Count Fooku Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Figured it was about time we had a thread for people's thought on the show, we always usually have one! I only went on Saturday and despite it being quieter than previous events I still really enjoyed it. My principal reason for going as always was the astronauts and although Edgar Mitchell cancelled so close to the event we still had a very respectable line-up. I thought Tom Stafford looked in much better health this time than he did at the last show which was good to see. He also seemed a bit more chatty this time which was also good. Al Worden was his usual engaging self, he is always a top guest to have at these things, it just seemed a shame he and Bruce Melnick were in a seperate room to the others. I have to say I wasn't as keen on this hotel as the Birmingham Hilton (I didn't stay there so I can only comment on the public areas), the place looked a bit tired and rough around the edges. I also tend to prefer the events where the majoirty of guests are in the same rooms along with the dealers like Birmingham. I think having guests spread out over two rooms which weren't super close to each other as well as having guests in the corridor meant that some of the atmosphere was lost. The bar/viewing overlooking the runway was a real plus point though! Certainly looking forward to the next one, whenever it is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
God L'Eponge Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I have to admit that i wasn't expecting much of that event as i only had 6 guests to meet and thought i would be bored a bit between two... but just as it's often the case, those quiet events are probably the best ones to attend :) ALL the guests i met were friendly and lovely (Linda, Charlene, Tanya, Richard, Papillon and Nina) and seemed to be all delighted about meeting their fans. I didn't get bored as i came to see the guests more than once and did a photoshoot with the 4 first ones, so my day was well filled. The staff and crew members were also very nice and willing to do their best to ensure you were having a good time - they were paying very good attention to the pictures they were taking for you, i must admit i have the best ones at that event. Two complains, that didn't spoil the day too much though : - the "no pictures" at the table issue with Charlene and Linda that's discussed into another topic that occured around saturday noon... a bit unfair as that means that some could have a picture (those that were attending on the saturday morning) while others couldn't. Once again, it was NOT of Linda and Charlene's decision and i find it sad - the delay regarding the photoshoots being back from the lab... it usually takes a couple of hours after the photoshoot ends to get the pics back, but saturday (i was only there for one day) i just couldn't get any of the 4 pics i had back before getting back home :'( I would have think i would have at least got my Charlene's one as it was set at 12.40. Actuallty the only one i could have understand not to get back was the one with Tanya. With the "no pictures" policy all of a sudden applied to Charlene and Linda, i didn't even ask for a pic with Charlene at the table but as i don't have my photoshoot pic either i went back home without any pic with her... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shearwater Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 All in all I enjoyed the show and felt some of the criticisms were a bit harsh, TBH. It did seem an opportunity lost that there were no Battle of Britain pilots present, this year being the 70th anniversary. I felt a bit sorry for the dealers in the little room on the Sunday: the place was deserted most of the day. Of course, two astronauts were in there on the Saturday, so that was probably better for those selling space autographs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timelord81r Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I had a fantastic time, loved the event, was my first autographica. all the guests were great. my main goal in coming was nick brimble and the astronauts but the bond girls were a massive bonus, as were all the other guests. tanya, what a woman, such a nice person and how impressive were the peaks, all weekend, my word. richard roundtree was so funny lol and so cool. al worden, what a legend, I could of listened to him talk for a week non stop, it was amazing and enlightening. shame there wasnt an alexi and tom talk. couldnt make the bruce talk as clashed with photo ops sat spent most of my day camped out in the photo studio lol shame about tanyas talk being canceled sunday, though understandable, can we not have the talks after 3 or before 11 to aoivd the photos? the venue, classic old neglected thistle (i used to work for the company) 3 quid for a manky left out chicken sarnie? 1.50 for a mini coke, lol. shame the talk room was next to the dealers, interupted some of the talk at times with loud talking ect. I do think it would be better the guests signing in one room or away from the main doors and food serving area though. I was expecting it to be very busy, but wasnt at all which is a shame for the guests and SM, but was great for attendees as didnt have to queue much for anything. as always a couple of regrets of things not done by myself but loved the show, I fully aim to attend both shows next year. please bring all apollo guys and a sharpe reunion, oh and leonard nimoy! thanks to all at the event, loved it, was really friendly. great guests, deluxe pass was awesome for me ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JacknDaniel Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Did anyone meet Ian Lavender? I wanted to go for him but couldn't make the event. Hope he can be brought to a Collectormania or something in future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timelord81r Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Did anyone meet Ian Lavender? I wanted to go for him but couldn't make the event. Hope he can be brought to a Collectormania or something in future I did at the photo shoot, lovely guy, very friendly and chatty he was also a main draw for me. love dads army Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JacknDaniel Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Cool i'm glad he had a good time by the sounds of it. Hopefully he can be tempted back to another show, with Clive Dunn or Bill Pertwee maybe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Count Fooku Posted September 27, 2010 Author Share Posted September 27, 2010 1.50 for a mini coke, lol. I nearly made that mistake, I was about to buy one then I noticed they were only mini cans so I went to the petrol station up the road instead! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timelord81r Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 1.50 for a mini coke, lol. I nearly made that mistake, I was about to buy one then I noticed they were only mini cans so I went to the petrol station up the road instead! yer i asked for one saw it was a mini and said no thanks, went macdonalds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurkFox Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I was Ian's guest assistant and yes, he was lovely! He had lots of funny stories to tell too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Banished_From_Rohan Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I was Ian's guest assistant and yes, he was lovely! He had lots of funny stories to tell too At least you know which of the "Adventures" films he was in now I concur with the others - Ian was great. In fact all the guests I met over the two days were great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple_Vamp Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I met Ian to get an autograph for a friend and he was just lovely - a real nice guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A007 Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 A good show, met all the guests I wanted with hardly any queueing at all. Richard Roundtree was great as were the £10 Bond girls, especially Nina who seemed more interested in finding out about me! Tanya was cool and managed to have a good talk with her at the meal, shame she was a bit jet lagged though. Hotel wasn't good and parking was a joke, but it didn't detract from a decent day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steevofromglasgow Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Hi Apologies in advance for the length of this post, but we have just returned to Glasgow having travelled to London and back in only a few days to attend the show so I wanted to give my thoughts on the event. We went to a lot of trouble (and expense and time of work) to attend this event so I wanted to give a "full" account of the show. Overall it was a good show for us, but I wanted to give our feedback. This was the second autographica we've attended and our umpteenth showmasters event. It's over a 400 mile trip for us each way from Glasgow to London. We'd already booked accomodation in the wrong town (Birmingham) based on an earlier advert but we still wanted to attend. We really wanted to see Keith, Edward and Ian but also wanted to try and see the Bond girls. However we could only afford to attend on one day and I opted for the Sunday. I'm glad we did now as I've noticed that Tanya Roberts wasn't in the Bond girl photoshoot on Saturday (yes, I know she had one on her own) and this would have been a disappointment for us. We arrived at 11:30 on Sunday and left about an hour later. It was obvious from the posts on here that it wasn't terribly busy so we wanted to get there not long after opening time. The directions for the Thistle were wrong from the Thistle's website but we found the venue. after ending up a country pub. We then had trouble getting in the front door and after trying several doors and then getting access we were then told we'd came in the wrong way. Not the best of starts for us and to be honest it's not the first time that the lack of signage at these events hasn't given the best first impression (BEAR WITH ME, IT GETS BETTER). When we did get in the venue, we were pleasantly surprised to see that we didn't need to pay for our son Ewan so that was a bonus. We weren't sure where to buy the visa tokens for the autographs having read about them on this site (there were no signs or obvious adverts for this) but we soon realised this was at the entry point as well. At this stage there were no signs advising Edward Hardwicke wasn't attending so we assumed he was in the building. The hotel seemed fairly comfortable and everything was well laid out - it was obvious it wasn't very busy which to be honest suited us as we were hoping to be in and out within the hour. We took a right towards one of the conference rooms and met Keith Barron. He was really nice and there was a good selection of 10*8's. He was very friendly and spotted the Scotland football tops that Ewan and I were wearing so he asked us about our journey down. Ian Lavendars desk was beside his and empty, so it was obvious he was doing a talk or photoshoot so we had a quick look round the stalls. We met someone from 10th planet who spoke to us about a Doctor Who event in Novemeber and we may try and attend this. Some of the items on the stalls were fascinating and not the usual sort of material (obviously) that features at other events. We couldn't find Edward Hardwicke's desk so we returned to the entrance. I made the decision there and then to see Francisca Tu and I'm glad we did. She was lovely - really nice and was interested in Ewans autograph collection. She couldn't believe he had nearly 150 autographs but I confirmed this. She was more than happy to pose for a photograph. We've now got about one Bond girl from half the movies so I'm glad we saw her for "You Only Live Twice". After Francisa, one of the assistants/helpers spoke to us as she recognised us from a newspaper interview in Glasgow. That was really cool and Ewan's been telling everyone since yesterday. We made our way to the larger hall and Kenny gave us a wave. We've seen Kenny many times and he's brilliant. He may have recognised us, he may not but I never tire of seeing him at these events. We entered the larger hall and we saw Tanya Roberts. She looks amazing and we chatted briefly about A View to a Kill as we had watched it on ITV the day before. My camera was playing up and the first photo I took never turned out so she was happy to pose for a second shot (which didn't turn out much better). She was lovely though. Now, whenever we are going to events like this I sometimes do my homework. I find out what new projects guests are working on and whether there is feedback on them from other "fan-meets". I'd done some reading on Richard Roundtree and truth be told, what I read (from other non-SM sites) wasn't very favourable but I decided to meet him anway. He's well known for Shaft of course but we've got numerous Heroes autographs so we picked one of them up. Unfortunately I only saw one Heros 10*8 but it was enough for us although choice was limited. Unlike what I'd read, Richard was wonderful - a really nice guest who referred to us as "Sirs" and invited Ewan round for a photo as well - yes, I know not always to believe what you read on the Internet but sometimes it helps to be aware of what someone might be like or the chance to talk to them about an up-and-coming project. I wanted to see the Dallas girls if my finances were okay - I did a quick check and we were fine. However, I realised they weren't allowing photos at the table so I gave it a miss. I wasn't too disappointed as they weren't our main (or even second) reason for attending but the restriction of not allowing photographs made my decision all the easier. We left the hall and Ewan decided he wanted to see Bob Anderson (thanks to the large Darth Vader poster behind him). Bob wasn't on my list of those to see but we were already quids in after the Dallas guests so we bought an autograph. He was very frail, but Ewan was excited by all the 10*8's he had. The assistant he had with him was spot on and was a brilliant choice of assistant for Bob. The assistant was friendly (actually everyone was) and took time with Bob and helped him with the spelling of Ewan's name, etc. I've since re-read up on Bob's work and I'm really glad we got to see him - he's a legend! Next to him was Robert Watts who was on my list. I've echoed this in another thread but this guy was amazing. Great selection of shots for signing and really down to earth. He talked about his work, his children and how lucky he was. He thought we had taken Ewan out of school to attend until I advised it was a Glasgow holiday weekend. He couldn't believe we had travelled all the way down from Scotland for this. We've seen nearly 150 guests and some just really stand out as "better than great" experiences when we think back (Jay La Gia, Ernest Borgnine, Alexie Sawyle, Jocob Kogan, etc) and Robert is one of those that I'll be talking about years from now. We went hunting for Edward Hardwicke and I realised at this point that something was wrong as he was nowhere to be seen. We found Ian Lavendar back at his desk who was also extremely nice. He asked where we lived in Glasgow and was also keen to hear of Ewans collection. Although I'm not the Eastenders fan I once was (actually I don't watch it anymore) he didn't have anything for signing as we could have included this with some of the other autographs we've collected from the cast. He was still a pleasure to meet and he signed a great photo for us. Upon leaving I asked where Edward was and was advised he called in sick that morning. We were slightly disappointed as he was one of our main reasons for attending but we wish him well and hope to meet him again. We left and by this time an hour had passed. It really wasn't busy which in many ways helped us but the event seemed to miss that "spark" which I'm putting down to the lack of other attendees. I sometimes say hi to some of the other fans I see from posts on here but it was generally quiet. All in all, a good weekend for us and the chance to meet some great people. Thanks for bearing with me through this, I'll put the photos up shortly Steve (Ewans dad) Hi I'm surprised there's no other "post your photos" thread as there normally is, so I'm adding them here and someone had already asked if there's a photo of Robert Watts. So, in the order we met them..... Keith Barron Francisca Tu Tanya Roberts Richard Roundtree Bob Anderson Robert Watts Ian Lavendar Cheers Steve (Ewans dad) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steevofromglasgow Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Hi Yahweh70 If there' more than a few guests at these events and we can stretch the Finance then we'll make the effort to attend as there's unlikely to be another chance to see some of the guests. At previous events where there's a "no posed photographs" sign, the guests have been happy to do this but there were a lot of staff around the Dallas girls and I don't think we're the most popular attendees with some feedback we've given on other events. I know about the Visa's and it's a great idea. We often have Scottish money on us and at previous events some folk look at us like we're carrying fakes with pictures of fish on them (not SM staff but hotels, etc) so we opted for the Visa option - we just weren't sure where to collect the vouchers. Cheers Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Jane Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I'm sure Charlene/Linda could have been swayed by Ewan to do a pic. Haha, maybe on the Sunday, but definitely not on the Saturday. As much as I feel like the bad guy, I was guest assistant for Charlene on Saturday and to me "no posed photos" means no posed (I'm evil!). Saying that, the only reason (at least on saturday) that it said "no photos" was because there weren't any signs for "no posed photos". We did allow people to take pictures of the ladies signing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple_Vamp Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I'm sure Charlene/Linda could have been swayed by Ewan to do a pic. Haha, maybe on the Sunday, but definitely not on the Saturday. As much as I feel like the bad guy, I was guest assistant for Charlene on Saturday and to me "no posed photos" means no posed (I'm evil!). Saying that, the only reason (at least on saturday) that it said "no photos" was because there weren't any signs for "no posed photos". We did allow people to take pictures of the ladies signing. Allo Tracy It's the nutter who was sat next to you on Saturday!!! Didn't we have fun??? Ange Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steevofromglasgow Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 (edited) I'm sure Charlene/Linda could have been swayed by Ewan to do a pic. Haha, maybe on the Sunday, but definitely not on the Saturday. As much as I feel like the bad guy, I was guest assistant for Charlene on Saturday and to me "no posed photos" means no posed (I'm evil!). Saying that, the only reason (at least on saturday) that it said "no photos" was because there weren't any signs for "no posed photos". We did allow people to take pictures of the ladies signing. Hi Thankfully I wasn't desperate to see the girls but imagine if we had been. A 16-17 hour car journey, cost of petrol, cost of accomodation in the wrong town (due to the advert being wrong on the SM pages), time off work and then turning up only to be told "no photos" when they were allowed earlier in the day (or the day before). We stopped attending these events for a year in the past because we travelled the legnth of the country to meet someone and we weren't allowed to take a photo of them although the guest made it clear it wasn't their decision. I'm not going into the "no posed photos" issue again and thankfully we got everyone we needed. At the end of the day the Dallas girls saved us £30. I like photoshoots (we've done over 30 and Malcolm is great) but we don't always have the time to wait for the photoshoot and they haven't always run smoothly for us IMHO when getting the shots back. From experience, many guests (where applicable) have thankfully allowed photos when a "no photos" sign is operation and where they haven't then we've walked away and kept our money. It's all about getting the right balance for the guests, the organisers and the attendees - sometimes it works for us and sometimes it doesn't. We're fans just like everyone else and we go to a lot of effort to attend these events - for us we're always after an autograph, a photograph and the quickest of hellos. In 90% of situations this isn't an issue - we know CM London (or it's new name) will be different come November so we'll be buying photoshoots for those we really want. When going to events like this I draw up lists like this: A Guests we really want to get a photograph and autograph from (and if required we get a photoshoot in advance or on the day) Ian Lavendar Edward Hardwicke Keith Barron B Guests we want to see but won't if we can't take a photograph Tanya Roberts Richard Roundtree Robert Watts C Guests we will meet if the finances are okay, they aren't busy and we can take a photograph Francisca Tu Lynda Gray Charlene Tilton Dpending on how it goes then we see what we walk away with. Regards Steve Edited September 27, 2010 by steevofromglasgow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Jane Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 Allo Tracy It's the nutter who was sat next to you on Saturday!!! Didn't we have fun??? Ange It was a great day. Sorry I damaged your ears further! Just waded in on the "other" thread about the ladies. On a personal note, for those that want my opinions, I loved the event. And I had a complete fangurl moment in front of Alexei Leonov. I could not speak (I was going to chat in Russian) and just shook for ages. It led to a fantastic conversation with the Dallas ladies, who then told us about their fangurl moments with people like Audrey Hepburn, Carey Grant and Julie Andrews! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookiemonster Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 I went down the Saturday and stayed in the hotel that night and went to the show on the Sunday. We went for Edward Hardwicke and were disappointed that he had cancelled. It was our first Autographica and feelings were mixed - is it normally that quiet / small? It gave the feeling it should be tagged onto a Collectormania? Saying that it was nice having breakfast in the same room as Richard Roundtree, Sylvia Anderson and Keith Barron! It also seemed weird seeing crew members in 'posher' clothing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Jane Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 It also seemed weird seeing crew members in 'posher' clothing! You're telling me! When I saw Malcolm on Saturday evening, I didn't recognise him! And it felt strange (creepy even) to see Jason without his radioactive shirt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonsanddaffodils Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 (edited) I appreciate what you are saying steve, but if you pay for an autograph, you have not paid for a photograph. I did hear the two ladies saying to quite a few people that they were very welcome to purchase a photograph ticket if they would like a posed photograph with them. It is an added bonus if a guest says that posed photographs are okay, but it doesnt mean that an autograph is not worth doing without a posed photograph at the desk. After all, it is the autograph you have paid for. Which I am very relieved about, as many of the autographs I treasure would be deemed worthless otherwise as there was a definite no photos rule for them. I am just pleased to have had the opportunity to have come face to face with that person and to have my signed autograph as a reminder. Edited September 27, 2010 by Rhianydd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welcome_earthling Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 It was our first Autographica and feelings were mixed - is it normally that quiet / small? It gave the feeling it should be tagged onto a Collectormania? It also seemed weird seeing crew members in 'posher' clothing! It was very quiet actually, have to say my fav Autographica was from a few years ago when it was in the Hilton Brum. Collectormania was in the big hall and Autographica was down the corridor in the smaller hall on the same day but I think it was somewhat confusing for certain people to understand that they were two completely different events. Yes it's odd to be in 'posher' clothing. I even went the whole hog and wore a dress all day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timelord81r Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 It also seemed weird seeing crew members in 'posher' clothing! You're telling me! When I saw Malcolm on Saturday evening, I didn't recognise him! And it felt strange (creepy even) to see Jason without his radioactive shirt. I saw some nice female crew members looking just as nice dressed up. however I didnt see malcolm in anything other than the usual, and thank god, my head may of exploded had I seen cool malcolm not in a Hawaiian shirt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Jane Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 however I didnt see malcolm in anything other than the usual, and thank god, my head may have exploded had I seen cool malcolm not in a Hawaiian shirt He was stood next to me chatting at the wine reception, in his tuxedo. It was a few minutes before I turned round and said, "Bloody hell, it's you! You scrub up well!" I genuinely didn't recognise him! Sorry for the correction in the quote. The use of prepositions instead of auxiliaries in compound tenses is a personal bugbear. I cannot deal with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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