ragnarmorkai

True, but I’m allowing for the fact she’s going to want to freshen up and prepare herself for the photos. I suppose she might get some of the Diamonds done first.

Since Showmasters haven’t warned anybody on their social media or the app, Gina is apparently not arriving until 1pm. She’s then straight into photos and then Diamonds. So us with VQs are probably going to be Sh*t out of luck....

On the fence about Diamond pass, but very, very tempted. Couple of questions that will probably influence me: 1. In the talks, can we take pictures? I know there's normally no flash after first 5 minute type rule, but would non flash be allowed or is there a total ban on photos? Being near the front with Diamond would certainly help get good photos.... 2. I'm only coming to the event for one day, which will be the Sunday if I go Diamond, so assuming I pick a photo slot on the Sunday it would be no problem to get a photo and auto done on that day, even if my Diamond autograph number had been called on Saturday? Thanks.

Am I missing something from the Diamond pass, or are you potentially paying for things you might not want? Autograph + Photo + Talk = £170 So the Diamond pass is £20 (or maybe £25) more for dog tags, a print and a better seat in the talk. Is that correct?

Agree it should have been announced that he wasn't there. All aspects of the contract are "subject to work committments" though, which means they can change days whenever they like. I'm a veteran of these type of events, so I've got no problem with the "subject to work" clauses. Although normally these occur prior to the event, rather than during it. It was mostly annoyance that no-one from SM could have posted this fact on the boards Sunday night, as presumably they knew he had chosen to leave early. Especially since it seems a personal decision, rather than a "work" decision.

Thanks for that explanation, more than I found beforehand. I checked the forums before setting out this morning, and last night so even 5 minutes to update people would have helped. Just pleased I didn't go out and buy anything specially to get signed. :)

Wanted to meet him today, but it seemed he had decided to leave a day early. No sign of any warnings he would not be there, or info when I got there that he was not there. Shame, as he was one of the few I wanted (and I could only make today). Is it not part of a contract that guets should attend the full duration they are advertised for? It's one thing to not be there, but the lack of any warning/info was annoying.

I do wonder if someone read this forum Friday night and had a word in his or JCB's ear, as it seems that those who attended on the weekend seemed to get a slightly better response from the man. If this was the case then at least our issues from Friday may have helped some people anyway.

HMV Instore Events Check this link, it's about halfway down under "Firefly @ HMV".

Shatner aside, I enjoyed CM8. Erin and Gil were nice, and Tricia was lovely.

I thought from the guests I saw that was quite a good choice. Shatner even had a TJ Hooker picture! Personally I like to get the actor in character, mainly so that if I show the auto to someone they are more likely to recognise it. Especially if the actors wears a lot of make up like George Hertzberg, James Leary, Armin Shimerman etc.

Why is there this prevailing view on the Internet that newbies opinions are worth less than regulars? Just because someone does not have thousands of posts to their name, or registered that long, why should they count for less? Although I have been registered for 2 years or so, I have not posted that often. Does that mean when I do speak that my view is of lesser importance to the regulars? Surely the whole point of these forums is for EVERBODY to be able discuss SM events, both the positive (of which there is quite a lot) and the negative? Apologies if this upsets the "in crowd" but I'm just speaking up for free speech!

I vote JCB so that we can all mass boycott her table and point and laugh at her sitting there and signing for NOBODY!!! Plus if she was on a table she wouldn't be able to wander around barking out orders to everyone else!

If just getting the autograph is what this event means to you, then congratulations, because as you said it was a right result for you. However I think for a lot of people this event is about meeting the guests, and actually "meeting" them as supposed to seeing a bit of paper signed in front of them. Yes, I do want the auto's as well but it is nice to have at least some acknowledgment from the guests. Either a handshake, ask them how they are, they thank you for coming, tell them you enjoy their work etc. All of the other guests managed it (at least that we know of) yet the Shatner and JCB couldn't/woouldn't. If you want a fangirl experience see C4 and the Hobbit's that was bad. The only pressie I could see anyone giving Bill would be a new toupee. Maybe in the future SM could get big guests like Shatner to pre-sign some photos. And then for people like yourself who appear to just want the auto for a good price, could mail in to SM and get a signed photo back. A quick solution with no fangirls or anyone else speaking with the guest and delaying your place in the Q.

We are not complaining about anything and everything, as Shatner aside, I believe at least 95% of people were happy with the event and the other guests. The reason why you were able to see him so quick is because he rushed like hell through all the other people in front of you. He had an open Q with about 40 mins of starting, and I know they were handing out tickets in the 500's when he arrived. So the argument that people would have left with nothing to be honest doesn't hold water. Within a short period of time everyone that definitely wanted to meet him and got a VT to do so had. So if we assume 500 VT's and he spends 10 seconds per person that works out at just over an hour. Which considering he started about 1:45 would mean by about 3pm he would be open queue. Still plenty of time for those who felt like meeting him. I'm not overly fussed about a picture with him although I thought the ban on any photos even while you were in the Q waiting was ludicrous. Why not even allow that or have a crew person take a picture of you with him while he is signing like they did for Elijah? It certainly seems that your experience with Shatner is one of the few lucky moments of civility.

agreed i could see the 6 second sign and go routine a mile off. im just confused as to why everyone didn;t expect that anyway? 873992[/snapback] Probably becuase we expect some civility from a human being! Maybe we are spoilt with all our other guests, but the Shatner Money making machine was just rude. It was no more than seeing the picture shoved in front of him by his Rottweiler "manager" and then slid back to you. Yes, I'm sure he is a popular guest and we expected certain limitations later in the day as time started to run out. But to receive this treatment being one of the first 20 people to see him, that was just rude! He wasn't even signing his full sig, it looks like it was his speed sig which looks something like "B Shatner". Compare what he signed to day with some of the dealers photos and you'll see quite a difference.

I would say if you are willing to pay £25 and leave with a non-personalised signed picture then do it. If you are expecting a posed phot, a personalisation or even basic civility then I would leave it.

I second this opinion. I use this box and I can get all my autos in there and because it's quite deep the photos aren't squashed in together. I have used the hard plastic sleeves in the past and I had a bad experience with them and some of the metallic pens. If the ink isn't totally dry then it does tend to stick to the insides, but I reckon if you wait until they are totally dry and then put them in you'll be ok. But overall the box from Staples is a good solution to use for the day.

Erm, the people I was with got a bit of conversation and he even thanked them for coming! 873818[/snapback] nah mate, it's an urban myth...unless you actually saw it happen... 873820[/snapback] That is the truth, I saw it with my own eyes! 873823[/snapback] Was JCB on a toilet break at the time so he was allowed to speak?

£20

The Shatner - Guess he was wearing the baseball cap so he didn't have to pack the toupee. Majel Barrett - Very pleasant, open Q most days although looks quite a bit different from Mrs Troi :) Tricia Helfer - Wow! Very nice lady although she looks very different from her Cylon character but a highly recommend piece of eye candy for the collection. Erin Gray - Pity they didn't have any pictures of her in the white spandex space suit but very pleasant and still looks good Gil Gerard - Put on a few pounds since Buck Rogers, although watch out for his handshake it's like a vice with his huge hands. Very nice chap. Wasn't going to bother originally but decided to get the pair with Erin. Adam West - Had heard a few bad things in the past about his "people skills" but didn't have a problem. Polite enough, although he couldn't stand for pictures as he has a bad back. Plus he was late getting there today, for reasons unknown at the time. The Shatner aside it was a good event and no major issues with Q's or anything else.

Yep, I saw JM on the Monday of the last CM and although he was busy he still found time to thank me for coming. Miss Caitlin Brown? Her initials are JCB, you decide if they are ironically appropriate? Jumped up little......

Although I agree with your sentiments and always do my best not to cause a delay by having a chat with the actor with massive queues behind me, but Bill Shatner was a machine today. As we've already heard, he had signed a sack load of autos today and was an open Q within about 40 mins of arriving. That means people could walk straight up and get an auto, so that doesn't imply that there were thousands waiting today. Friday is always less busy so lets see some flexibility. I don't expect to hear his life story, or ask him about episode 22 of TOS and why he kept ripping his shirt. What I expect, and not unreasonably I think, is basic politeness. Either a "How are you?" or "Thank's for coming", or if it's not busy even a handshake, or even just to make eye contact when he hands the picture back signed. I don't think that's selfish or unreasonable. We all know bigger stars cause issues, and I remember finally getting to see Elijah Wood on the Monday of C4 I think it was. This man had been signing for 3 days, and fighting off hordes of screaming girls :) and yet he still found time to greet me and acknowledge my "custom" while signing. So just because they are bigger names should we expect a lower level of "service"?

:headscratch: He should have signed one autograph about every three seconds then .... 873665[/snapback] Yep, that would be about the right pace. It's easy to sign every 3 secs when you don't lift your head up and acknowledge the people who are giving you their money.

Vote here to describe your experiences of the Shatner cattle market (is that what the CM in CM8 stands for, Cattle Market?)