Elainec

Again, I've only skimmed through certain sections, so this may be a repeat of lots of other posts, but would add: 1) Look at the most popular guests from previous events (not just LFCC) and look at how many autos have been completed - eg people like Stan, Gillian A, David T, Karl U, etc and then look at a realistic number which you can pre sell. You should not just sell 000's of tickets "just because" - the guest should have a good experience too and that will often mean at least making eye contact and shaking hands with people, as well as plenty of breaks. Hopefully then, the guest wouldn't need to cancel things due to being tired, but it might be forced upon them by travel plans, etc which are unavoidable. Then on the day, hand out another sensible number of VT's - 1 per person - with the caveat that all pre-purchased tickets will have a priority. Pre-sold tickets, whilst it's great that a gold pass allows a person to enter a queue at any time of the day and they are guaranteed to get in, if a person with a VT has queued for hours and looks as though they will get through, only to be told "sorry mate but a gold pass person has just come into the queue and we're closing it after them" - I would be royally p****d off. This needs rethinking for major guests. 2) Restict the number of auto items per person where the guest is an A lister, eg reduce it to 2 items - perhaps 1 personalised (if wanted) and 1 not. This should be the same for ALL ticket holders/dealers. If you want more, you get a second VT and go through again. This would allow more people to meet the guest(s) and money is still being made - possibly more. 3) Have a better flow of information - having the wipe boards on the walls of the photo booths makes them pretty much impossible to see. Have different types of runners - people who move between the areas updating the pit bosses AND the people working there, plus people who can be miked up and just float around the event (not literally) with the latest details - eg roaming information posts. The staff, when asked questions, can then point to these people and say "go ask them" so that they can keep handing out tickets. Having an app is a great idea, but not everyone has a smart phone and/or can get a signal and of course if you are in talks or photo sessions you don't always have the time to check. Good idea though. 4) Have more staff/stewards and ask them not to bark at people - I know they need to be heard when asking people to move on, but they then need to tone it down when dealing with attendees in that area. Make them more visible and not standing just at the end of the barriered area so that if you want a VT you don't have to go hunting for them. Have a cut off point for where the queue will be stopped and have them there. Have another steward controlling the busier queues to keep people moving and stop queue jumpers. Where photos are allowed, they can also move people along for the same reason. Definitely need more stewards outside to control the queues and again stop queue jumpers - the difficulty is when friends are coming from all over and the fact that one person may get there early, but then other people meet up with them. 5) Stop people from sitting on the floor - it's dangerous, period! Some sort of area should be available, whether that's a talk area which isn't being used, or something else, there needs to be something. 6) Not sure about more expensive tickets for bigger guests - yes that would put severe restictions on things for some people, or it would mean that "hey we sold 500 tickets - let's get some more money and sell another 100" and this then means that those people who have bought the higher priced tickets could increase, thereby decreasing the experience for them because more people are buying the tickets. Having the gold passes get access a day earlier may not work because that assumes they can do that and/or travel on multiple days or stay over if all of the guests they want haven't arrived. 7) Only allow EB pre purchased to enter early - if necessary stagger it so that gold passes get in at 9.00am, then EB at 10am and then standard entry - as pointed out this would make the gold passes something better because they would have the opportunity to snag a load of autos early. Obviously some planning is required for photo sessions so as not to exclude standard entry tickets. Something like this would make the queuing outside easier to manage and the number of pre paid tickets could again be restricted to say 2000 per day - just plucking figures out of the air here. 8) DON'T cram people in for the photo sessions - most of the time you do not know the person in front or behind you and having someone breathing down your neck or feeling the heat off another persons body is gross. Quite simply the queues just need to have a better flow to them, they can be fast without the need to have everyone standing on each other's toes. Also, the photographer should allow the attendee the time to at least turn to face the camera and smile before they are whisked away. A lot of people get very nervous meeting the guests and they want to remember it - obviously if someone is having a chat then they need to be politely encouraged to get a move on. We are people - not cattle! There are a lot of simple things that can be done that will not cost anything, or won't cost a lot. Rather than over implicating things and making a load of false promises that either don't work - because they aren't executed properly or were just not practical in the first place - perhaps Jason and SM should take things back to the drawing board and ask themselves "if I were attending an event, how would I like to be treated and what would I like to see/do?" Elaine

I very rarely post on these threads because I find that they can often get out of hand and degenerate into mud slinging, which then means the whole thread is often closed or deleted, thereby serving no real service. I will also openly admit that I haven't read every post, so this may be a repetition, but my observations were: 1) Better liaison with the venue so that information such as "car park full", unless you've pre-booked, can be mentioned to attendees. The car park is always busy, but not to the extent it was this weekend. People then have the chance of travelling earlier to find alternative parking, using alternative methods of transport, or even choosing not to attend at all. Having the issues as soon as you arrive is not a good start, particularly when dealing with the grumpy person on duty. 2) More staff outside to control the queues, especially with an event this size. The security people were downright rude and grumpy from what I saw. People often ignored requests because of how they were spoken to, and a number of people queue-jumped because no one was monitoring things. There were also massive delays in getting people inside, which was often as a result of attendees not moving very quickly through the line - this again was because there was no one around to encourage them to move. More than once I thought the queue had been stopped because there was no one in sight, and then eventually the next batch of people sauntered around the corner. 3) When I eventually got in - despite having a pre-purchased EB ticket, I had to dash around getting my autos and to the 1 photo shoot I could do. The shoot was moved, and having looked on boards to see where I needed to be, I went and asked people in the queue if they were doing the same shoot as me, to be told no. Where were the stewards because I struggled to find one. When I did, the guy just directed me elsewhere because he clearly didn't know, which in turn ended up being to another steward who matierlised out of the middle of the queue, who then went to check and told me where I needed to actually be. My other photo shoot was missed because of the parking issue as I could only find somewhere for 4 hours - now you could argue that's not SM's fault, but knowing beforehand would have likely changed my plans. 4) The few stewards I came across - and it really wasn't many - were quite rude and shouted at people in a rather loud voice. As a person who has attended many events - both SM and other cons - and stewarded my fair share, I know that dealing with people can be very difficult as we are a fickle bunch. But shouting and barking orders does not make for a pleasant experience - on occasion it felt like they were giving back what they had received from attendees which is not the way to be - I personally get irritated when I'm shouted at and will give as good as I get which then exacerbates things. Attendees may have countless questions which may seem pointless and annoying, but if they don't know, who are they going to ask? A steward of course! It was stuffy on Saturday, it was crowded, which is going to make tempers fray just that little bit faster, but if a person chooses to volunteer, then they need to be prepared for all the grief that can go with it - and all the hard work involved, because it's not just about being in the vicinity of the actors. Special packages for bigger guests - brilliant if you can afford it, but not everyone can. How about handing out less VTs on the day and just advising people to keep checking, rather than getting their hopes up that if they have that all-important ticket in their pocket, they'll meet someone? Have pricing tiers, which will work in a similar fashion to a con, but for the bigger guests sell pre-purchased auto tickets - you have the gold tickets, but then allow x nr of general tickets to be sold. If it's the first time a guest has appeared anywhere and they are unknown for how quickly they will sign, then err on the side of caution as more tickets can be bought at the event. Don't cram loads of stuff in for the guests to do and then find they are too tired - despite what Stan and/or his people say beforehand, realistically the schedule that was up for him would knacker out the fittest person. Personally I've never liked the fact that you take the time to buy an EB and then on the day 100-200 people (or more) dash in first because they buy the tickets on the door. How about gold in first, EB bought and then after a set period of time, open up to EB buy on the door, following finally by standard entry. You at least feel as though it was worth buying your ticket beforehand if you get in early. More doors could then be opened, because from what I saw there were only 2, and they both weren't used because you only had 1 steward standing there and people instinctively headed for him. Having said that, thanks to a couple of friends and a very helpful steward - literally 1... - I did get all of my autos within my time frame, but I missed out on my pm photo shoot. Many of the stewards need to take a deep breath and not shout at people, but talk to them instead. More stewards and/or making those you have more visible and not having them hiding out of the way - I got asked multiple times where I got my VTs from and had to point to the steward who was not in the most obvious place and was often oblivious to the fact people were looking for them because they were chatting amongst themselves. Have more runners to allow better communication when photo shoots are moved and to keep stewards updated on changes. Don't over complicate things with changes that are made - often the simplest really are the best and most effective, and often cost less as well! I recognise many people were very happy - and that's great, but for those of us who weren't, the issues mentioned need to be addressed somehow. Not all of them fall on SMs shoulders, but there are still things which can be done to help attendees out. Sorry for the lengthy rant. Elaine

I have fairly low photo shoot tickets for both Gillian and Holly but there is a clash for their first photo sessions. I also have a photo shoot with Tom Skerritt which could mean I could drop into the 1.10pm Gillian photo shoot, but since I try to escape as early as possible after I've had any photos taken and collected any autos so that I can keep my parking costs to a minimum (a friend usually collects my printed photos for me), and since there is always a risk of delays (yes I know photos are more reliable at keeping to time than autos are) if I went into the Holly queue first, would I then still be allowed to join the Gillian queue. There is always a possibility that I could still be at the event for Gillian's second shoot, but I certainly won't be for Holly's, but I don't want to run the risk of having a long wait to get through the photo session and being stung for more parking than necessary. So my question is, worse case scenario is that I'm at the back of Holly's queue and don't get through until just after 10.00am - if I dashed across to join Gillian's queue would I be turned away and told to come back to the next session, even though I've got a low number? Cheere Elaine

They are not hidden, nothing has been posted yet. Jason is apparently still working on some guests, hence the delay. It will be up as soon as possible. Thanks - I wasn't suggesting it was hidden deliberately, just that I couldn't see it and that it might be contained in the middle of a thread somewhere. I can understand the delay, but from previous events the information was normally available and was just updated as/when there were any guest updates.

The information may be hidden somewhere, and usually it's on the same page as guest attendance information, but since we are now less than two weeks from the event, any idea when photo shoot times will be posted? It would be useful to know how long I will need to be at the event for. Ta muchly

Sorry I'm a little confused with the reply - as you mention that I can use my driving license (yes I will have the card I booked the ticket with) but then you say that I would need my passport just for registration - so I'm not sure whether I'll need it or not. Re my friend she does have limited Internet access but she can't email it to work because it's not allowed, I would normally print her confirmation off but we are travelling on different days and I won't see her until after the event has started. The other friends she is travelling with either don't have access to computers so they can't help either. With any luck our tickets will arrive in time, but it's starting to cut it fine for travelling to the event.

Bring your order print out and your passport instead. That will work too if the letter does not show up. Couple of quick queries for you: I don't tend to carry my passport around with me and obviously don't want run the risk of losing it whilst at the event. I do however normally have my driving license with me but it's not photo ID, will this be acceptable since I will be turning up with the confirmation email (since I haven't yet got my ticket) or the ticket if it arrives on time? I also have a friend who has not yet received her ticket and has no means of printing out the confirmation details prior to arrival on Friday - what should she do? Many thanks

Excellent guest, I don't think she's done a UK event since 2002, so will be great to meet her again. Excellent guest, I don't think she's done a UK event since 2002, so will be great to meet her again.

Is there a reason why there are no details to pre purchase photo shoots for this event yet? Also, when you look at the actual event website, only Teryl and Michael are listed as doing photos, with prices TBC. Does anyone have any idea when they might become available and if Sarah will also be doing a photo shoot? Ta muchly Elaine

Excellent guest, thanks SM - another auto to add to my SG-1 collection.

Excellent news, have wanted to see Sarah at a convention for a while.

I heard Sarah Douglas popped in briefly on Friday and would love to see her at a convention. Would also love to see Ellie Harvie again, particularly if she did some of her comedy routine as she is hilarious. In terms of new guests, I'd love to meet any of the actors who played the following (can't remember all the actors names): Lord Yu Zipacna Chronus plus Michael Adamthwaite all new guests to conventions in the UK.

Since my original feedback got deleted from another thread, I'll try again on this one although it will no doubt be a repeat of what other people have already said as I have not bothered to read through every single post. As many people have said, the venue was b****y cold and it might have been useful to have been informed that it was so open - whilst you don't expect a stadium to be the warmest of places, I cannot recall seeing anything which indicated it was practically outdoors and that people should bring coats etc. Thankfully I carry one in my car and was able to put that on, and then warn other attendees to bring one with them otherwise there would have been some very miserable people around. The guests I met were very nice, as usual, and since I got my autographs on Friday it obviously wasn't very busy and therefore nothing felt rushed. I didn't appreciate being "shushed" when entering the photo session area - we weren't even told why we had to be quiet and I have to admit that I did then shushing all my friends whenever they said anything afterwards - as usual a please or thank you goes a long way, but I have noticed from many previous SM events that very few of the stewards have these words within their basic vocabulary so I shouldn't really be surprised. Having to wait so long for the photos to come back on the Sunday and then being told we had to leave the building because the event had finished was just ridiculouse - we were moving, albeit quite slowly as we were looking at our photos, but again a please or thank you would have been greatly appreciated. At the end of day, I do generally enjoy the SM events because they tend to get some very different guests and overall it is expensive as you want it to be because it is down to each individual how many autos/photos they purchase. What annoys me every single time is the rudeness of the stewards and the general lack of understanding that being polite actually does go a long way towards someone actually doing what they are being asked to do. Don't get me wrong, there are some great stewards and certainly the lady looking after Ben's queue on Friday morning was lovely, but these people seem to be few and far between. I don't care whether the event is free or you have been charged £5 to get in, each person will generally respond to another person in a mirror fashion - if stewards want to be treated as human beings then they should treat the attendees in that way. SM I have said more than once that there are ways that things can be improved but one of my consistant moans has generally been about the stewards - at the end of the day, invariably these are the first people that an attendee deals with, whether it be to collect a VT, pay for an auto or just standing in a queue - if you continue to use people who don't know how to deal with other individuals it will do more harm than good. Stewards essentially have no idea who they are dealing with, or what connections to the actors a person may have, we could be family or friends with the person we are queuing to meet. Imagine the reaction of the actor when that person then relays a story about the rudeness of how they were just treated. Sort this problem out and you will go a long way to have a lot more happier attendees. If I continue to be treated without any respect that is exactly how I will respond, and this forum may not be the only place I add my feedback to. At the moment it is constructive, but if some of the stewards aren't spoken to about their general attitude problem (or the fact they need an attitude adjustment) my feedback, and no doubt other peoples, may not stay constructive. Elaine

It's unfortunate for anyone who has a flight or trains, etc booked just to see one guest. Like you, I'm fortunate that I will need to have my photo shoot ticket refunded. To my knowledge, Amanda has only been announced twice for a SM event and whilst she has not yet attended, her reasons are genuine for not being able to appear. The first time was because she was pregnant and it was obviously risky for her to fly and this time she will be directing Sanctuary - her website has announced that the director's schedule has only just been issued and this has therefore caused the conflict. Having met Amanda a few times I know how much she enjoys meeting the fans, so I would imagine does not like having to cancel her attendance at anything. Unfortunately, for those actors who are still working on a "live" show against something which has perhaps just finished or between films, etc it is often difficult to work things around their day job. Not the sort of thing people find particularly comforting, but at the end of the day that work must surely come first - SM, like most organisers, have always stated that attendance is based on availability, if the actor is working on a show or film, that would always be a priority. E

I ordered 3 photo tickets for Ben Browder on Wednesday (6 May) and as yet haven't received an automated reply to say the order has gone through. I have just checked my account details and the shop says that the tickets have been paid for, but I've not had confirmation. A friend of mine ordered her ticket at around the same time and has confirmed that she got notification a few minutes later - there isn't anything in my spam folder either as I have it set up to accept stuff from SM. When I ordered tickets for Amanda Tapping's photo shoot I did get a confirmation, in fact I just deleted it from my saved folder as I now have the tickets. Whilst on one hand I'm happy that my account with SM says the tickets have been paid for, it would still be nice to have that confirmation - once the tickets arrive I'll be even happier!! Many thanks Elaine

I had heard that Amanda might be involved with something else - charity related - whilst over for C15 but I really don't know how factual that is. As Queen Sindel suggested, until things are announced for filming of either Sanctuary or the two movies I wouldn't worry about whether or not she might attend C15. It's really not worth speculating about at the moment and I'm sure that SM will try and work something out if there looks as though there might be a risk over filming. E

Just to clarify my post - it is my belief that Amanda will be a very popular guest at C15. E

Yup, I think so

Based on what has happened over this last weekend, methinks Amanda might be a little busy over the C15 weekend. Elaine

I suppose picking up where several other people have had these names, here's my list (not in any particular order): Torri Higginson Christopher Heyerdahl Emillie Ullerup Ryan Robbins Robin Dunne Teryl Rothery Damian Kindler Martin Wood Mitch Pileggi Gillian Anderson David Duchovny Terry Farrell Mark Harmon David Boreanaz Emily Duschenal John Noble Jeri Ryan Although I wouldn't want all of those at one event as I wouldn't honestly be able to afford autographs from them all!! So I suppose my first pick would be to have the Sanctuary cast together with Amanda Tapping, although it would be cool to have Minnie and Terlene together in the UK...! Elaine

Since we have Amanda Tapping, it would be great to get some of the others from Sanctuary: Emily Ullerup Christopher Heyerdahl Robin Dunne Although I would love to see Teryl Rothery with Amanda as well. Elaine

Amanda is a fantastic guest and I'm already looking forward to meeting her not once, but twice next year. Elaine

I think it's about time we had a couple of ladies announced - like most tv shows I realise that the bigger proportion of cast was male, but there a good deal of ladies in the show, so here's hoping that if there is another guest for this event it won't be another chap. The fact that Sanctuary has now been renewed for another season means that it has become more unlikely that we might get Amanda at two SM events in the same year, and I know that Rachel is also due to appear at C15, so how about Torri back or Teryl - both are great fun on stage. Having said that one of the funniest people I have seen is Ellie Harvie who has a fantastic stand-up routine and would go down an absolute treat - can't remember her character's name but she has been in both SG-1 and Atlantis. E

I really can't remember who I voted for, other than Amanda Tapping, but I think one of them was Torri. Personally I'd love to see Amanda and Teryl Rothery on stage together which is supposed to be absolutely hilarious and has only happened once before in this country and to my knowledge only a couple of times elsewhere, so it would be quite a coup! Besides which, let's balance things out a little and have a couple of ladies announced for a change. E

I've met Rick - he's very shy, but a nice chap. I would love to meet him again. Elaine