Wales Comic Con seems to go from strength to strength and their first event of 2022 has reinforced their position as one of the stand conventions on the circuit. Once more Telford International Centre was the chosen location, just 28 miles inside the border of England from Wales. This is controverisal with some, but moving to the TIC in Telford back in 2019 has given the event the space to expand and establish its reputation, and this event has done that move justice.
Queueing for the visitors has been tweaked compared to previous events and is now barriered off on a car park. Efficient and friendly event staff were making sure everyone was heading in the correct direction. Working the queues were the UK Garrison. Darth Vader and his troops keeping the patrons in check and posing for selfies as they marched through. Check in was slick and easy for most. Yes, there are always minor issues along the way, but they were minimal and promptly dealt with.
At 10am prompt, the roller shutter doors opened to reveal the well laid out 3 halls. The layout was spacious and mindful of the recent social distancing rules that have been relaxed. It felt a safe and clean environment and the halls soon filled quickly.
The guest list was outstanding and long! Andy Serkis, Evangeline Lilly, Bruce Campbell, David Tenant, Sam J. Jones, Miranda Otto, James Masters, Dana Delorenzo, Dominic Monaghan, Catherine Tate, Sean Pertwee, Julian Glover, Ken Colley, Michael Pennington, Michael Culver, Glyn Baker, David Bradley, Kiran Shah… and the list goes on.
The guests were in fine form. Many were interacting with their guests, but not just from behind their tables, most were getting round to the publics side of the tables and fully engaging with those who had queued to meet them. The conference suites had been transformed into photo-op booths. Again, the queuing and timeslot system seemed to be going to plan and everyone was getting chance to meet their chosen celebrity(s).
Sam J. Jones, aka Flash Gordon was my chosen star to visit as I’ve always been a huge Flash Gordon fan as well as Star Wars. To say he is a character is an understatement. He is funny, charismatic and a very welcoming person. We had a great chat about Flash Gordon and his appearances in Ted and Ted 2, but it was the part of the conversation around the scandal of his missing cottage pie dinner that had us in stitches. This led to me helping him understand the origins and differences between cottage pie and shepherd’s pie in the UK. Random, but very memorable. He has now given me a task for the next time I am going to visit a convention where he is to appear… I’ve got to take him a proper shepherd’s pie. I look forward to fulfilling my challenge!
Artists Alley included John McCrea, Jay Manchand, Nigel Parkinson, Grant Perkins and Sonia Leong. The artwork on display was varied and stunning. All the artists were happy to chat with the crowds, but were also offering commissions, live demonstrations of their artistic skills and the chance to buy one of a kind original artwork.
But it wasn’t just about celebrity guests. The 3 halls were packed with stalls galore. Everything you could wish to find was catered for, comics, books, action figures, Funko POP’s, posters, original artwork and even cookies and cakes. It was nice to catch up with so many familiar faces who run the stalls, all of them with smiles as business was brisk and good.
The team at Wales Comic Con seem to learn from every event and aspire to improve. This isn’t just about the quality of guests or stalls; this includes their ticketing and on the ground event management. For me Wales Comic Con is up there as one of the best conventions you can visit in the UK. If you aspire to create your own event or convention, the Wales Comic Con blueprint is the one to follow.
I can’t wait for the next one in November!
