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One thing that I am confused with was that I was told not to kneel down with my photo shoot with MJF but all the photos I've seen on twitter the attendee is kneeling down - is this just because I had a walking stick and it might take me a little bit longer to get back up. I paid a lot of money for that photo - I would have liked to had a photo like everyone else did.

 

I would guess it was because of the walking stick, but definitely not because you'd take a little longer to get up. The crew member telling you probably thought he/she was being nice and would spare you pain. Someone in front of me in the Christopher Lloyd shoot was actually asking if he could stand up as he had knee issues and it would be really painful for him to do that.

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One thing that I am confused with was that I was told not to kneel down with my photo shoot with MJF but all the photos I've seen on twitter the attendee is kneeling down - is this just because I had a walking stick and it might take me a little bit longer to get back up. I paid a lot of money for that photo - I would have liked to had a photo like everyone else did.

 

I would guess it was because of the walking stick, but definitely not because you'd take a little longer to get up. The crew member telling you probably thought he/she was being nice and would spare you pain. Someone in front of me in the Christopher Lloyd shoot was actually asking if he could stand up as he had knee issues and it would be really painful for him to do that.

 

 

I actually thought this over and she probably did the right thing to be more effective

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I agree with the post about being banged by wheelchairs, there were certainly a fair few doing that this weekend, but what annoys me more and isn't actually a disability issue is the general lack of manners from so many people. We are all like minded human beings who were there for the same reason and yet hardly anyone says excuse me anymore they just shove through without a care in the world for the person they've barged out of the way and yet these people get hilariously outraged when you question them on their lack of manners.

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i agree that people who are physically disabled should go through shoots first as they would just hold the queue up otherwise but i don't agree when people in when chairs other those on crutches think its ok to push past the more able. we are all there to have fun. I always say excuse me and sorry when i fall into someone and there was an awful lot of that from trips, people pushing on me and general accidents. But i never just fobbed it off and apologized even if it wasn't my fault. there were plenty of people who bashed into me and shoved me and never said a thing to me. some people who were there really need to re think their manners even if they didnt do if if you feel yourself falling against someone whoever fault it was say sorry. thank you to all of those who did and all of those who helped me. I don't know all your names but if your reading and you helped someone at any point over the weekend THANK YOU.

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thanks for flagging this issue, my son has autism and really struggled at times, I shuffled around as my legs are really painful, but you would not really notice either issue. I did not know about access passes until late on the Saturday when my son got jittery about not getting to meet RDA, having travelled a long way to see him particularly. the young lady blue shirt whose name i cannot remember was especially helpful and assisted in helping me get an access pass. well done, and to all LFCC goers thanks for the care that you do show to those less abled, either visable or hidden.

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Mmmm i agree with Lesleynile. We should assist and aid those who need it but it gets on my nerves when a Blue Badge is used as a VIP pass.

 

I wish I didn't have my disability I really really don't, it took me 5 times longer to get from the tube to the entrance then it would an able-bodied person, or even someone in a wheelchair, maybe even longer and when I did get there that was me pretty much done for the day. Agony. I get that everyone will get sore feet from queueing and waiting around but my feet felt like they were on fire from what took an able-bodied person 5 mins to walk took me half an hour. So you want me to stand in a queue for half an hour to.

 

If they had a seat inside the photograph place and you had to wait for the place where you would have joined the queue I'd be happy to do that. I just can't stand for long periods of time, so SM let them queue jump to get them out of the way. I'm so thankful of that I really really am. Maybe just need a bit more of a brief so crew don't look at me like I'm faking it, because I fake being not in pain so well after 5 years of practice.

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Unfortunately this a nationwide issue! People will generally assume you're putting it on unless you're on crutches or using a wheelchair. Morons.

The Morons ,as you put it, are the people who fake disability or illness or exaggerate what they have to screw the system out of everything they can get. Everyone, sadly including genuine people, gets tarred with the same brush.This is the price you pay for bad back Britain.Not the staffs fault. I work in the benefits system so i see it every day. Just how can you tell whos putting it on when you have seconds to assess someone and respond to a request.I see fake doctors notes and even hospital letters so i'm not surprized event staff are cynical about someones heath issues.I see people at premieres using wheelchairs etc to get access to disabled pens to gain easier access to the stars for autographs when i've caught them out walking around normally at other times when they weren't expecting to be seen. No offence to anyone on here that has a genuine need for assistance but just pointing out what some people will do to gain advantage and why some people will see you as not being for real. awful but thats the way it is.

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Unfortunately this a nationwide issue! People will generally assume you're putting it on unless you're on crutches or using a wheelchair. Morons.

The Morons ,as you put it, are the people who fake disability or illness or exaggerate what they have to screw the system out of everything they can get. Everyone, sadly including genuine people, gets tarred with the same brush.This is the price you pay for bad back Britain.Not the staffs fault. I work in the benefits system so i see it every day. Just how can you tell whos putting it on when you have seconds to assess someone and respond to a request.I see fake doctors notes and even hospital letters so i'm not surprized event staff are cynical about someones heath issues.I see people at premieres using wheelchairs etc to get access to disabled pens to gain easier access to the stars for autographs when i've caught them out walking around normally at other times when they weren't expecting to be seen. No offence to anyone on here that has a genuine need for assistance but just pointing out what some people will do to gain advantage and why some people will see you as not being for real. awful but thats the way it is.

Hit the nail on the head. Exactly what I was thinking but you worded it far better than I've done

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I too am disabled, its not really that hidden but to most its not very obvious. I have a mild form of spinabifida, meaning my spine is basically in a complete mess, bent and curved and in need of serious reconstructive surgery, meaning standing for more then half an hour can cause me agonizing pain. I also have bad leg pains and hip pains. I only asked to use my disability as a pass once and that was in the Robert englund que as i was starting to feel some serious pain hitting at that point.

 

I myself tried to use the stairs as much as i could to save myself the hassle from being squashed on the lifts. every time my poor balance caused me to stumble or fall into people i made sure i faced them and apologized to them for doing this. I was shoved, stepped on, even swore at for how slow i walked during the convention. people thought i was trying to do the charlie chaplin walk on saturday because of how i walk naturally and were really annoyed at me if they were behind me. i could have let this upset me but i have lived with this for 30 years and sadly you just have to accept that people are going to treat you like a second class citizen for something you have no control of, you have no choice really, just smile and deal with it. if you let people put you down then you will have a very hard life ahead of you.

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But in normal life, I was denied a blue badge initially because I'm too young apparently. I cannot sit in the seats on the bus that say for the less mobile, because it upsets the elderly. I rarely get a seat on a train because bags are more important than someone falling over. Some disabled people will have these experiences that luckily able bodied won't need.

 

You should tell the elderly to mind their own business

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I think a lot of attitude I've seen told of here (and given in some posts) are appalling. Able bodied people do NOT know what it's like to live in another's body, so they shouldn't judge whether they should be getting to the front of the queue or not. It's not a VIP pass, and telling people they should queue like everyone else in the spirit of 'we're all at a convention' is ridiculous. You do not know others pain or limitations, or how lucky you are that you can queue happily without feeling like you could pass out or keel over for some reason.

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Mmmm i agree with Lesleynile. We should assist and aid those who need it but it gets on my nerves when a Blue Badge is used as a VIP pass.

But surely those who have a blue badge, who have a disability regardless of whether it is visble or not, have a right to use it to assist them?! Whether thats in the form of parking in a disabled space or being whisked to the front of a queue.

 

It is wrong if anyone to not respect the space they are in. I bumped into lots of people and vice versa and I heard sorry either from me or them every time.

 

That's fine then an individual deserves some help and assistance, but no i don't think that having a disability deserves to be whisked to the front of the queue. We are all in this together, none of us like the queueing aspect of a Con, that's why i purchased a Gold Pass.

 

It is not about not "liking" the queuing some people physically cannot queue. A lot of disabled people also cannot stand for long periods of time while at comicon so while an able bodied person can spend all day there a lot of people with disabilities will struggle to spend more than a few hours. Why should someone who is already struggling with a condition have to pay out a lot more money because they are unable to experience it otherwise? That is basic discrimination. Life is hard if you are disabled and it is simply trying to level the playing field.

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I too am disabled, its not really that hidden but to most its not very obvious. I have a mild form of spinabifida, meaning my spine is basically in a complete mess, bent and curved and in need of serious reconstructive surgery, meaning standing for more then half an hour can cause me agonizing pain. I also have bad leg pains and hip pains. I only asked to use my disability as a pass once and that was in the Robert englund que as i was starting to feel some serious pain hitting at that point.

 

I myself tried to use the stairs as much as i could to save myself the hassle from being squashed on the lifts. every time my poor balance caused me to stumble or fall into people i made sure i faced them and apologized to them for doing this. I was shoved, stepped on, even swore at for how slow i walked during the convention. people thought i was trying to do the charlie chaplin walk on saturday because of how i walk naturally and were really annoyed at me if they were behind me. i could have let this upset me but i have lived with this for 30 years and sadly you just have to accept that people are going to treat you like a second class citizen for something you have no control of, you have no choice really, just smile and deal with it. if you let people put you down then you will have a very hard life ahead of you.

hey, feel free to use your disabled badge to queue jump, don't push yourself to the point of pain that is madness! I hate queuing but i am able and its not so bad as long as I have a pair of flat shoes :P I am guessing the recovery the following few days is pretty grueling too. Disabities are not fair just ask anyone who complains if they would like to swap! Perhaps Show masters could offer a special disability only gold pass?

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Unfortunately this a nationwide issue! People will generally assume you're putting it on unless you're on crutches or using a wheelchair. Morons.

The Morons ,as you put it, are the people who fake disability or illness or exaggerate what they have to screw the system out of everything they can get. Everyone, sadly including genuine people, gets tarred with the same brush.This is the price you pay for bad back Britain.Not the staffs fault. I work in the benefits system so i see it every day. Just how can you tell whos putting it on when you have seconds to assess someone and respond to a request.I see fake doctors notes and even hospital letters so i'm not surprized event staff are cynical about someones heath issues.I see people at premieres using wheelchairs etc to get access to disabled pens to gain easier access to the stars for autographs when i've caught them out walking around normally at other times when they weren't expecting to be seen. No offence to anyone on here that has a genuine need for assistance but just pointing out what some people will do to gain advantage and why some people will see you as not being for real. awful but thats the way it is.

 

 

Lets put this into perspective please. The people who fake disability or exaggerate are a minority. Also, I don't think event staff are cynical. They are volunteers and may not be aware of the various conditions out there and how to react to them. I've learnt more from reading this thread than experience through reality.

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I too am disabled, its not really that hidden but to most its not very obvious. I have a mild form of spinabifida, meaning my spine is basically in a complete mess, bent and curved and in need of serious reconstructive surgery, meaning standing for more then half an hour can cause me agonizing pain. I also have bad leg pains and hip pains. I only asked to use my disability as a pass once and that was in the Robert englund que as i was starting to feel some serious pain hitting at that point.

 

I myself tried to use the stairs as much as i could to save myself the hassle from being squashed on the lifts. every time my poor balance caused me to stumble or fall into people i made sure i faced them and apologized to them for doing this. I was shoved, stepped on, even swore at for how slow i walked during the convention. people thought i was trying to do the charlie chaplin walk on saturday because of how i walk naturally and were really annoyed at me if they were behind me. i could have let this upset me but i have lived with this for 30 years and sadly you just have to accept that people are going to treat you like a second class citizen for something you have no control of, you have no choice really, just smile and deal with it. if you let people put you down then you will have a very hard life ahead of you.

hey, feel free to use your disabled badge to queue jump, don't push yourself to the point of pain that is madness! I hate queuing but i am able and its not so bad as long as I have a pair of flat shoes :P I am guessing the recovery the following few days is pretty grueling too. Disabities are not fair just ask anyone who complains if they would like to swap! Perhaps Show masters could offer a special disability only gold pass?

 

 

I just hate making a fuss and always feel a tad bit guilty using my disability as a free pass. it also sucks when people who are also in the line start swearing you out because, and i quote "what makes her so special?" it becomes exhausting and sometimes you just don't want the hassle. at one line though for a penny dreadful guest a girl was very very polite and sympathetic towards me and informed me about a special disability pass i could get from the organisation desk and spent a good long time explaining how to get to the desk and even found me after the photoshoot and asked did i get myself sorted out. i didn't because the lines at the desk were way too long and i was in agony at that point so just found a spot on the floor and just passed out there lol

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Stephy - I spoke to you briefly while we were queuing at photo studio C (I think) and the nice crew member got you a chair! I could see you were in pain and you explained you had an invisible disability but you didn't need to explain hun, I understand (which I was going to say but the queue started to move) and you clearly looked in pain bless you. I hope you managed to get everything you wanted done over the weekend :)

I think if SM spread the stuff in a better way then maybe all the attendees would have a better spread across all the floors! as it was, most had things to do on ground floor and 1! some areas were very congested which was a problem for all attendees for one reason or another. Hopefully next year will be laid out better! Either way I'll see some of you there next year!

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I too am disabled, its not really that hidden but to most its not very obvious. I have a mild form of spinabifida, meaning my spine is basically in a complete mess, bent and curved and in need of serious reconstructive surgery, meaning standing for more then half an hour can cause me agonizing pain. I also have bad leg pains and hip pains. I only asked to use my disability as a pass once and that was in the Robert englund que as i was starting to feel some serious pain hitting at that point.

 

I myself tried to use the stairs as much as i could to save myself the hassle from being squashed on the lifts. every time my poor balance caused me to stumble or fall into people i made sure i faced them and apologized to them for doing this. I was shoved, stepped on, even swore at for how slow i walked during the convention. people thought i was trying to do the charlie chaplin walk on saturday because of how i walk naturally and were really annoyed at me if they were behind me. i could have let this upset me but i have lived with this for 30 years and sadly you just have to accept that people are going to treat you like a second class citizen for something you have no control of, you have no choice really, just smile and deal with it. if you let people put you down then you will have a very hard life ahead of you.

hey, feel free to use your disabled badge to queue jump, don't push yourself to the point of pain that is madness! I hate queuing but i am able and its not so bad as long as I have a pair of flat shoes :P I am guessing the recovery the following few days is pretty grueling too. Disabities are not fair just ask anyone who complains if they would like to swap! Perhaps Show masters could offer a special disability only gold pass?

 

also, yes, the recovery is going to take a long time lol. i am currently laid up in bed and can't move a muscle i am wrecked. worth it though

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As a carer for someone with a disability, some of the attitude's people have towards the disabled absolutely disgusts me, believe me if my fiancee who i care for could stand for hours in a queue rather than be in constant pain, she would!!

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Stephy - I spoke to you briefly while we were queuing at photo studio C (I think) and the nice crew member got you a chair! I could see you were in pain and you explained you had an invisible disability but you didn't need to explain hun, I understand (which I was going to say but the queue started to move) and you clearly looked in pain bless you. I hope you managed to get everything you wanted done over the weekend :)

I think if SM spread the stuff in a better way then maybe all the attendees would have a better spread across all the floors! as it was, most had things to do on ground floor and 1! some areas were very congested which was a problem for all attendees for one reason or another. Hopefully next year will be laid out better! Either way I'll see some of you there next year!

 

He was lovely yeah and bless you for saying that. I always feel so awkward queue jumping but I need to, I say sorry to the people around me and try to explain. At photoshoot E I just sat on the floor I was in so much pain and people were tutting when it took me a few seconds to get up, and no one offered to help. But yeah the guy on C was lovely.

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I think a lot of attitude I've seen told of here (and given in some posts) are appalling. Able bodied people do NOT know what it's like to live in another's body, so they shouldn't judge whether they should be getting to the front of the queue or not. It's not a VIP pass, and telling people they should queue like everyone else in the spirit of 'we're all at a convention' is ridiculous. You do not know others pain or limitations, or how lucky you are that you can queue happily without feeling like you could pass out or keel over for some reason.

I wasn't going to get into a debate but as your clearly making that statement in relation to my comments I'll respond.

 

Ilovemyadams put it perfectly, unfortunately this country has a culture of people trying to get something for nothing which takes this away from the people that genuinely needs assistance and support. All I'm saying is Showmasters are going to have to be very careful because it will open the floodgates to people who are trying their luck as we have seen this year there is plenty of people that will do anything to avoid queing like the rest of us have to.

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I too am disabled, its not really that hidden but to most its not very obvious. I have a mild form of spinabifida, meaning my spine is basically in a complete mess, bent and curved and in need of serious reconstructive surgery, meaning standing for more then half an hour can cause me agonizing pain. I also have bad leg pains and hip pains. I only asked to use my disability as a pass once and that was in the Robert englund que as i was starting to feel some serious pain hitting at that point.

 

I myself tried to use the stairs as much as i could to save myself the hassle from being squashed on the lifts. every time my poor balance caused me to stumble or fall into people i made sure i faced them and apologized to them for doing this. I was shoved, stepped on, even swore at for how slow i walked during the convention. people thought i was trying to do the charlie chaplin walk on saturday because of how i walk naturally and were really annoyed at me if they were behind me. i could have let this upset me but i have lived with this for 30 years and sadly you just have to accept that people are going to treat you like a second class citizen for something you have no control of, you have no choice really, just smile and deal with it. if you let people put you down then you will have a very hard life ahead of you.

hey, feel free to use your disabled badge to queue jump, don't push yourself to the point of pain that is madness! I hate queuing but i am able and its not so bad as long as I have a pair of flat shoes :P I am guessing the recovery the following few days is pretty grueling too. Disabities are not fair just ask anyone who complains if they would like to swap! Perhaps Show masters could offer a special disability only gold pass?

 

also, yes, the recovery is going to take a long time lol. i am currently laid up in bed and can't move a muscle i am wrecked. worth it though

 

I bet! personally I see using your badge as a way of helping to equal out the great unfairness that is some people having serious disabilities. I have to admit there was a serious lack of places to sit and for a lot fo disabled people sitting on the floor presents a whole load of other issues like getting back up! Just tell the swearers you belong to an exclusive club that they to can join if they get themselves permanently disabled, and offer to run them over with a truck!

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