STONE FETE 1 July 2012 with the Iconic Legion supporting Vader's Lost

Stone Fete in conjunction with Cherished Memories and Vader's Lost and Iconic Legion

Pam Rose and I had the greatest pleasure to be asked by Steve Smith of Vader's Lost and Iconic Legion to attend this event in Stone, near Dartford Kent. The weather was a typical English affair - mid-summer rain, cloud, and occasional sun, but it made no difference to the day, with a great turnout locally and all for a great cause - Cherished Memories  run by the irrepressible Suzette Abbott!

Ahh! The loneliness of the long-distance Jawa! lol.
 Young Tom Anderson heads out to do his worst! :)

We had a good turnout of costumers, all ready (even though more then a couple had just completed night shifts!) to get out there and mix with the crowds to collect as much as we could. The hero of the piece for me was Tom Anderson, the most junior of our troop, dressed as a Jawa. Tom is a great lad with a heart of gold and unending energy! Even in the pouring rain he was still out there collecting in his bucket!

The brochure of the charity, Cherished Memories.

The event got underway with an announcement from the music stage, onto which Pam, Clare Robson of the Iconic Legion and myself made little speeches of welcome and gave an explanation of what we were collecting for. Our trooping fellows lined up in front of us and, as they were introduced by Clare, were 'marked by Dale Who, a very mischievous Doctor Who, with his inflatable hammer! :)

Dale lends his unique touch to introductions!

As the day progressed, the cloud base descended, but we carried on collecting - especially Pam, whose style of charm/threat illicited a goodly bucket-load of change and notes! Pam has a way with words and some of them are quite surprising! :)

Pam and Adam Leishman as the ever popular Cyberman

On the Cherished Memories stall, I joined Suzette Abbott and her volunteers as they attracted a constant stream of people to the tombola. I was there to encourage the public to participate and provided signed photos to those that spent a lot. Even the Lady Mayor came and got the bit between her teeth..and won a prize! The local scout troops were there in numbers and I have seldom met so many well-behaved and polite children in the atmosphere of a fairground!

Dr Who, the Cyberman and Darth Vader provide an intriguing opening shot for a fantasy episode!

The collecting bucket...

In the end, the weather got the better of us, but not before we had raised in the region of £1,000!!! So, a heartfelt vote of thanks to all attending and to the people of Stone and Dartford, who turned out in such numbers!

The wonderful members of Iconic Legion and Vader's Lost - find them on Facebook!

Melksham Comic Con, 2012

This is an entirely new venture organised by the intrepid Hayley Spencer, owner of the comic shop, Komix in Melksham, Wiltshire.
.
Pam Rose, Peter Roy and myself were invited to attend as the first actors and all arrangements were spot-on and sorted in a very timely and professional manner.

We all arrived at the hotel we were booked into for the night prior to the event, called The Kings Arms - a typically rambling 15/16th century coaching inn built in the local Cotswold Stone. Opposite the hotel stands the Assembly Halls and the venue for the event. We all three went to our rooms, came down and had a drink and then met Hayley and her excellent crew of family and helpers for a brief (our fault) meet and greet. All the other comic artists and vendors also came and we made our apologies to go to dinner elsewhere - something which had been planned weeks in advance.

The following day - the day of the show - we were up and ready before the chef had even turned in to make breakfast in the hotel. But, true old hands of eating on the hoof, we bolted down a full English breakfast each and were still early in the hall to set our tables up! Although the venue is not huge, it was incredibly well laid out and offered the public a good mixture of exhibits, vendors, artists and us! Our only slight complaint constructively offered is that the cinema screen facing our position, a mere 20 feet in front of us, was a major diversion for the public as they rounded the corner to come to us and the sound was all but deafening much of the time.

The screen as seen from my chair!

Pam furthest from camera, myself and Peter closest to camera.

At opening doors, a steady flow of visitors came in and it was not long before the hall was fairly buzzing with attendees. Many came as Cosplay characters, which gave the whole show a ring of fun and humour. Darth Vader and a Stormtrooper attended the crowd and performed crowd control in the street outside, as well as collecting money for charity with very good humour. Unaccustomed as we are in the UK, we had to deal with temperatures above the seasonal norm and I salute the costumers for their hard and much appreciated work!

Vader collecting for charity

There was also a droid builder there with two R2 types - one of which was a real star turn! She is known as Zoe Astromech. LOL. A beautiful and detailed build and a droid with attitude to boot! :)

Zoe Astromech

The venue.

I have to point out one amazing guy, who was there making balloon gifts for children and adults alike. His creations were absolutely amazing and produced so fast and accurately that each one I saw blew me away with their inventiveness. Now the main reason for saying all this is that he is not a professional, but a Maths teacher! I wish I had had someone as creative and entertaining as him when I was at school!!!

Dave Hickory - balloon man extraordinary!

One of the balloon creations accomplished in a mere few minutes!

Amongst the Cosplayers, one pair stood out for me - a father and child and pushchair combination pictured below, Sheer fun and thinking outside the box! Congratulations to Dick Dastardly, Muttley and their Wacky race car!!! Loved it! :)

Dick Dastardly, Muttley and their incredible Wacky race car! :)

Lastly, and by no means least, a huge thanks to Hayley Spencer!!! She has made a fantastic job of her first convention and I can only imagine how much more she will bring to future events! Thank you Hayley from all three of us!!!

Hayley Spencer of Komix Melksham.

Timeless Collectors' TV, Film,Toy and Collectors' Fair, Totton, Nr. Southampton.

It is that pre-festive time of year again, when we make our way down towards the South Coast and attend the Timeless Collectors' TV, Film, and Toy Collectors' Fair, organised by Chris Tarrant and friends.

The event was this year being held in The Conservative Club, Totton in aid of Clic Sargent South Region and, with the exception of Derek Lyons, Colin Baker and Ted Western having to cancel, featured the guests pictured above (Andrew Lawden replacing Derek Lyons). As usual, Pam Rose and I drove down together to share each other's company and stop me from drifting off to sleep on the way home!!! The journey in both directions was characterised by thick fog, but it didn't hold us up at all. Pam is such fun to be with! We are always cackling like demented idiots together and hardly notice the time spent driving.

We arrived around 9 AM and set ourselves up after a lovely welcome from all present - like a family reunion! Richard LeParmentier sat between us and was really entertaining all day and a real showman for the visitors! Another joy was to be with Rusty Goffe again, who's droll and sometimes quite acerbic humour cut through the din of the crowd and endlessly made me chuckle! Michael Henbury and Brian Wheeler were also in very good spirits and had a good day, I think. Andrew Lawden got a taste of a really nice, friendly show with a lovely atmosphere - so different from others we have attended together!

Pam and adorable Ewok with Richard LeParmentier looking on.

Richard enjoying himself immensely.

Andrew Lawden signing for a Dutch fan - Ettore Holle.

The irrepressible Rusty Goffe!

Brian Wheeler - a very charming and friendly gentleman.

Michael Henbury - Britain's smallest man - with his son. There is nothing small about this actor's heart!

John Chapman was also present with a fantastic stand and display, selling his innovative and popular children's books about the adventures of Jonnie Rocket. The kids were obviously taken with them and I hope they continue to bring joy to more and mote children! http://www.jonnierocket.com/

John Chapman, the author of Jonnie Rocket.

Another bonus was meeting up with troopers from The Dorset Troopers, Southern Troopers and other costumers I have become friends with. The visitors had a very good show of costumes to admire and the children, though loud :), had a great time (which is what it's all about for me!).

Pictured with members of the excellent Dorset Troopers.

As usual, I took HM The Queen with me to weave her magic spell on the table (and attempt to get another morsel of extra value for my tax pound out of her). Everyone laughs when they see the figure, but it cuts the shyness of children and makes the adults laugh automatically. Thanks Liz!!!

HM The Queen, Dave Oldbury and me!

So, my thanks go out again to Chris Tarrant and his remarkable team for the splendid show and friendly welcome given, not only to us, but to the visitors who streamed constantly though the doors, thanks to the exhaustive preparation and effort to promote this highly enjoyable event! We all look forward to the next! :)

Carol Streak with Britain's Got Talent's, Stu Arnold - the Entertainernator!

Darkside Con, Bochum-Werne, Germany, 4 - 6 November 2011

I am very privileged to be invited again to spend three days with the wonderful mix that is Dark Side Con - a show/convention for fans by fans, that covers all aspects of fandom in one intimate show!

The guests this time include Pam Rose (Leesub Serln - The Weird Girl from the Cantina in ANH and Alpha Base technician in Space 1999), Peter Roy, who played a variety of characters in ANH and ROTJ, as well as being '006' in Thunderball and many more films beside. We have also Trevor Butterfield, who played a Stormtrooper and Imperial Officer, Rankor Keeper and the Rebel Officer- Lieutenant Blount in Star Wars. Like me, he left screen appearances for a new career behind the camera after 1982. In his case, it was to work in Special Effects and his talents have been evidenced by his work not only in Star Wars, but Alien, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter films. In addition, there is a list of celebrities known more to German audiences as writers, musicians, anime enthusiasts and all sorts.................Oh! And me....! LOL :)

So here we are! Safely arrived in Germany and already reeling from the wonderful hospitality and friendly reception offered freely by Markus Tschentschel, Rolf Prippenow and Alex, who met us from the airport. Heavy traffic and diversions made a half-hour journey into two hours, but we had an hour still to relax and settled again into the comfortable family Hotel Specht (Woodpecker), where I had stayed the last two visits.

Das Hotel Specht, Bochum-Werne, Dortmund.

We assembled in the bar (you can’t teach an old dog new tricks! LOL) and were taken out to a very nice Greek/fusion restaurant called ‘Arli’. I had eaten there before with Derek Lyons and knew how charming and extrovert the owner is, but my fellow guests had still to find this out, as he warned us it was useless to look at the menu as he had some old fish he had to get rid of and that would be his surprise for us – needless to say, even the production of three beautifully fresh and uncooked fish on a platter left us all reaching for the a la carte menu! Clever man that restaurateur! :)  The meal was, of course, delicious and our friend returned with ouzo for all! As I was genteely sipping a gin and tonic, I managed to escape and Pam was very happy with her white wine. But everyone else enjoyed the treat and we were finally sated and out of there!

Whilst waiting for the cars to be fetched from the underground car park, Pam and I staggered gently (cough, cough!!!) across the road, drawn by a shop window display, pictured below!

H.M. The Queen flanked by Kate and Posh Spice!!!

So, onwards into the first day, starting with the pick up at 2 pm. Very civilized! As I look out of my hotel window this morning, I can see the Christmas decorations starting to go up in the market square! Seems Christmas comes earlier and earlier these days…

... so we arrived at 2 pm to find the opening ceremony for the show was scheduled for 7 pm, giving us plenty of time to meet and mingle. So many people I had met in previous years – it was like a family reunion and all made Pam, Peter and Trevor most welcome. Trevor even found four of his action figures, which are on re-issue and grabbed them eagerly. Pam, once again, found her figure a rarity and as she had only brought two with her from England, I could imagine they would be snapped up immediately on the morrow!

The opening ceremony was compered again by Freddy Bee, the gifted young German comedian, and more or less everyone was called to the stage at some point and introduced – a great idea as it’s always nice to put faces to names and we were about to share the convention for the next few days. Once again it is important to note that this convention is a true fan-led meeting embracing all sci-fi interests. There were as many dressed for Star Gate, as Star Trek, and many, many more! And that is another thing, those not in costume are the exceptions and this show is modelled around role-play, skits, plays and fan films with presentations by authors, costumiers and the Rebel Legion, this year. Downstairs in the smaller function rooms there were banks of laptops with gamers, anime and manga fans. Software builders are also taken care of with their own rooms. On arrival back at the hotel, we sat down to a delicious meal and retired to bed, quite exhausted!

Gingerbread hearts.

The Outdoor Market which set up in the middle of the night!

Anyone fancy rollmop sandwiches and smoked eels?

The next day, having met for breakfast and the others having walked around the outdoor market in the town square, we awaited pick up for the first full day of the convention proper at 10.45 am. It proved to be a relatively busy one all round. No sooner had we arrived than we were drawn into a ‘breakfast with the guests’, which started slowly but eventually became a cacophony of sound as we were all talking non-stop around the table! From there we went to set up our photographs and ephemera and were immediately busy with a constant stream of visitors and exhibitors wanting signings. I met some old friends again and we had a great time catching up. I was especially pleased to see the lovely Inge Meiercord with her son, Marcel, whom I had met the first time I went to Germany for this convention, when we hit it off straight away! Lovely, lovely lady!!!

Later in the day, Pam and I conducted a Q & A in the main auditorium, which was at times lively and I was asked to sing something, so I gave the poor audience a shortened rendition of Hallelujah, a capella. The questions ranged from how did we start to what were some of the strangest things that happened during our careers. It was fun going back to the beginning and a marked change from talking of only Star Wars. The day became quieter towards 6 pm, though we were obliged to be there until 9. So, we packed up and joined the throng and enjoyed a performance on stage by my friend 'Der Klingolaus' - the  Klingon Santa Claus - and then we were all roped into judging the costume competition, in all categories. We had a lot of fun with that, as the costumes were some of them quite spectacular and some were…less so :).

Der Klingolaus with Pam and a Shaman!

The costume competition competitors.

In any event, the time slipped away in pleasant company and we finally returned to the hotel for another fine meal. I must say that the Hotel Specht does serve some incredibly good meals! Our compliments to Christoph and his wife!!!!

Sunday we arrived the same time as the day before and Trevor and I immediately set to on a Q & A session,which was fun! Peter and Pam followed on and had a very cosy chat going when I peered in! Expecting this day to be slower, I was amazed how many people arrived. I met a lovely group of guys and a girl from Paris and had the chance to brush up on my French, a nice Swedish couple, my old friend Ettore Holle from the Netherlands and lots more Germans! :). My brain was fairly frazzled by the end of the day as we came to attend the closing ceremony. Freddy was great and made the mistake of being caught out and being obliged to sing – now on Facebook with his permission. He also had to tell the audience that the film they had seen of Pam’s life contained the Country & Western singer Pam Rose, from the States, and not our Pam at all. A huge laugh was gained at his expense for that confession!!!

I love the look of disbelief as Pam tells Freddy that that wasn't her singing!!! LOL

Markus made a very gracious speech of thanks to all concerned and we each replied with our really heartfelt thanks for the amazing hospitality and wonderfully friendly reception and care afforded us. Oh, how we wish more conventions were like this! I have been exceptionally lucky to have been befriended by such nice people and look forward to another trip in the future! Back to the hotel and time for a quick drink before the packed streets outside had their procession and ceremony in honour of St. Martin.

Crowds assembling for the Heiliger Martin's parade and play.

Pam checks out a friendly wolverine! Beauty and the Beast!)

So, we are back in 'Dear Ol' Bighty' again and already missing our friends!!! Thank you all at Daedalus and especially Markus, Rolf, Ralf, Susanne, Alex and Joerg, for making this a thoroughly enjoyable and friendly event - as always!!!!

Here is the link to the closing song of the convention, when Freddy Bee was put on the spot to sing it again, alone!
 :)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fhmVLCJtq8&feature=player_embedded

9th 501st and Friends Stormtrooper Meeting, Bayern Park, Germany.

The day was finally upon us and Derek Lyons, Pam Rose, John Chapman and I were finally there in the deep south of Germany for the 9th Annual 501st and Friends Meeting in Bayern Park, Bavaria!

We flew from Heathrow with Lufthansa and made excellent time, arriving in Munich 10 minutes early. Met by Ulli Pallor of the Austrian Garrison, Michael Robl of the German Garrison and some of the girls also of the 501st German Garrison, we headed off in the direction of Reisbach, in the vicinity of Bayern Park.

After heavy rain the last few days, we appeared to have brought the good weather in tow and, indeed, the temperature was 31 C today.  We continued first to the hotel, Das Hotel Schlappinger Hof, which Derek and I had previously stayed in the year before and checked in. Ulli took us out to meet with the members of the 501st already setting up on the camping ground by the park and we then went to meet the charming family who own and operate the park.

I must say, this park is a country idyll, with clean paths and rigorously maintained lawns and borders as well as state-of-the-art rides and amusements for the whole family. I wish our amusement parks were of this sort of standard! Children can run free in safety and the staff are delightful. One price on the gate and and everything is free within!

The latest ride inaugurated for our visit - Der Freischutz

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped off for a pizza and relaxed in the heat of the late afternoon, as the heavens decided to open and pour down for 20 minutes. It refreshed the air and we had a delicious meal.

Day 2 started with a blazing hot sun and the drive back to the park. On arrival, even though we were early, a large queue had already formed and so we went straight in and met up with Garrison members from Austria, Switzerland and Germany and members of the Rebel Legion, who were also trooping the event. In all, over 150 costumers in full costume, as well as children in brilliant costumes as good as those of their parents, were there to troop!

The next generation is already in training! LOL

The day got underway with welcoming speeches given by Ulli Pallor, who then introduced each of us to the crowd. We also expressed our appreciation for the opportunity to appear with our friends and to meet so many of the public. The gate was in excess of 10,000, but not all could crowd into the small plaza where we were being presented. I picked up my camera and discreetly made a quick pass of the crowd to give an impression of the numbers present...

I applaud all of the 150+ costumers of the German and visiting Garrisons for trooping tirelessly in full costume in the heat! This day the temperature rose to 34 C before midday and very humid!!! But you can't keep a true Star Wars fan down and all trooped with amazing good humour! The public gave all the guys and girls fantastic receptions as they toured the park, posing with kids and parents alike and joining in the fun.

The crowd massed to see what photos we had brought with us and any other novelties, as Derek and I had done the year before. I had sat down a few days earlier and made up a load of bookmarks for each of us and we had all brought a variety of cards, figures and t-shirts to help the event along. As in Stockholm, Her Majesty The Queen was in attendance on my table waving cheerfully to the public!!! I told the kids and their parents it was my way of getting my taxes back for all she cost us! Don't suppose I'll get a knighthood now!!! LOLOL

John Chapman was very popular with his comic books of the adventures of Jonnie Rocket - great books for kids of all ages, and especially those learning English!


Lunch came and went and I once again remained signing throughout, missing my Wienerschnitzel and fries! But I didn't mind - I had the very lovely Daniela Hofman helping me with the throng and we battled on in good humour to the end of the day. The public spoke confidently to me in the certain knowledge I would understand them, as I had made my little opening speech in German at the beginning. I was met with accents and dialects I had never heard before. Truly, people had come from far and wide for this event!!!

Amongst the highlights of the day were three particular children. Firstly, the one month premature baby daughter of Andrea and Michael (who had collected us from the airport and driven us to the park), just two weeks old and pushed by her father in costume in a converted buggy made to look like a Sand Crawler! :)

Another little darling, Rebecca, settled happily into my arm and stayed with me a long time - I was reluctant to hand her back as she was so well behaved.

Baby Rebecca with me, Daniela and Ulli's daughter, Constanze.

The Sand Crawler buggy! :)

Baby Rebecca with her mother Nicole! A perfect little bruiser with a sunny disposition - the baby that is LOL!!!

Hardly a baby anymore, but #3 - this cheeky little chappy preferred to stand on my hand!

The day was a huge success and we all felt we had had a really satisfying experience with the children and their parents! Although I was exhausted from the heat and the fact I had managed to stand up just three times during the day, I felt blessed to have met so many friendly and good-natured people.

That evening, we all returned to the park for a BBQ with the 501st members camping there. The sky was bejewelled and clear and the International Space Station tracked acroess the sky on queue! Amongst the attendees was a lovely girl, Katje, with her dog, Sophie - a cross Miniature Pincher/Chihuahua. Katje Beham lived a while in the States and her English is really great! We chatted for quite some time and Sophie made my lap her bed. A nice feeling of home-comfort and lovely food and company!

Sophie and her 'Mum' Katje. Andrea Rilli and Ulli Pallor behind.

Next day, we travelled out to Passau to have lunch at the same outdoor restaurant as last year (yummy Schweinshaxe!) and then on to the Cathedral for a quick look round. The Cathedral is beautiful, with a wonderful mixture of Gothic, Baroque and Rococo. We could all have spent longer there, but tempus fugit!

A view down the aisle towards the Gothic Choir.

The beautiful painted roundels in the ceiling of the nave.

We then moved on to visit a vast and sprawling castle on the Austrian-German border at Burghausen. This, we were informed, if the longest castle in Germany - 1 km long!!! I am afraid, as beautiful as it was and as much as I wanted to see it all, I managed to walk only a third of the way in and back out! The castle seems to have originated in the late 11th century and been added to century by century. The only direction it could grow was backwards along a ridge between two rivers and thus the longest castle grew out of the rock!

The entrance to one of many courtyards across a wooden bridge.

And another courtyard, dated above the arch 1533....panting by now! LOL

A courtyard too far!!!!!!

Michael Robl in his Lederhosen by a plan of the castle.

Pam and I stuck together as the others went on ahead. We found a small door in an outside wall and found ourselves above the town and by a sign asking us not to feed the goats!!! Believe me, only goats could have lived on that vertiginous slope!

Pam with the town behind...

And so, back to Reisbach and the hotel for an evening meal in company with Ulli and some of the others with whom we had travelled far and wide that day. Exhausted, but happy, I fell asleep before my head hit the pillow! :)

Our final day was to be a brief excursion to a German traditional dress outlet to have a look at Lederhosen and Dirndls. Only John Chapman and a couple of the girls tried anything on. John declined to show us! :)))) But Elisabeth and Daniela were game.

Daniela in her dirndl. The headwear is not traditional! LOL :>)

We left the shop and tottered into a brilliant Chinese restaurant, where we had a fantastic buffet as Ulli and Michael's guests.So generous!!! Thank you guys!

And with that done and our tummies stuffed full, we went on to Munich and the airport. The flight was on time and comfortable and we were soon back in my car and heading back to London. I think I can certainly say that we all had a fantastic time in the company of our hosts and the German/Austrian and Swiss 501st. Long may they continue to attract such wonderful and welcoming people!!!

Farewell Germany, until the next time.......