Apologies from Showmasters

[Spike_1975]

Ther is no need to apologise for the hard work these guys do, i have friends who work at these shows and they work bloody hard, its not easy when you have people screaming at you all day.

Yes todays show was just as busy and i did see all the hobbits, Elija and Dom both stayed longer then they were going to so they could try and cover all the tickets.

It annoys me that most people who complain are the ones who always turn up at around 1pm and expect to be able to push in front of the lines just cause they have come from miles away ( a very common excuse i heard being shouted at the guys working at the show.)

When you have actors from one of the biggest films in history you know you have to get there early, the majority of fans waited patiently, i was there from 10am didnt see elijah or dom til 5:30pm but i waited my turn, didnt shout or scream and i got what i wanted.

Overall it was a great day out, thanks to Jason and the team for a great day.

[Bohan]

Look enough is enough people have voiced their opinions why doesn't everyone just leave things now and wait for showmasters to make a post on the subject.

 

I am a little annoyed that showmasters opened the doors way before the announced opening times but as the hobbits were not my priority i'm not that bothered.

[Enajohn]

Just got back from C4 (Monday) and logged in for the first time this weekend and I am gobsmacked that there have been so many complaints. I just want to add some points and say that there should be absolutely no apologies for the way the event was run as in my humble opinion, for an event for which this the 5th outing, having 4 of the most prominent film actors around at present is truly unbelivable and an absolute credit to the Showmasters team.

 

I, too, was disappointed yesterday when I was too late to see any of the LOTR stars (except with my face hard pressed up against a window!), and I was lucky enough to get back today and meet them.

 

- Remember that this is organised by a very dedicated and very friendly team of people who appear to have worked their socks off for us, the general public.

 

- This is a FREE event!

 

- The guests can only sign at a certain speed and so it obviously doesn't matter how early the tickets are given out as its first come first served (as it should be)!

 

- The big LOTR guest could only make one weekend day due to New Line Cinema comments and were amazingly warm and receptive (due in no small part to the way Showmasters treated them and the reception from the fans)

 

If for one am extremely grateful to showmasters for the organisation, for their help and not to mention this great website. Agree there will be disappointment and understand that, but if you keep criticising and having a go, the public spiritedness of Showmasters will go and Collectormania will disappear.

 

I, for one, do not want that.

 

Thanks again Showmasters for succeeding where others fail.

[Bohan]

This is a FREE event!

 

i love collectormania and showmasters but i hate it when people keep talking about this event being free. It's great of course that we meet all the strars but events where you pay an entrance fee remember you get stuff such as - all night parties, free autographs, screenings, guest talks that go on for hours and various other great things.

 

Remember i am the longest serving member on this board and love showmasters so please people do not take any digs at me for that comment.

 

I also want to add that showmasters cannot be held responsible for bad organising, it's just that the turnout was amazing and the venue is not really suitable for an event of this scale.

 

I cannot wait for london comic con though, 750 dealer tables, guest talks and more guests than there are at a collectormania. This will be huge!

[toiletbowl]

Totally agree, this event was a great success in my opinion.......as I have said, I have never been before and was chuffed to meet the people I did, all are great stars in my opinion and unfortunately this whole debate is getting overtaken with the hobbit argument, i really wanted to meet all of em, as well as the buffy duo, but didn't manage it. I did however meet 5 other great stars and I don't think that any of them should be overshadowed in any way......

 

ben

[Hr Nielsen]

Can you send a link to London Comic Con ??? I have been looking for it but cant find info on it .. maybe Im just not looking the right place

 

Hr N.

[English_Rose]

hi this mite be long so i appologise

 

the only thing that i think showmaster did good was getting the guests they did to attend like the big stars from lord of the rings,and then after that it was all down hill.

 

how can you say no one could have forseen how big it was guna be having lord of the rings people there

HELLO have you not herd of the LOTR the book, its has been around for more than 20 years, which also has a massive fan base just from the book alone not to metion that its a major film hit which has gained evern more fans. ( ARE YOU STUPID OR WHAT ?) YOU ALSO SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT FROM THE DEMAND OF THE HOBBITS AND LOTRS CAST FROM THE FORUM THAT ALOT OF PEOPLE WERE GUNA COME.

 

 

AND I DO AGREE THAT THE ORGANISATION AND COMMUNICATION HAS GOT WORSE AT C3 IT WAS PETTY POOR AND IT WAS BETTER TO ASK THE PEOPLE IN QUES AND STUFF WHAT WAS GOING ON AND WERE TO GO OR GET STUFF THAN THE STAFF 1 COS THEY DIDNT NO ANYFIN OR 2 COS YOU COULDNT FIND ANYONE.

 

AND IT WAS WORSE AT C4 I WENT ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY AND WHEN I CAME ON SUNDAY I COULDNT FIND ANYONE TO FIND OUT STUFF LET ALONE MOVE COS SO MANY FANS oh and the fact that it was a bussy shopping center people come one, you needed to like section it of from shoppers where the celebs were.

 

DID YOU EVEN PUT MUCH THOUGHT INTO THIS???????????? i do like that is in milton kynes cos i only live and 1 or ao away but the shoppers over crowd it they dont want an autograph they just want a look, where as we will pay.

 

I THOUGHT IT WAS OUT OF ORDER THAT ON THE SUNDAY TICKETS WERENT SUPOSE TO GO ON SALE TILL 10 OR NINE AND THEY HAD ALL GONE BEFORE 8. 30 YER THAKS FOR TELLING US THAT. MITE WANT TO THINK AND METION THAT NEXT TIME.

 

I WAS EXTREAMLY DISSAPIONTED 2DAY (MONDAY) COS I WAS HAVIN SUCH A GOOD DAY EXCEPT FOR THE GETTING UP AT 5.30 GOT MY TICKET FOR ELIJAH FINALLY AND THEN SPENT MOST OF THE DAY TALKIN AND FLIRTING WITH SALA BAKER WHO IS SUCH A NICE PERSON AND IS HOT MAY I ADD. THEN WENT TO QUE UP FOR DOM AND A MAN AT THE SIDE WHO TOOK PICTURES SNATCHED MY CAMERA OUT OF MY HANDS AND MY PICTURE AND HAD CHUCKED MY PICTURE ON THE TABLE WHILE I WAS STILL IN THE QUE SO HE SIGNED IT WHILE THE GIRL IN FRONT WAS STILL WITH HIM SO I DIDNT GET TO SEE HIM AND PICKED UP MY PICTURE AND WAS TOLD GET OUT OF THE WAY SO I DIDNT SEE HIM, WELL A LITTLE WHILE IN THE QUE BUT LUCKILY FOR ME THE MAN ACTUALLY GOT A PICTURE OF DOM IN IT UNLIKE WHAT HAPPEND TO MY FRIENS WHO GOT A PICTURE OF THERE BAG AND FOOT, WHICH I DONT THINK SHE WANTED AND THEY ALL WERE TOLD TO GET OUT OF THE WAY AND GO AND THIS MAN WAS VERY RUDE (marc i think was his name sorry if it wasnt you, if your fat it was you)

SO THAT UPSET ME COS HE REALLY ANOYED ME COS HE HAD RUINED MY DAY AND I HADDNT HAD MUCH SLEEP IN 3 DAYS NO FOOD SO I WASNT VERY STONG MINDED WHICH I USUALLY AM AND STARTED TO CRY COS I THOUGHT THIS CANT BE HAPPENING COS NOW WE HAVE TO QUE FOR ELIJAH AND IVE GOT RED EYES AND A RUNNY NOSE AND I REALLY WANTED TO MEET HIM THE MOST, BUT COS I WAS UPSET MY FRIEND WHO KINDA KNEW HIM WAS 2 INFRONT TOLD HIM I WAS UPSET SO WHEN I GOT TO HIM HE I WAS UPSET AND HE ASKED ME HOW I WAS AND I SED NOT VERY GOT SO TOLD HIM WHY AND GOT A KISS AND 2 HUGS FROM HIM AND HE SCREMED FOR ME AND DID HIS SWEET GIGGLE. SO I GUESS IF THAT MAN HADDNT RUINED MY DAY THAT WOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED BUT I COULDNT ENJOY IT AS MUCH COS I WAS STILL UPSET EVEN THO I GOT A KISS FROM LIJ WHICH DID MAKE ME HAPPY. OH AND I ALSO GOT A REALLY GOOD PITURE OF HIM WHEN IM TELLING MY STORY WHY IM UPSET COS HE LOOKS LIKE HE REALLY CARES AND FEELS SORRY FOR ME. BUT STLL THATS NOT THE PIONT.

 

I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU HAD LOTS OF PEOPLE TO GET THROUGH BUT WE DID PAY 20 POUND FOR A NAME ON A PHOTO WHICH IS QUITE ALOT TO BE TOLD TO GET OUT THE WAY AND NOT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE A PHOTO TAKEN WITH THEM, WHICH IS MUCH EASIER AND QUICKER IF WE TAKE IT OUR SELVES BUY HOLDING IT INFRONT OF US THAN THEM TRYIN TO WORK OUT HOW TO WORK THE THING.

SO I DONT MIND THAT IT WAS BRIEF BUT I DO MIND THAT IT WAS RUDLY DONE WHICH ONLY STARTED TO HAPPEN AT AROUND 400 COS THEY PANACKED THINKING THEY WOULDNT GET THROUTH TO 1000 BY THE END OF THE DAY.

 

AND HOW COMES LITTLE KIDS ARE ALOUD TO SPEND LIKE 5 MIUTES I MEAN 5 MINUTE WITH THEM AND THEY DONT EVEN NO WHO THEY ARE AND WONT EVEN REMEBER COS THEY WERE TO YOUND AND THE ADULTS GET 15 SEC HOW UNFAIR IS THAT???

 

i would only come back to c5 to see stars even tho i really dont want to cos of the organisation or lack of it

i think all of the lord of the rings people should be able or asked to come back.

 

SORRY IF ITS BORRIN AND IF MY SPELLING ISNT GOOD ITS COS IM ANGRY AND TRYING TO WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN B4 I FORGET.THIS IS MY OPINION SO DONT HAVE AGO AT ME, I DONT HARDLY EVER COMPLAIN OR GET ANGRY AT THIS KINDA STUFF SO IM NOT ONE OF THOSE ANNOYING PEOPLE WHO COMPLAIN ABOUT EVERYTHING.

 

LOVE ME XX

[English_Rose]

FROM MY LAST POST THAT DOENST MEAN I WANT COLLECTOMAINA TO GO AWAY BUT I WANT YOU TO LEARN FROM YOU EXPERIENCES FROM PAST SHOWS WHICH YOU DONT SEEN TO DO SO WE ARE COMPLAINING TO HELP YOU FOR YOUR OWN BENIFIT SO YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE IT BETTER. EVEN THO IS SEENS LIKE WE ARE HAVING A GO.

 

AND IM SURE WE DO ALL APPRICIATE WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO DO COS I AM EVEN THO IT MITE NOT SOULD LIKE IT COS I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER EVER MEET ELIJAH WOOD SO THANK YOU.

 

JUST LEARN FROM UR MISTAKES AND EXPERIENCES PLZ

LOVE ME XX

[Cathyvicki]

Aww it sounded like a bit of a nightmare!

I still wish I was there though!

[illusionist]

well I just got back from today [mon] and to be honest although they did a lot of signings [Elijah and Dom] they rushed like hell at the very end. Up until about 600-700 they were allowing many sigs and photos etc, then realised [way too at the last minute] that this would not work and then limited to one sig, elijah hadly looked up to even see anyone was there and then gone, 20 quid for that. joke. Ok, so they should hve known since they did this on Sunday that it would not work, and limit it to 1-2 sigs each and no photo with him, just of him signing, then all day it would have gone quicker.

 

When groups of 4-6 girls want their photo with him all in different places etc it takes ages. I timed at one stage around 3-4 pm it took him nearly 3-4 minutes to get one signature out of the way - NOT GOOD! Also some, not all, of the c4 'staff' going through the lines quicker does not help things move along.

 

I managed to get 1 sig from EW and spend about 10 seconds in front of him.. Better than some i know. Oh and we turned up today to get tickets at about 10am [late i know] but got tickets to all hobbits

[SALEMSLOT]

This is my last post on this subject and I hope it goes away soon. Personally I thought the event was very good and enjoyed it immensely. I did meet all the hobbits, chatted to them, got autographs and photographs. All this and I only went with friends intending to do a bit of shopping at the trade stands. I apologise if this is rubbing anyone's nose in it but that's how it happened. Myself and friends did arrive at 06.00 though.

 

And by the way, after meeting and talking to Andy Serkis, I honestly believe the man is a god. An extremely nice fellow indeed.

 

[Aleksa]

This is my last post on this subject and I hope it goes away soon. Personally I thought the event was very good and enjoyed it immensely. I did meet all the hobbits, chatted to them, got autographs and photographs. All this and I only went with friends intending to do a bit of shopping at the trade stands. I apologise if this is rubbing anyone's nose in it but that's how it happened. Myself and friends did arrive at 06.00 though.

 

And by the way, after meeting and talking to Andy Serkis, I honestly believe the man is a god. An extremely nice fellow indeed.

 

I hate you SO much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[showmasters]

Re... English Rose

 

Hi

 

I am no doubt the one who hurried you through Dom's queue today. I can only apologise if i upset you. You are quite right that at that sort of time we were getting worried that we would not get everybody through and it was rotten luck that you suffered from that. I really can't remember being rude to anyone but I am really sorry if i was. It was a problem occasionally when someone stayed longer and the next persons picture got put in front of Dom before they had moved away. I normally made sure the person still got to go up to see Dom and say hello and get a pic. It was all very rushed some of the time but we were really only trying to move things so as not to let anyone with a ticket down. We did , only just , manage that.

 

All I can say is sorry you got the bad end of it and I am glad you got a nice pic with Elijah. If you do come to C5 please try to find me and remind me of this and i will make it up to you somehow.

 

Andy

 

[Bohan]

www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com val kilmer, adam west and sisqo's son from deep space 9 ave all been annonced so far.

[Rachiepachie2001]

Re... English Rose

 

Hi

 

I am no doubt the one who hurried you through Dom's queue today. I can only apologise if i upset you. You are quite right that at that sort of time we were getting worried that we would not get everybody through and it was rotten luck that you suffered from that. I really can't remember being rude to anyone but I am really sorry if i was. It was a problem occasionally when someone stayed longer and the next persons picture got put in front of Dom before they had moved away. I normally made sure the person still got to go up to see Dom and say hello and get a pic. It was all very rushed some of the time but we were really only trying to move things so as not to let anyone with a ticket down. We did , only just , manage that.

 

All I can say is sorry you got the bad end of it and I am glad you got a nice pic with Elijah. If you do come to C5 please try to find me and remind me of this and i will make it up to you somehow.

 

Andy

 

Awwe, that's quite sweet of you!

 

Cheers!

[English_Rose]

hi

 

i realy dont want to accept your appology cos im still angry but the fact that you actually appoligised to me means i have to, so i hate you for that.

thank you for your appology.

i would have liked to have gone back round but people would have thought i was pushing in to have another go but i never had my go in the first place

 

you could almost make it up to me if you make sure you get lord of the ringd people again like elijah , dom ( who i actually get to see) and the rest oh and specially sala baker cos i loved chatting to him. hes so sweet

 

seeing as you did ruin my day i dont think that is too much to ask for not that im demanding

[LilElfGirl]

RIGHT IM GONNA HAVE MY SAY

 

FIRSTLY I HAVE JUST GOT HOME FROM THE EVENT HAVING WORKED ALL DAY SUNDAY AND MONDAY ON A VOLUNTARY BASIS FOR SHOWMASTERS BECAUSE THEY ARE GREAT GUYS AND GALS. I JUST THOUGHT I WOULD BRING A FEW THING TO THE ATTENTION OF SOME PEOPLE WHO HAVE POSTED I WILL NOT NAME NAMES BUT HERE GOES.

 

1) IF YOU HAD READ THE PAGES OF THIS WEBSITE YOU WOULD HAVE SEEN THAT A VIRTUAL QUEUING SYSTEM WAS IN PLACE FOR THE MORE POPLUAR GUESTS I.E ELIJAH DOMINIC SEAN ANDY KRISTANNA AND ASH THIS WAS WELL INFORMED YOU NEEDED A TICKET IF YOU CANT BE BOTHERED TO READ THEN THAT IS YOUR PROBLEM NOT SHOWMASTERS.

 

2) SOME OF THE PEOPLE INCLUDING MYSELF WERE WPRKING WITHOUT PAYMENT TO HELP SM'S HELP THIS EVENT RUN SMOOTHLY.

 

3) WE HAD PEOPLE QUEUING OUTSIDE IN THE FREEZING COLD AT 10PM THE NIGHT BEFORE TO MEET THE GUYS THEY WANTED TO MEET THE OPENING OF THE DORRS WAS DOWN TO MK SECURITY NOT SHOWMASTERS SO THEN THEY ALL CAME IN AND JOINED THE QUEUE.

 

4) EVERYBODY AND I MEAN EVERYBODY MUST HAVE REALISED THAT THESE WERE SUCH GREAT GUESTS THAT EARLY ARRIVAL WAS NECESSARY TO MEET THESE PEOPLE.

 

5) I HAD A GREAT TIME YES I GOT TO MEET ALL THE HOBBITS AND I WAS WORKING I GOT NO PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT FROM SM'S I HAD TO QUEUE AND GET MY TICKET LIKE THE REST OF YOU I PAID MY MONEY AND TOOK NO LIBERTIES WITH THE GUESTS I WAITED MY TURN DAMN I EVEN GAVE MY TICKETS AWAY ON THE SUNDAY BECAUSE A FRIEND COULD NOT GET THERE THAT EARLY.

 

6) I WOULD NOT CHANGE A THING ABOUT THIS WHOLE WEEKEND IT WAS BLOODY AWESOME I HAD A GREAT TIME IM EXTREMELY KNACKERED NOW BUT IT WAS DAMN WELL WORTH IT.

 

7) I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF THE SHOWMASTERS TEAM FOR GIVING ME THE OPPOTUNITY TO WORK ALONGSIDE YOU IT WAS A PLEASURE TO BE A PART OF THE MAGIC THAT WAS C4

 

8) DAMIT WHY IS IT ALL OVER

 

ROLL ON C5 ILL BE THERE AND SO WILL THE GREAT GUESTS YOU HAVE ALREADY LINED UP I LOVE YOU MARK JASON ANDREA HOUDY KENNY DAVID SIMONS JAMES DAVID AND EVERYONE ELSE INVOLVED IN THE GREATNESS THAT IS SHOWMASTERS.

 

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT

 

Lilelfgirlxx

[snow]

im glad Lilelfgirl got there b4 me coz i dont think id have been so nice about it!

i too worked some of the days, i got to see who i wanted too. no i didnt meet elijah, but i saw him and SM where great about it all

i cant write much more coz im afriad i am too angry with the people who dont appreciate what a great weekend it was, and i fear i will say some to upset the end to the best convetion ive been to

[Rachiepachie2001]

Agreed! As I said before, I would be proud to work with the Showmasters and count me in for Volunteer work for C5. If I can make it that is, I will travel 10,000 miles to go to this event! Yes I will travel 10,000 miles to see the hobbits. Am I crazy?? Yes and Damn proud of it too.

 

Cheers!

[KAT]

Wow, My Mum hasn't had to stick up for me since I was about 8.

[Rachiepachie2001]

Wow, My Mum hasn't had to stick up for me since I was about 8.

And you are now what 9? Okay, I'm only kidding, please don't hurt me, or I'll tell my mom .

[KAT]

No im 18... Cheeky Mare

[Loremaster]

Let's just accept that this was the biggest Showmasters event yet and one for which they were woefully under-prepared, but one which they will learn a lot from. Sounds like most of the staff were either straight from the job centre or volunteers which is borne out by my own experiences on Sunday when the level of organisation was amateurish to put it kindly.

 

There's another thread with constructive suggestions on it, and I strongly recommend that Showmasters read every single post on it. In brief, don't ban pre-booking and announce an opening time of 10:00 but then issue all the tickets by 9:45. Do have a virtual queuing system but put ropes in place to make proper queues and have notices up which are regularly updated. Train the stewards, give them all a walkie-talkie and have a co-ordinator who controls the whole system. Sack any steward who tells a customer to f*** off. Don't allow traders to jump the queues and toss a dozen or more photos down unless it's outside the public hours. Do set aside a public place where the guests put in a brief appearance for those who don't get a ticket so they can at least see them and take a photo. Do have a venue appropriate to the level of event and when (not if) you get to post an apology to the many, many disappointed fans then don't hide behind the excuse that you didn't realise so many would turn up - that one won't wash, frankly.

 

Lastly, don't take your customers for granted. This was a shambles, admit it, apologise for it, learn from it, and move on to a much improved C5. That way you'll take your customers with you, otherwise a lot of us will make C4 our first and only Showmasters event.

 

Oh, and tell your Mum not to post again, that was truly cringe-making. If she wanted to convince us this was an amateurish event rather than a slick professional organisation she couldn't have made a better job of it.

 

And a final note to my fellow customers - this was NOT a free event, you paid a lot for autographs and were entitled to a better service. If you went on Friday and got the autograph of an unheard-off extra from a cult children's TV program that does NOT entitle you to sound off at those who went on Sunday specifically for the LoTR guys' autographs.

 

Sorry if that sounds a tad harsh, I realise it is, but then that's how I - and a lot of others - feel at the moment. Badly let down by poor organisation, but as long as lessons are learnt from it then it won't have been in vain.

 

Lastly, and I do mean this genuinely, I wish all at Showmasters the best for their future events, and I truly thank the guests for their time and the devotion they showed to their fans. I never got to see any of them, but even so I appreciate their dedication. Good luck to all of them in their careers.

 

Loremaster

[robwaddle]

OK,

 

Now for another moan.

 

1. I got to MK 0830 on Sunday - knew it would be busy. Between then and 1445, I managed to meet Sean Astin. My ticket no. for Elijah was 600+, can't remember how high it was for Dom.

 

2. The venue is APPALLING. Autograph lines all over the place. Not enough room for dealers stands. God knows how many shoppers who decide to have a gawp.

 

3. Showmasters - you'r gonna have to start charging for entry. The no. of people there with cameras (and ZERO intention of paying for autos) was loopy.

 

4. Security - someone earlier mentioned fire or bombs. People - this is a real risk, I was outside the venue just down from Dom & Elijah making a call @ about 1330. Security got their knickers in a knot & blocked the two doors by me. It seems that celebs were about to get lunch. Little girlies running everywhere - "What do they think we'll do - try and ravish them?" was a memorable quote from a teeny berk. ERRRR, actually, yes - that's just what you'll try and do.

 

5. Talking of teenies, can u pls start charging ridiculous amounts for entry. The highlight (sic) of my day was the (female) Gondorian warrior with beard & moustache painted on in biro. Surely you can price them out.

 

I know that it was pot luck. I understand that it was my bad luck that I didn't get low enough numbers. I'm very glad to have met Sean (even tho' Showmasters stewards told me pointedly to "get a move on" while I was trying to have a conversation).

 

I would probably have met Kristanna if I'd waited a couple more hours. BUT, and this is a bloody big but - I'd run out of patience. I could no longer put up with the hysteria, lack of space, squealing girlies and gawpers.

 

I've enjoyed Tolkiens' work for over 35 years (no prizes for guessing my age!!). I never believed that films of this quality could be made & I'm very grateful to all concerned. It would be great if some of the more mature/sensible fans could get to meet the stars, have a sensible talk, get autos etc. I know I want too much from life, but that's the way I am.

 

If I want the sort of experience I had on Sunday again - I'll book tickets for the next boy band concert in my area.

 

Of course - Brad Dourif is @ C5 - so I expect I'll be there. Girlies - don't you think Brad was GGGGGGRRRRRRRRR888888 in Blue Velvet. Get yr mummies to hire it on video. They'll like "Raymond" too.

 

Rob

[Sam's Girl]

Totally agree with every thing you've said. Adult fans also need to enjoy their day without the screaming teens or preteens around. I don't know how the stars put up with it- must have had gigantic headaches by the end of the day!!!