Dufus & Shirt...
Day
One: Saturday.
Over
eighteen months since the last one (due to a little thing called a global pandemic), London
Film and Comic Con was back. The initial draw for Shirt was Fiona Shaw, one of
whose first jobs was in the Granada Sherlock Holmes and who had more recently
appeared in ‘Enola
Holmes’; and the Fugitive Doctor, Jo Martin. Fiona
was a reasonably late cancellation, but the announcement of other guests, including
from the latest series of ‘Doctor Who’ as well as classic BBC sci-fi television
comedy, ‘The
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’. Dufus was keen
to attend also and so tickets were bought for both of them.
Dufus travelled down the night before, and wishing
to ensure that they picked up virtual queuing tickets for all the guests that
they wanted, an early start was required on Saturday morning. Parking in the
car park of Shirt’s local station, they struggled to get the parking app to
work, having to finish paying for the parking on their journey up to Clapham
Junction, where they changed onto the Overground. Around half an hour later, they
found themselves at Kensington Olympia Station. At this point, Shirt foolishly
commented on the ease of the journey , not knowing
that somewhere the Gods of Fate were making a note in a ledger. They were
directed through the empty outside queuing area, making their way into one of
the side-halls, being given red wristbands to show that they had demonstrated
their double-vaccination status. Bags checked, and entry tickets scanned, they
joined the shortest LFCC queue that Shirt had ever been in pre-opening.
Ten
minutes later and the door to the main hall was opened, and a few minutes after
that, they were entering the main hall, passing the Batmobile, crossing to the
far side of the hall, taking the lift up to the upper
floor where signings were taking place. The signers were stationed around all
four walls, with Christopher Eccleston and Sacha Dhawan sitting on the
left-hand wall. They picked up a virtual queuing ticket for Sacha, moving on
round, finding the rest of the ‘Doctor Who’ guests on the opposite wall, with open
queues.
They
began with Bonnie Langford who signed Shirt’s Season 24 Blu-Ray Boxset Booklet
and Dufus’ Season 27 Boxset. In doing so, she
recognised Dufus (rather than Shirt who she has met
more times and more recently). Dufus was so impressed
by this, that he decided to book a photoshoot with Bonnie also.
It
was then decided to start looking at the stalls
downstairs. Shirt had a mission for the weekend, to obtain a ‘Sherlock
Deadpool’ POP figure, so every few minutes he
stopped to scan walls and tables of figures without any success. He was also
looking for a poster/print to represent ‘Doctor Who: Flux’, which he managed to
do at ‘The Zero Room’
stall (with
Dufus getting a ‘Blakes 7’ print). Dufus also got a chance to do the joke that he had been
waiting all day to do, when someone commented on his mask covered in Liquorice
sweets – “Well, it takes allsorts !!”. Shirt even managed to purchase a fan art ‘Basil
the Great Mouse Detective’ vinyl sticker.
Reaching
the comics alley, they found DWM comic strip artist Lee Sullivan away from his
table, but a few steps further on, they were pounced on by a Vulpanan Werewolf, in the person of Jessica Martin. She
then proceeded to go through her entire comic-book oeuvre for the two,
including a comic-book version of her life story, encouraging them to buy.
Luckily one of her other books was her drawings of actors and films that have
inspired her, from which she has also produced several postcards. One of these
featured the Cumberbatch, Brett & Rathbone Holmes’ for £1, so Shirt managed
to get away with buying this, getting it signed by Jessica. Realising that Dufus was the weak link, Jessica managed to persuade him to
buy a Christmas Card version of the Holmes image (Shirt pretending that he had not seen
him purchasing it, knowing that it was likely to be coming his way for Christmas).
Moving
back up to the signing area, Shirt got his newly acquired print signed by Jonathan
Watson, who plays Sontaran Commanders Ritskaw & Skaak in the first
two episodes of ‘Doctor Who: Flux’ (and also appears in ‘Two Doors Down’).
Jonathan was sitting with Mr. Quarrelstick, and was rare in that he was allowing table photos. Dufus therefore took a photo of Shirt with Jonathan.
Dufus was then umming-and-ahhing (a pattern
of the weekend) over whether to get a signature or a photoshoot with the lovely
Anjli Mohindra (star of ‘SJA’ and Series 12 episode ‘Nikola
Tesla's Night of Terror’). However, Shirt
pointed out that she also seemed to be doing free table photos so he could kill
both birds with one payment stone. Dufus therefore
got Anjli to sign his Series 12 boxset, being so distracted
by her loveliness that he forgot to ask her to dedicate it. Shirt then took the
photo of them.
The
next person that Shirt wanted was away from his signing table, so they took the
opportunity to have a brief sit down (well, they’re both getting old). After around ten minutes, Shirt checked and
found that Andrew Gower who appears in two episodes of ‘Murdoch Mysteries’ as a man who believes himself to be Sherlock Holmes, was
back from his break. He was also pleased to see that he had a photo pf himself in
full Holmesian regalia which was better than the one Shirt had managed to print
off from online. He therefore got said photo signed, before posing for a photo taken
by Dufus.
Popping
back down to the comic alley, Lee Sullivan was now at his table, meaning that
Shirt could get him to sign his copy of the Panini Graphic Novel of Colin-Baker
penned Sixth Doctor comic ‘The
Age of Chaos’, which also features two strips created
by Lee, one with the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Benny. He spoke at length to Shirt
about his creation of the strips, before giving Dufus
in-depth tips to improve his drawing skills. Impressed Dufus
then purchased a print of Lee’s ‘The Usual Suspects’ image of Doctors 1-13.
It
was now time for Christopher Eccleston’s photoshoot, so they returned upstairs,
moving to Photo Area A, where the photoshoot had just started. Dufus & Shirt were both in Batch 3, so after around
fifteen minutes, they were called to join the snaking queue. Inside the
photoshoot area, they discarded their coats and bags, and soon they were being
asked to step up for their photos. Due to Covid, the Ninth Doctor was the other
side of a protective Perspex screen, with the edge painted black so it blended
into the black background. The pose favoured by the majority of people seemed
to be ‘back to back’ (against the screen), so as ever
following the crowd, Shirt went for this also. Having reclaimed their belongings,
Dufus was pleased that there was no sign of the
screen in the finished photo. Shirt’s photo was taking longer, as there was a
very thin line down the image where the screen was, so the stewards wanted to
check whether he was happy with this. Given that he was very happy with the
image of both himself and Chris, and knowing that to
have a new photo (the facial expressions on which might not be as good) the old
one would have to be torn up, Shirt decided to just remove the line digitally
later. (In fact it took less than a minute on his return
home).
It
was then decided to pop out for some lunch from a nearby supermarket, getting
their hands stamped for re-entry. Around 45 minutes later they were back at Photo
Area A for Dufus’ photo with Bonnie Langford, with
Shirt waiting a short distance away for Dufus to return.
A
brief final browse of the stalls, in which Shirt purchased a ‘Sherlock’
Underground Station style print, which he couldn’t remember if he already had
(Spoiler: He did), and a set of Dalek
mini bobble figurines made by Large Boss Studios
for M&B Giveaways, featuring the Emperor Dalek, Gold Dalek, Dalek Warrior
and Necros Dalek, which neither he nor Dufus had managed to find in any M&B (paying the RRP),
they made their way back to the station, catching the train to Shepherd’s Bush,
where after the last LFCC they had (just) failed at a ‘Sherlock’ escape room.
They then changed onto the Central Line, travelling two stops back to Notting
Hill Gate, where Dufus was able to purchase several secondhand Large Endings’ CDs that he had previously owned
but had now sold.
They
then caught the Underground to Tottenham Court Road and Naughty Asteroid, but left without buying anything. Catching the
train back to Shirt’s home station and Dufus’ car,
they rested before spending the evening at Chalky & Tigger’s having a Chinese,
catching up, and having a Games Night. Dufus revealed
to Chalky that he has joined a Rock Choir as they needed Basses (‘He's all 'bout that bass, 'bout that bass, no treble!’), and singly failed to guess any
of Shirt’s mimes in one of the games. After a ridiculously enjoyable evening,
they returned to Shirt’s, ready for another early start the next day.
Go
to Day
Two
[PL]