This upcoming weekend (25th-26th October 2014), the Film and Comic Con will be taking place at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast. This will be the first time that ShowMasters Ltd, the company behind the popular London Film & Comic Con conventions, will be hosting a convention event in Northern Ireland. Belfast has recently joined the comics’ convention circuit thanks to MCM Belfast Comic Con, earlier this year in June and now Belfast Film & Comic Con. What makes this event exciting is that it will be taking place in a large entertainment venue in Belfast, the Odyssey Arena. The Odyssey Arena is usually filled with screaming fans watching their favourite bands perform live on stage, this will be the first time it will be used to host a comic con convention. The event will be open from 9am to 6pm on both days.

Fans of; The Lord of the Rings films, Doctor Who, Torchwood, Penny Dreadful, Game of Thrones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Merlin and Superman will descend upon the Odyssey Arena to get their photos taken with their icon and to get that much sought after autograph. I expect the convention floor and outside the venue to be filled with cosplayers and fans dressed up as Hobbits, Doctors, Jedi’s and maybe even vampires. With the event taking place so close to Halloween, I imagine everyone will be exploring the event itself dressed in their Halloween outfits.

The celebrity guests announced so far include Billie Piper, Eve Myles, Ian Whyte, Clare Kramer, Billy Boyd, Paul McGann, Ariana Richards, Femi Taylor, Gareth David-Lloyd, Ian McElhinney, Gemma Whelan, Art Parkinson, Susannah Harker, Rupert Young, John Leeson, Trevor Steedman, William Russel, Kenny Baker, Dan Starkey, Anjili Mohindra, Anneke Wills, Paul Blake, Angus MacInnes, Alan Harris and Rusty Goffe. As well as photo shoots and autograph sessions, the guests will be taking part in panel sessions. I recommend you queue early to make sure you get a seat at panel sessions as they fill up fast.

UPDATE: Sadly John Rhys-Davies and Sarah Douglas have had to cancel and they will no longer be attending Belfast Film and Comic Con 2014.

Joining the celebrity guests will be cosplay stars Pompbery Cosplay, CyanideKissesCosplay, Widdle Wade and Shonarrrrgh thanks to Animeleague.

Pompberry is a Brazilian artist, cosplayer, and makeup artist based in Dublin. She started cosplaying over 7 years ago and has used cosplay as a form of learning and perfecting new skills like sewing, sculpting, painting, amongst others. She loves the power of transformation that cosplay and makeup allows you to have and contributes to the cosplaying community by making tutorials, showing cosplayers new and experienced that you can cosplay on a budget and still get fantastic results. Now she’s specializing in prosthetic makeup and intends to incorporate that into her future cosplays.

SuperHero Photography by Adam Jay2012 UNEDITED

CyanideKissesCosplay, started costuming and Alternative Modelling in 2008, but only established a page back in February 2013. Secretary by day, Super Villain by night, she spends her free time making costumes and working with various charities and costuming clubs who benefit charities, Volunteer coordinator for Dublin Comic Con two years running, and is looking forward to next year already.

Widdle Wade is a voice actor, costumer and a prop maker. He has been actively costuming since 2011, contributing tutorials and tips on his page. He is an activist for equality within the cosplay community, and is a formidable voice within the Irish scene. He deals closely with many charitable organisations such as the Emerald Garrison and Dublin Comic Con.

Shonarrrrgh is a local cosplayer who travels to conventions, mainly based in Belfast and Dublin.

When you have finished queuing up to get that photo with R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) in your Star Wars outfit or had your Star Wars memorabilia signed you can browse the exhibitors and burn a hole in your wallet.

Exhibitors, including Order Sixty Six Toys,  BobKatEmporium, Backspindle Games, Miss McKeown’s Emporium of Fine Tea, Forbidden Planet, Replay gameshop and Sub-City Comics, will be displaying everything that you know you want but possibly couldn’t afford but you get it anyway. After all you came to have fun and events such as this don’t happen often enough in Belfast, which is a real shame but hopefully will change in the future. So make sure you use this opportunity to stock up on TV and film memorabilia, if not for yourself then you could start your Christmas shopping early.

This will give you an idea of what Belfast Film and Comic Con will look like. This photo was taken at Sheffield Film & Comic Con.

After you have finished browsing all the exhibitor’s stalls why not visit and check out the work by some very talented artists and writers in the Comic Zone or Artist’s Alley. Some of the artists and writers exhibiting at this event include PJ Holden, James O’Barr, David Lloyd, Will Simpson, Simon Bisley, Glen Fabry, José Delbo and Renee Witterstaeter.

James O’Barr (Creator of The Crow)

If you love video games then make sure you visit the Video Game Zone and challenge others across a variety of multi-player games thanks to the crew at Replay Events LTD.

As a souvenir for the day, don’t forget to get your photo taken with iconic cars from the world of film including the Delorean from Back to the Future and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

For the Doctor Who fans out there, you can get your photo taken with the Tardis. You can get a picture by yourself or with friends for £5 per person. These are purchased on the day of the show at the area and you will each receive a 6×9 photo print as you leave the area.

Tickets

• Entry Ticket [All ages] (Entry from 9am – 6pm Saturday or Sunday) – £15.00 each/ per day
• Late Entry Ticket (Entry from 11am – 6pm Saturday or Sunday) – £8.00 each
• Child Entry Ticket (Entry from 9am – 6pm Saturday OR Sunday) – £10.00 EACH (12 and under. Under 4’s get in free)
• Late Child Ticket (Entry from 11am – 6pm Saturday or Sunday) – £5.00 each (Under 12’s)
• Weekend Ticket (Entry from 9am – 6pm Saturday and Sunday) – £28.00 each
• Limited Exclusive Golden Programme – £172.50 each

Virtual Queue Tickets

VQ tickets are free and handed out on a first come first served basis – you require these tickets to be able to join a queue for an autograph

It is advisable to visit the autograph area of the show early to obtain your Virtual Queue ticket. This queue ticket will have a number on it, and you will notice there will be signs close to the signing areas of each guest that will be updated regularly with a number – when your ticket number falls under the displayed number, you will be able to start queuing for your autograph.

Autographs can be paid for at a desk just before the signing table; photos to sign are included in the cost of the autograph unless you have your own item you want signed.

Please be aware that for some guests queues will be long, and your number might not be called until later in the day – Guests also need to leave the autograph area for breaks and for other show commitments such as photo sessions and talks. Only a realistic number of queue tickets are issued per guest, so get there early to avoid disappointment!

VQ tickets can only be obtained on the day!

For more information visit the official website and forum. Tickets are only available now at the doors, 25th-26th October 2014, at the Odyssey Arena, Belfast.

Jenny

Nerdgeist Editor

Contact me for any Press, Reviews, Advertising or General Enquiries.

Email: contactnerdgeist@gmail.com

Twitter: @NGeistofficial

I love food, films, TV, photography and technology.

You can find me next at SXSW 2015 (Austin, Texas) & Emerald City Comic Con 2015 (Seattle).