 2008, 08:27 PM)

Yes it was a great weekend although slightly spoilt pm by lack of communication between crew members abou John Barrowman autos - but thats another story.

An excellent weekend nevertheless


I assume you got your John autograph? As far as I'm aware we got everyone through in the end. What was the mis-communication?




Yes I had mine and am very pleased with them especially when John asked his sister to sign my book as well.  

The Mis communication: I can't moan much because I had his auto but I did purchase extra autos for him at 11.15 on the Sunday and by the time I got back to the hall, the q had been shut. One crew member asked me to wait there and she would get them sent off and signed, 2 mins later the same crew said because I had already had one off him I was to go back for a refund.

So back I went for a refund - I was told at first that I couldn't have the refund and could give them in to be signed and when I explained what had happened they gave me a refund.

I know John had to go and I appreciate that but why wasn't the reception told to stop selling these spare tickets? They were still selling them at 11.30!


As I said apart from this I had an excellent weekend and will def. come to the next one. I ahd a great time

[Madeleine]

Great event, I'm hoping I can make it to Hub2.

I liked the care that went into Jack's Office and the '40s party decor. It was also nice to have all those free photos, to get our autographs on, and a nice choice of extras in the dealers room.

Good choice of guests: I know that how well the guests perform onstage is a bit beyond the organisers' control, but they seemed relaxed and well-looked after, which always helps.

I'll second the requests for a shedule in the welcome pack. As to the tick-box sheets on the wall, they would have been fine if they were about four times the size: they were perfectly comprehensible, just always surrounded by bodies.

I liked that the questions were for the most part asked by a staffmember. It's so much smoother that way.

It was very good value for money. But count me in with the people who'd have really liked to have an 'intimate encounter' but couldn't afford it. If a raffle were practical, I'd like that. So many of us would pay a few quid for a ticket, that you'd probably make more that way. This isn't a complaint or even a niggle, it's just what would be ideal for me.

Anyway, thanks, I had a really lovely time and the stewards were nice whenever I had a query.

[•°¤*ѕαв*¤°•]

ddgangel, on Oct 21 2008, 02:10 PM, said:

erykah, on Oct 21 2008, 01:33 PM, said:

showmasters, on Oct 21 2008, 01:04 PM, said:

"last party was a bit of a flop"

I'm gonna dispute this! The last night's party was not a flop for all of us! Once we started asking the DJ to play lots of cheesy stuff there was a good crowd of people on the dancefloor having a fantastic time!  

I did thank him afterwards, but I'd like to thank the DJ again for indulging a pissed up girl at that time of night on a Sunday. Thanks also to all the people I cajoled up onto the dancefloor. You were all awesome.  

The last night party was good. Especially Gareth singing and joining people on the dance floor even if it wasn't for long. Some of the songs could have been better at the beginning admittedly.

May be a band next time would be a good idea... but it was still a great highlight of the weekend

Yeh Sunday wasnt tht bad:) Gareth was around for ages and managed to speak to us for quite a long time :)
was funny wen he strted moshing with us on the dance floor, was hilare XD
Sat night was the best tho can't believe how much fun i've had tbh so there's no way I can complain  

[PlayfulHeartMonkey]

I have a query, not criticism, just a query...

Why were half the photo's we got in our packs made of card instead of photo paper?

I'm definitely not moaning in the slightest as it made a refreshing change. Just curious.

[catfish]

teewood, on Oct 21 2008, 03:53 PM, said:

Like most if not all!) attendees, my partner and I had a blast.  We signed on for Hub2 Sunday morning and are really looking forward to it!  

I do have a couple nagpoints -- Blackbird's already touched on one:  money for Intimate Encounters.  We, too, thought it would have been better if the money for those (and, indeed, for things at auction) had gone to charity.  That said, with things like the IEs going to the highest bidders, only the people with plenty of disposable cash can participate.  It would have been nice to have something special done as, say, a raffle to which anyone could apply for a small entry fee and the winners would be picked from a hat, so to speak, giving everyone a fairer chance.  

A medium position might be something like 10 for high bidders and 2 in a raffle so that people who can't pay big prices can have a go too  Just a thought..you can then either make sure of your place by bidding or take a chance on getting lucky.

[thefreckles]

karaoke_krazy, on Oct 21 2008, 03:33 PM, said:

amyfinch, on Oct 21 2008, 03:26 PM, said:

Me and my friends saw this happening too.   We were under the impression the cocktail party might have been organised a bit more fairly, where people were put into groups and encouraged to STAY PUT rather than discreetly swimming around so as to 'coincidentally' bump into the guests again. My party stayed put and we were kind of annoyed by the amount of people deliberately positioning themselves in the path of John. Being considerate meant me and my friends only got to speak to Kai (he was my favourite though, luckily)!

(I'm not saying everyone did this, of course. 80% of the Gold members were wonderful and courteous!  )

I stayed in the same place for the party but went and politely asked the crew to bring the guests over to us, which they did  

I did notice thought that when John came our way that the area suddenly got very crowded which did annoy me slightly as well and then the same people followed him.  Its not cool to hog the guests lol  

We moved a little at first as we also noticed they seemed to be going around the outside but then decided to more or less stay put and asked the crew members looking after them if we might meet them as we hadn't done so yet.  

When JB came to our group I was shoved/elbowed out of the way by two people and got pushed to stand almost directly behind his back where I could neither see him or hear what he was saying.  Immensely rude but I didn't want to cause a fuss and give a bad impression of the other attendees to the guests or ruin anyone else's evening so I just stayed quiet.  But I was rather appalled at this behaviour, I must admit! Otherwise, everyone else was really fantastic.

[Blackbird]

thefreckles, on Oct 21 2008, 12:57 PM, said:

When JB came to our group I was shoved/elbowed out of the way by two people and got pushed to stand almost directly behind his back where I could neither see him or hear what he was saying.  Immensely rude but I didn't want to cause a fuss and give a bad impression of the other attendees to the guests or ruin anyone else's evening so I just stayed quiet.  But I was rather appalled at this behaviour, I must admit! Otherwise, everyone else was really fantastic.

That happened to a member of the group I was in, as well. She got shoved to the back by people who hadn't previously been standing with us, and I had to bring John's attention back to her to make sure that she got her rightful time. Very bad behaviour on the part of those who elbowed her out of the way, I thought.

[karaoke_krazy]

Blackbird, on Oct 21 2008, 06:11 PM, said:

thefreckles, on Oct 21 2008, 12:57 PM, said:

When JB came to our group I was shoved/elbowed out of the way by two people and got pushed to stand almost directly behind his back where I could neither see him or hear what he was saying.  Immensely rude but I didn't want to cause a fuss and give a bad impression of the other attendees to the guests or ruin anyone else's evening so I just stayed quiet.  But I was rather appalled at this behaviour, I must admit! Otherwise, everyone else was really fantastic.

That happened to a member of the group I was in, as well. She got shoved to the back by people who hadn't previously been standing with us, and I had to bring John's attention back to her to make sure that she got her rightful time. Very bad behaviour on the part of those who elbowed her out of the way, I thought.

Well in our group there was a women in a wheelchair who had been wating for John to come past and people stood in front her! However once i made a quiet comment 'thats so wrong' they apologised and moved so possibly didnt realise they had done it...  I probably would have been shoved out the way but im a girl who stands her ground  

[blaid drwg]

I cut my arm on my badge as well.
Cause I wanted to get as much sleep as possible I didnt really go to the first two, I was however there till the end of the third and had a brilliant time!
I thought the Autographs and photos were really well orginised i felt confused at first but once i got the hang of it, it was hectic but understandable, for so many things going on showmasters did amazingly!

[starfighter]

catfish, on Oct 21 2008, 01:40 PM, said:

Couple of comments.  A few more than 2 people didn't get autos for some.  I didn't get Lachlan's but on the other hand I freely admit that was my choice as the only time I could have got it cos of photoshoots and stuff was by leaving either John or Gareth's talks and that was never going to happen.  My choice, Lachlan was there so I can't complain really.

i got Lachlan`s auto between talks as there was time between each talk. The numbering system works like collectormania once your group had been called you could tag on to the end of the queue.

As for the IE`s i was going to bid 50p and a pint for Kai

No problems with the schedual over the weekend once i had worked out what group i was in. Was a bit miffed when Gareth and Kai left our table after being hounded by a few over zelous people , but these things happen.

Personally i think we should be congratulating Jason and the crew for doing a great job. It doesn`t matter how well an event is run someone will always find something to complain about.

Great job Jason see you at the next one

Mick

[thefreckles]

showmasters, on Oct 21 2008, 01:04 PM, said:

"If flash is only going to be allowed for 1-2 minutes, then that is what should be said on the website"

we it did say this on the site, but as we put in very good lighting for the stage there was no need for flash photografy and as it is very hard on the guests and as we all want them to do more stage stuff this i think worked well, we do not stop people taking photos so just take the flash off (and we will amend the web site)

*snip*

"Cocktail party was horribly crowded and such a shame there's nowhere to sit down"

well i worked the party and all the main people worked it to make it work well we were there to see every one got to meet the guests we were all there and if any one had a issues at this party then i wish that thay would had come up and say at the time , as what i said at the opening seromy  we cannot fix things after the event so do say if you have an issue, i must say i did not see any one that was unhappy at the time or after the party and i have lots of people say it was great ,so i think this went very well.

*snip*

Next year we also plan to have an organizers panel at the end of the event so you can ask us questions at the event and we can learn what you liked and dislikes over the weekend

*snip*

thank you all so much

yours

jason and the crew

Thank you for taking the trouble to feedback to us so quickly.  Just going to address a few of the points I mentioned (not all, don't worry!)  

Re. flash photography.  I don't recall seeing anywhere on the website the 1-2 minutes but it is good you will be changing things in future so no one ends up being as immensely disappointed as I was by this.  Not what I thought I had booked!  I do disagree in thinking that 5 minutes flash would be too much for (most) guests to cope with and am very, very sad to see to read this.  Heck, I'd be just about happy with 3 minutes but this is just way too short!  The most severely resticted flash time limits I know about elsewhere are 5 minutes (with most allowing 10 -15, if restricted at all).  This has beyond disappointed me as I rather fear Chevron 7.2 will now be my last ME event (unless you ever get a decent selection of SGA guests again).  There is no way I'm going to pay for Gold if all I get is 90 odd seconds, which would traslate to maybe 4 or 5 photos with no guarantees that any one of them would be good (for example, none of the ones I took of JB at the weekend were what I would consider any good, despite the fact that I sat on the first row and used a dSLR with external flash).  Just pointing and shooting and hoping for the best doesn't work for me   Heck, I'd pay the extra money for the Gold ticket without the party, photos etc. if it meant I got a seat at/near the front and 5 minutes or more of decent flash photo time!  And I'm not exaggerating there!  The opportunity to get good shots in a legal, non-obtrusive way where actors are expecting it means that much to me.

Re. the Coktail Party. It wasn't an 'issue' with that cocktail party, rather a suggestion as to how it might be further improved    Things got a little squashed and hot and you did help alleviate things by opening some doors but there wasn't much else that could have been done there and then hence we didn't feel the need to say anything as we knew we could voice suggestions on this forum.  I'm thinking more for people I know who are coming to Chevron 7.2 and one of them has a mobility issue and standing around for at least an hour like that with nowhere to sit would be very difficult for them.

Re. the Organisers' Panel.  Excellent idea!   It is nice to see that you are willing to listen to us, even if we may not like what comes from it !

[Madeleine]

A minor thing, but it can't do any harm to ask, I hope...

Tall people have no idea how much short people miss. When people are standing, I reckon no one under about 5'2" can see much of what's going on at the front, no matter where you stand.

So if there's another sketch, like the splendid one we had the other night, can you ask people to sit? I know it'd mean sitting on the floor, but for those of us who are short or wheelchair-bound it'd be much nicer.

Edited by Madeleine, 21 October 2008 - 06:19 PM.

[Tina]

Madeleine, on Oct 21 2008, 07:15 PM, said:

A minor thing, but it can't do any harm to ask, I hope...

Tall people have no idea how much short people miss. When people are standing, I reckon no one under about 5'2" can see much of what's going on at the front, no matter where you stand.

So if there's another sketch, like the splendid one we had the other night, can you ask people to sit? I know it'd mean sitting on the floor, but for those of us who are short or wheelchair-bound it'd be much nicer.

That's a good suggestion as my mum stayed sitting at the table because one she as arthritis and two was scared to leave her seat incase someone else occupied it.  This happened at the party Friday night and the lack of chairs Saturday night meant a lot of people standing.

[TurkFox]

Madeleine - agreed, someone over six feet stood directly in front of me and due to there being quite tall people on either side of her, even leaning round meant I couldn't see much. If you know you're really tall, have some courtesy and don't stand at the front! That's my main criticism, and I know it's nothing to do with the organisers - just hoping that the evil tall people in question read it and get the hint for the future.

Edited by TurkFox, 21 October 2008 - 06:33 PM.

[sazzra]

My only 'complaint' was the trying to see which groups had been called on the tiny bits of paper. I also heard whinging about missing photos because the people didn't know they'd been called (weird, as they were standing right in front of the guy who yelled 'last call for photos' but there you are). To solve both at one stroke, how about mobile whiteboards with the current photo and auto groups on? They don't have to be huge, but you'd see those more easily and not be looking for ticks.

I also agree about the Saturday night skit - it would have been better seated as I couldn't see well and I was 6' in my heels! Also, how about something like a video competition (as in fan vids/cartoons/music videos) on a loop in another room? Would give people something to watch during down time and competitions are always fun. Stage quizzes are a laugh too - guests plus one attendee on each team, stupid Torchwood related questions (like miming names/creatures), you get the idea. If not, shout, I have the whole thing stored in my head from 'elsewhere'  

I personally thought the cocktail party was OK. I'm one of those weirdos who doesn't feel that they have to talk to a guest to have their evening completed, and actually walked away when the guests headed my way so I didn't get caught in the crush of hangers on. Maybe tables are the way to go? Don't really like the idea but it would stop the minority of people who get blinded and don't realise that they're being rude and pushy (and those that do realise and just don't care!)

I really have very, very little to even comment on, it was such a great weekend. Though it's weird how my pics with Malcolm are slightly blurry and I'm an even, matt beige while the ones with the woman have highlights and are nice and sharp

[Blackbird]

Excellent idea, Madeleine. I'm tall(ish), and was standing fairly far back, but I really thought that people should have been asked to sit, in deference to everyone's sight lines.

Edited by Blackbird, 21 October 2008 - 07:23 PM.

[Southernyacht]

Definitely agree about the tall people  

This was our first con - and despite an initial 5-10 minute panic of trying to work out where/what/how   we soon got into the swing of things. And managed to get everything signed, photo shoots, talks etc.

What we really liked:

High stage
Big boards showing which groups had been called
The post-it system for autographs - simple but effective
Plenty going on - we didn't really seem to be hanging around and the days flew by

What we didn't like so much

Being told to squeeze up close in a queue - when believe me - there wasn't any further to squeeze up   After about 6 times of being told that - it made us feel like we back in school.  
It seemed like a few people in front of us didn't know they weren't allowed to bring bags etc into the photo shoot. So that seemed to cause a lot of confusion.
And Captain Jacks office! Maybe its just us - but we didn't realise it was open to all and so we didn't visit it - so hopefully we'll get piccies instead.

But we still had a      time. Roll on next year.....

Edited by Southernyacht, 21 October 2008 - 07:11 PM.