The ‘Ow-much? Red Dwarf Convention News Posted by Ian Symes on 27th September 2025, 16:08 We’ve always said that we’d be reserving judgement on the new Official Red Dwarf Convention until we had more details – what kind of event is it going to be, how much is it going to cost, what do we get for our money. Well, we now have those details, with the launch of the convention’s website. It’s going to be held at The Level, a music and events venue in Nottingham, on the 18th and 19th of July 2026. So unlike Dimension Jump, it’ll be more of a comic con style affair, rather than the more intimate vibe you get from a hotel-based con. This is kind of what we were expecting, given that it’s being run by the team behind Em-Con, but it’s fair to say there’s been a bit of a backlash from a number of fans, especially when it comes to the pricing. Before we get into it, full disclosure: while I was never a part of The Official Red Dwarf Fan Club team, my partner was for over a decade, specifically as the chief Dimension Jump organiser for most of that time. As a Fan Club WAG, I was among those who helped to run a total of six DJs, to varying degrees. The Official Red Dwarf Convention is not Dimension Jump, and nor is it trying to be. Dimension Jump was always such an outlier that it’s impossible to recreate the unique circumstances that made it such extraordinarily good value for money. It was most certainly not run for profit, and most of the time it achieved the exact opposite of profit. Not a single person that put months of hard work into each event got paid for their time, and the guests received a much lower rate than they could get elsewhere, all so the ticket price could be kept to a minimum. The philosophy was that it was an event for everyone, and while there were a handful of optional extras that could be bought (for a below-market-value price), each and every ticket got you access to everything that happened in the event hall, autographs and photos with every single guest, and crucially, unlimited opportunities to socialise and meet new people. A professionally run convention was never going to be anything like that, and the prices reflect this. I was bracing myself for a sharp intake of breath when I opened the website, but in many ways it could have been worse – the most expensive ticket for the last DJ (non Fan Club member, after the earlybird discount deadline) was £110, and they went on sale in 2019. Six years on, and the bronze level of Official-Con tickets are only a tenner more, and for that you’ll get an experience that’s not entirely unlike DJ. Event entry, opening ceremony, all the Q&As, booklet. But alas, only one autograph, and no entry to the Saturday night party. For that, you’ll have to pay £290 for a silver ticket, so the equivalent of at least two DJs. And even then, you don’t get autographs from the “headline guests” – it doesn’t specify who they are, but I’d assume Craig, Chris, Danny and Robert. If you want their autographs too, you’ll need a gold ticket, at a staggering £435. That’s four or five Dimension Jumps worth, plus the cost of accommodation and travel, to get something that’s almost exactly like the old convention, but a day shorter and with nowhere to hang around afterwards. Side note – you can also buy a single day entry ticket for £40, or a weekend entry ticket for £60. That sounds much more like it, but the website doesn’t tell you what you get for that. I’m assuming you just get to go in and have the option to pay for individual autographs or photos, but it would be nice to get that clarified. This type of convention is not for me. I’m aware that I’ve been spoiled by Dimension Jump (I was a paying attendee before and after my involvement), but the type of cons that segregate people depending on how much money they can spend have always made me feel uneasy. Putting the disco behind a paywall is particularly egregious – for me, the whole point of being in the same place as other Red Dwarf fans is to socialise with them, and there have been countless friendships and relationships that have been formed and fostered on these weekends. It’s a shared experience, and I want everyone to be able to share the same thing. So it’s not for me. But there are plenty of people who don’t think of a DJ-style weekender when they think “convention”, they think of the type of events run by Showmasters, Starfury or, well, Em-Con. And by those standards, the Official-Con prices are pretty much par for the course, perhaps even slightly cheaper than most of their competitors. Each to their own, I say – I wish there was still a Red Dwarf convention aimed at people like me, but I’m not going to get mad at professional convention organisers for organising a professional convention that’s aimed at people not like me. In an ideal world, there’d be both – a cheap and cheerful Dimension Jump for those who just want to hang out with other fans, and a premium option for those who are both willing and able to pay a little more to meet their heroes. The fact is that there hasn’t been a Dimension Jump for over four years, and no indication whatsoever that anything is being planned. A void was created, and Official-Con has turned up to fill it. There’s nothing to stop Dimension Jump continuing alongside Official-Con, but let’s face it, the signs aren’t great. The last one was in September 2021, and that was originally put into place for mid 2020, before being postponed for obvious reasons. The Fan Club’s monthly newsletter was last sent in May 2022, while their quarterly magazine was last published in Spring 2019. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the Club has chosen the day after the Official Convention launched to announce that they’re suspending paid membership, and are refunding any fees paid since July 2023. This is a very good move, especially as it’s an automatic process, with members not having to jump through any hoops to get their money back. But it’s an absolute scandal that they were continuing to take people’s membership fees for so long, while providing literally fuck all in return. The team remains, as always, composed entirely of volunteers contributing their spare time, which absolves a lot of criticism when the service provided is free. I’m glad that it now is, at least for the timebeing, but I can’t help feel that the July 2023 cut off point is kind of arbitrary, when they stopped doing a single thing that people were paying for long before that. As someone who spent so many years being so close to the Fan Club’s inner sanctum, it’s painful to see how rapidly it’s given up the ghost since the majority of the old guard left. Custodianship of that institution is a privileged position, which not everyone in that position seems to appreciate. The idea and the ethos of Dimension Jump deserves better, and it deserves to still be a going concern. I only hope that the Fan Club take the Official-Con’s announcement, and the reaction to it from former DJ attendees, as the kick up the arse they so desperately need.
I’m an Em-Con regular and I was – perhaps foolishly – expecting prices in line with Em-Con prices. I think I’m going to have to give serious thought to this. Do I just gamble on meeting the cast at other conventions and also meet people from other series attending those events? I’m not fussed about the opening and closing ceremonies or the party because I’m old and my knees hurt but they’re folded in to the only packages that will give me a fighting chance of interacting with the “headliners” – which, realistically, is what Craig will be and he does far fewer con appearances than, say, Chris and Danny. I won’t lie, I think the prices are probably about right for what’s being offered in 2025. Everything is expensive because the economy has been fucked half to death over the last decade and a half. A convention is a luxury, I’m not deluding myself there. It’s just unfortunate that compared to the main Em-Con there will be a smaller venue, a much smaller head count and fewer things to do overall. I don’t think it’s an unreasonable ask, it’s just as much as I love Red Dwarf, I also love being able to pay my heating bill so I may have to seriously weigh this one up.
A nice even-handed article. I was never active in the fandom at the right time to go to a DJ, so missed out on that experience. I would have considered something like that today, just to get the chance to be there for once, but this kind of event doesn’t sound quite the same and also is frankly far too expensive for what I’d get out of it. But hopefully those attending enjoy it and it helps to keep the show alive and in the public eye.
This type of convention is not for me. I’m aware that I’ve been spoiled by Dimension Jump (I was a paying attendee before and after my involvement), but the type of cons that segregate people depending on how much money they can spend have always made me feel uneasy. Well, I’ve never been to anything like this – the thought of the big ComicCons and whathaveyou have always made me feel somewhat intimidated. But that DJ thing of hanging about with other folk was always a buzz, and the fact I was too skint to attend as often as I’d’ve liked was gutting. I’ve said elsewhere that FOMO brought my credit card into action last night, and – against my better judgement, to be honest – I’ve got a Bronze pass. Part of that FOMO, though, was to do with hopefully catching up with a few old friends at the actual convention. If, as it looks like, none of the old guard are actually going to bother buying a ticket, I might end up not going myself. I’m already having regrets less than 24 hours after getting my ticket, God help me for the next ten months. :/
I don’t think it’s an unreasonable ask, it’s just as much as I love Red Dwarf, I also love being able to pay my heating bill so I may have to seriously weigh this one up.
So is this a case of TORDFC not doing anything and this is occupying that gap or has the fan club been pushed aside in favour of a better paying gig? Odd timing for the definitely first ever official Red Dwarf convention happening in the wake of the show’s, what? Hiatus?
Odd timing for the definitely first ever official Red Dwarf convention happening in the wake of the show’s, what? Hiatus? As you say in many ways it’s a wake. ;- It’s Dead on Dave, Dave.
Wasn’t particularly interested in it – I’m not an autograph or selfie hunter – but I do hope anyone who does fork out for it has a nice time.
Look at it this way, the first Star Trek conventions happened following the shows original run. And then a movie was made.
“the type of cons that segregate people depending on how much money they can spend have always made me feel uneasy.“ And the type of con that classifies Red Dwarf creator/writers, actors and or guests stars into Headliner, Regular and Bonus Categories might raise an eyebrow with you? Doug, Hattie & Chloe announced thus far being dubbed “Bonus” on the event website. …, They mention on their socials that only ”One” Headliner is to be announced. With 10 to 12 guests in total for the event line up. Reply’s on their Socials also say “Day tickets and weekend tickets get access to the event, all the panels/Q&A’s and access to all the sets and items from the show on display” They mention Sets, Screen used Skutters and are still in talks with Doug about this. They go on to say Day/weekend tickets… …. you’ll have access to purchase autographs on the day “Bonus Guests”- £25 “Regular Guest” £30 – and photoshoots”” The exact photoshoot combinations are still to be confirmed, but are on sale from Monday. .
So is this a case of TORDFC not doing anything and this is occupying that gap or has the fan club been pushed aside in favour of a better paying gig? Odd timing for the definitely first ever official Red Dwarf convention happening in the wake of the show’s, what? Hiatus? It’s the former. You can’t push aside something that isn’t there.
Maybe the headliner is Rob Anita Dobson. Who spends most of the Q&A talking about being the Rani. To get crossover ticket sales with Whovians.
Anita Dobson. Who spends most of the Q&A talking about being the Rani. To get crossover ticket sales with Whovians. She was at the last Em-Con, actually, so you never know. I can tell you even she wasn’t fond of CGI Omega.
I always found the idea of paying for an autograph (as in giving someone a tenner and watching them write their name down) a bit repulsive
I always found the idea of paying for an autograph (as in giving someone a tenner and watching them write their name down) a bit repulsive Paying people for their time and labour is hardly a revolutionary concept. At a con, there are hundreds of people wanting to meet their favourite actor and want something special to remember it. Now I’m kinda on the side of ‘well if everyone has something signed it becomes less special’ but hey, people want what they want. These people have to sit for HOURS signing pictures and meeting people and keeping their energy up to every 30second interaction seems like the first they’ve had that day.
I’d say £30 is quite a lot for 30 seconds work, but agreed that it’s just the nature of it. I’ve got less than zero interest in autographs and have never understood the fascination with meeing famous people and the like, but clearly a lot of people think it’s worth the money, so what do I know?
I tend to prefer book signings where usually the signature and chat are free, but there’s an implicit expectation that you’ll at least buy the book. I’ve met quite a few authors that way and have never been charged for it.
I went ahead and got two day tickets at the £60 level. Just hoping for some Q & As. Also going to Doug’s literature event tomorrow so I’ll be able to compare the two happenings in ten months.
I had been experiencing a little bit of FOMO with the announcement – yet another Red Dwarf event I wouldn’t be able to attend, alas – but that’s definitely eased up over the last couple of days. I’ll stick to Gallifrey One for now. [muffled mumbling from earpiece] Oh, hang on…
I’ll stick to Gallifrey One for now. [muffled mumbling from earpiece] Oh, hang on… It’s lasting longer than actual Doctor Who…
So at the old Convention, the price you paid included time with the Stars, autograph etc? That’s really good. I went to one of those ‘collectormania’ conventions in the mid 2000s and, even then, paying £20 a pop for 30 seconds with the two Baker Doctor Whos was a lot, and felt…grubby. I saw that the 5th Doc and two companions were at a free town festival near us a few months back. But they weren’t part of the free part. I get that people want to meet the stars. But the cash exchange just always feels…grubby. Especially when it’s three figures in cost, as it seems to be with modern Who Doctors. In an age of online blogs, zines and all that, you can probably just spend a few months creating a portfolio and then getting interviews with these people, and to spend time with them. I had a lovely day in the Big Finish studios (and nearby pub!) with the cast of a Who story some years back, just on the basis of a handful of articles I’d written for a nascent webzine. I never even got around to transcribing the interview :(
I remember being made to wait in line for ages for Zoe Ball’s autograph when she visited the local agricultural show in about 1994, not seemingly doing anything else. I was really, really, really, really, really thrilled to meet her.
Don’t get me wrong – the guests at these things are doing real work, lots of it, and deserve to be paid for their time. But if you’re charging per autograph then yeah, grubby is the word.
I went to a Collectormania in Glasgow in 2008 and met Craig, really thrilled etc. But John Leeson was also there and he was doing autographs for free and his queue was out the bloody door all day, so I can only imagine the clusterfuck if somebody like Tom Baker did that.
Yeah I don’t follow the logic for why specifically charging per autograph is “grubby”. If the price is extortionate then I understand, but not as a general rule. Maybe it’s just because it’s technically possible to blag a free autograph by, say, randomly running into them in Tesco? But still, if they’re going to dedicate solid hours to signing and greeting, it’s fair enough for them to be compensated for that. I am tickled by Asclepius’s suggestion though, that you can avoid the cost by just becoming an internet blogger and building up enough clout to get an in-person interview with the celebrity in question. Sure, simple as that, and definitely scalable. Although you get way more time with them if you go through drama school, become a successful and in-demand actor, and then seek out projects where you’ll co-star with them.
Just become a successful TV Producer and invite all your favourite actors to discuss an exciting project.
Simply follow them closely on social media, find out if they or their partner ever get pregnant, promptly conceive your own child, move within the same catchment area so your child attends the same school as theirs (may need to change your child’s school several times if unsure), manipulate your child to be their child’s friend, then wait for your invite for their birthday party at Funsters.
Yeah I don’t follow the logic for why specifically charging per autograph is “grubby”. If the price is extortionate then I understand, but not as a general rule. Maybe it’s just because it’s technically possible to blag a free autograph by, say, randomly running into them in Tesco? But still, if they’re going to dedicate solid hours to signing and greeting, it’s fair enough for them to be compensated for that. I am tickled by Asclepius’s suggestion though, that you can avoid the cost by just becoming an internet blogger and building up enough clout to get an in-person interview with the celebrity in question. Sure, simple as that, and definitely scalable. Although you get way more time with them if you go through drama school, become a successful and in-demand actor, and then seek out projects where you’ll co-star with them. I was too blase with that, so fair play with calling it out. I’ve never been a blogger, and I’m not sure what the door ‘in’ to these things is like now. But back in 2010 or so I used to chuck an article or two a week at Den of Geek. Dr. Who reviews mostly. Nothing of any massive quality, but stuff that would take 30/60 minutes or so to write. Big Finish reviews, writing up news that I’d read elsewhere, and making it more relevant or interesting. Some silly things. When Big Finish were doing a particular project I was interested in, I just emailed them and linked to some of the stuff I’d written and I got to spend a day down there, eating all their amazing food. I don’t have the writing skills of half of you lot (your funny stuff and your short stories are way beyond my ability) but it wasn’t *hard* to do any of that. But this was 15 years ago now. I don’t know how hard it would be to start submitting stuff to Den of Geek, Louder Than War, any of that sort of stuff now. As for the Autographs For Cash thing. I think I’d rather pay more to attend a convention where the guests have already been paid, tbh. Sounds like what Dimension Jump was about? They’d pay the stars to be there and to mingle, and there were no additional costs to attendees? That sounds lovely, tbh. I suppose you only get that by limiting attendance though. And if the fans are producing so much goodwill that the actors want to have that experience. Maybe it’s unique to Dwarfers? Anyway, do feel free to say ‘Fuck off Grandad, you don’t know anything. Your day is done and you can’t write articles for stuff and then get interviews in 2025 you dirty old fossil’. It’s probably justified.
I’ve never been utterly roasted in gif form before. Thank you very much. That’s really funny and I appreciate the work that’s gone in there. Btw I never *intended* the interview to not be written up. It was just a lot of work, and unlike many sci-fi obsessives, I have this weird tendency to get distracted *really* easily and jump from project to project without completing any of them. I don’t know if anyone has experience similar?
I was only joshing so hopefully it was taken as intended. I actually had similar experiences many years back in the comics world, where I used to write reviews and articles and interviews and so on, and in the process was able to chat with tons of pros about their work and my favourite hobby, for free. I don’t know if things have become slightly more professionalised in certain spheres now, but certainly back in those days there was a fairly loose approach to connecting with what were essentially amateur fan journalists.
I was too blase with that, so fair play with calling it out. I’ve never been a blogger, and I’m not sure what the door ‘in’ to these things is like now. But back in 2010 or so I used to chuck an article or two a week at Den of Geek. Dr. Who reviews mostly. Nothing of any massive quality, but stuff that would take 30/60 minutes or so to write. Big Finish reviews, writing up news that I’d read elsewhere, and making it more relevant or interesting. Some silly things. When Big Finish were doing a particular project I was interested in, I just emailed them and linked to some of the stuff I’d written and I got to spend a day down there, eating all their amazing food. I don’t have the writing skills of half of you lot (your funny stuff and your short stories are way beyond my ability) but it wasn’t *hard* to do any of that. But this was 15 years ago now. I don’t know how hard it would be to start submitting stuff to Den of Geek, Louder Than War, any of that sort of stuff now. You weren’t wrong that it was – and I’m sure to an extent still is – feasible to do what you did, you’ve just got to acknowledge that even if everyone who wanted to meet and get autographs of a celebrity had the skills to write a review or 2 for a major website, there’s only so many slots available for those reviews and only so much time for celebrities to meet people on that basis. Plus there are probably lots of celebrities who would do conventions but woudn’t necessarily do an interview with a little known Den of Geek writer. As for the Autographs For Cash thing. I think I’d rather pay more to attend a convention where the guests have already been paid, tbh. Sounds like what Dimension Jump was about? They’d pay the stars to be there and to mingle, and there were no additional costs to attendees? That sounds lovely, tbh. I suppose you only get that by limiting attendance though. And if the fans are producing so much goodwill that the actors want to have that experience. Maybe it’s unique to Dwarfers? I think it’s just a question of how much choice you want to give attendees. Dimension Jump didn’t suffer for this because of how much of a good deal it was overall, but if the entry price includes unlimited autographs (or 1 autograph per guest), then it will have to be higher to cover for that, and people who are only interested in getting autographs from a select few guests – or aren’t interested in getting autographs at all – will have to pay more than they otherwise would have, and will feel ripped off. Of course you can offer multiple ways to pay, but only the attendees who want to get most of everything will consider the bundled cost worth it – and they’ll still need to prove to the guests that they’ve paid. I do still think that this instinctive “grubbiness” feeling is just an association with conversation and autographs as personal interactions rather than business ones, so physically handing money over specifically for them feels weird. It’s understandable, but consciously you should be able to recognise that paying up front or all together doesn’t change the nature of the transaction. But if a convention does only have the all-inclusive price option, then it does mean that interaction with the guests doesn’t have to be so rigidly structured, that much is true. Like if you happened to stumble into a room where the Hollies were doing cocaine*, you could just ask to join in. Whereas in a non-inclusive con they’d just say “sorry, you’ll have to queue up tomorrow at the dedicated Snorting Session. It starts at 6:30am and it’s £400 per line per guest”. * This is hypothetical. I have no evidence that either Norman Lovett or Hattie Hayridge have ever taken cocaine. Jane Leeves definitely** has though. ** hypothetically.
I was only joshing so hopefully it was taken as intended. I actually had similar experiences many years back in the comics world, where I used to write reviews and articles and interviews and so on, and in the process was able to chat with tons of pros about their work and my favourite hobby, for free. I don’t know if things have become slightly more professionalised in certain spheres now, but certainly back in those days there was a fairly loose approach to connecting with what were essentially amateur fan journalists. Reading back I can see that while I’ve tries to write a genuinely open and welcoming response, it comes across like Rob Newman’s Sarcastic Ray. FFS! For the record, I genuinely laughed out loud at your gif. I found it funny and inoffensive, and I was flattered you’d gone to the effort. Just wanted to try and make that clear!
I was too blase with that, so fair play with calling it out. I’ve never been a blogger, and I’m not sure what the door ‘in’ to these things is like now. But back in 2010 or so I used to chuck an article or two a week at Den of Geek. Dr. Who reviews mostly. Nothing of any massive quality, but stuff that would take 30/60 minutes or so to write. Big Finish reviews, writing up news that I’d read elsewhere, and making it more relevant or interesting. Some silly things. When Big Finish were doing a particular project I was interested in, I just emailed them and linked to some of the stuff I’d written and I got to spend a day down there, eating all their amazing food. I don’t have the writing skills of half of you lot (your funny stuff and your short stories are way beyond my ability) but it wasn’t *hard* to do any of that. But this was 15 years ago now. I don’t know how hard it would be to start submitting stuff to Den of Geek, Louder Than War, any of that sort of stuff now. You weren’t wrong that it was – and I’m sure to an extent still is – feasible to do what you did, you’ve just got to acknowledge that even if everyone who wanted to meet and get autographs of a celebrity had the skills to write a review or 2 for a major website, there’s only so many slots available for those reviews and only so much time for celebrities to meet people on that basis. Plus there are probably lots of celebrities who would do conventions but woudn’t necessarily do an interview with a little known Den of Geek writer. As for the Autographs For Cash thing. I think I’d rather pay more to attend a convention where the guests have already been paid, tbh. Sounds like what Dimension Jump was about? They’d pay the stars to be there and to mingle, and there were no additional costs to attendees? That sounds lovely, tbh. I suppose you only get that by limiting attendance though. And if the fans are producing so much goodwill that the actors want to have that experience. Maybe it’s unique to Dwarfers? I think it’s just a question of how much choice you want to give attendees. Dimension Jump didn’t suffer for this because of how much of a good deal it was overall, but if the entry price includes unlimited autographs (or 1 autograph per guest), then it will have to be higher to cover for that, and people who are only interested in getting autographs from a select few guests – or aren’t interested in getting autographs at all – will have to pay more than they otherwise would have, and will feel ripped off. Of course you can offer multiple ways to pay, but only the attendees who want to get most of everything will consider the bundled cost worth it – and they’ll still need to prove to the guests that they’ve paid. I do still think that this instinctive “grubbiness” feeling is just an association with conversation and autographs as personal interactions rather than business ones, so physically handing money over specifically for them feels weird. It’s understandable, but consciously you should be able to recognise that paying up front or all together doesn’t change the nature of the transaction. But if a convention does only have the all-inclusive price option, then it does mean that interaction with the guests doesn’t have to be so rigidly structured, that much is true. Like if you happened to stumble into a room where the Hollies were doing cocaine*, you could just ask to join in. Whereas in a non-inclusive con they’d just say “sorry, you’ll have to queue up tomorrow at the dedicated Snorting Session. It starts at 6:30am and it’s £400 per line per guest”. * This is hypothetical. I have no evidence that either Norman Lovett or Hattie Hayridge have ever taken cocaine. Jane Leeves definitely** has though. ** hypothetically. Nice explanation! Yeah, it’s the rigid structure I dislike. Pay cash, move along the line. Meet the person. 30 seconds. You’re done. I’ve been to a lot of band signings where, as has been mentioned elsewhere, you might take/buy the book/cd. But it’s not compulsory in most cases. Or at least the sorts of bands I’ve met. Ha! Guitarist from Pulp is ‘touring’ his book atm. You can go to his Q+A and either pay for the Q+A itself for about a fiver, or buy the book, too. Either way, a room full of people went home very happy and I got a few things signed and had a lovely conversation. His book is a reprint of one from about two years ago, but has been updated. I didn’t have the money for the new one, but took the old one and a few bits. He wasn’t arsed, but was super nice. That transaction felt preferable to the ‘pay the £20 for the photo of Tom Baker, now move along the line, now get it signed and talk briefly’. In those days, people taking photos were a limited number (I did get a photo), but nowadays it seems that the photo costs something, and the autograph costs extra. Which feels even more money grabbing tbh.
I’m rewatching The Captain’s Summit (interview with Bill Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes) from 2009 and when Whoopi asked Bill the correct etiquette for approaching him, Bill replies with “well, money” So there you have it from Captain Kirk himself. Cold hard cash is preferable in n these interactions.
I’m rewatching The Captain’s Summit (interview with Bill Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes) from 2009 and when Whoopi asked Bill the correct etiquette for approaching him, Bill replies with “well, money” So there you have it from Captain Kirk himself. Cold hard cash is preferable in n these interactions. I get it, he’s probably had far too many people not being able to differentiate between him being on the clock, and his personal time just trying to live his life when they’re not entitled to his time or attention. (Which I can also understand, it took me nearly 3 decades to grasp that people have their own full lives outside of what I see or know about them. But if you’re going to interact with celebrities whose work you admire, you need to know – even if that means explicitly learning – how to do so appropriately and where the boundaries are ) I suppose the big difference is an all-included convention means money changes hands behind the scenes, instead of openly as when you have to pay separately. I’m so out of touch though, my flabbers were well and truly ghasted talking about 3-figure sums for tickets. It makes sense thinking about it logically, I’m sure absolutely everything about putting on a convention is expensive. I just … haven’t been to anything remotely near that price range.
Simply follow them closely on social media, find out if they or their partner ever get pregnant, promptly conceive your own child, move within the same catchment area so your child attends the same school as theirs (may need to change your child’s school several times if unsure), manipulate your child to be their child’s friend, then wait for your invite for their birthday party at Funsters. Wasn’t that the plot of Spy x Family?
Anyone know what “Friday evening stage all guests” is likely to be about? Like an extra panel/Q&A or something?
I mean that’s what I assumed but it could just be like, briefly wheeling everyone out for a hello & a clap & then sod off back to the hotel. I want to go but I’m on the fence between tiers & the vagueness of it is just, 😩
Ian that is a very well balanced discussion and pretty much what I’ve been stating on Facebook, although the convention people deleted my comments. Personally I’m not planning to go. It’s not that the prices are high but more how little you get for your money. What could change my mind is if there are a lot of my old DJ drinking buddies going. I’d go for a weekend of friendship with a little Red Dwarf on the side and wouldn’t be committing my dollarpounds to autographs
Ian that is a very well balanced discussion and pretty much what I’ve been stating on Facebook, although the convention people deleted my comments. Same thing happened to me. I only commented once and said “Yeah, way too expensive for me.” Granted, not as balanced. But when they had other comments being more explicit, it felt a bit odd.
Probably a battle royale. Last one alive gets to narrate the Sin Bin Island audiobook. Dont these people know anything! Far more sensible to, like Dimension Jump used to, have the battle royale in the Sunday evening, after all the panels are all done.
They have added a chart now on social media about what the VIP tickets get you. Also the evening party ticket is £25 to anyone Bronze or weekend/day ticket. When it goes on sale later. I’ve said this on their social post.. “Thanks for the above chart. So “Each Regular/Bonus guest” meaning “…up to 3/5” in gold & silver vip. And not meaning “All inclusive”. Is good to know in advance. Shouldn’t that detail be on the chart on the gigantic ticketing site and on the point of sale listing for gold & silver buying links. I assume any gold&silver purchased before that detail, come under the notification T&C listed on the website”. As I think a few looking at silver or gold were assuming “each” meant “all inclusive of every guest”, again because that old DJ used to go that route, but they are reserving the right to change as more guests are added beyond expected totals. So it’s good they’ve now clarified the position pre event. Will see if they do update.
I’m relieved but not surprised that the day tickets get me into the Q & A as that was all I was after. Doug was lovely at the book event. I told him I’d enjoyed watching the first three series of Spitting Image for the first time and spotting Dwarf seeds like Tracey Ullman saying ‘bloody Smegma’ and Paul Daniels presenting a quiz show called ‘What’s My Fruit’. Also couldn’t help gushing about the prose in the novels. I remembered a Dwarfcast where Ian said Doug was still the person he was most star struck by.
No, but he will be dispensing snacks. Why would he be dispensing snacks, he’s a medi-bot isn’t he? Help keep people’s blood sugar up. Also good for staving off dysautonomia symptoms (I don’t know the mechanism of why but it is a genuine medically-advised management strategy.)
No, but he will be dispensing snacks. Why would he be dispensing snacks, he’s a medi-bot isn’t he? Tut tut, he’s a stasis engineer… Also good for staving off dysautonomia symptoms (I don’t know the mechanism of why but it is a genuine medically-advised management strategy.) A condition where they tell you to increase your salt intake… oh my.
Feels insulting that Doug is a “Bonus” & Rob a “Regular” guest. Intrigued who this mega “headline” worded guest is. If it just carves Chris or Craig alone into a spot above, or even crazier that a famous guest star ranks as more special than beloved creator or main cast. I mean say it’s Chris as top, would have been far more amusing to have him rank guests as his officer class etc. or such. Their chosen text post of having Holly say “Tickety boo”, yeah that’s understanding character sheesh, or their complete failure to correct this error (below) on the website, weeks after being emailed about the error just shows as much stubelness as a smegged up cat priest. Gimboids
If Siliconia had happened during Series III-V… Oh who am I kidding, they probably would have pulled a Polymorph and had Holly be the only one who wasn’t Kryten-ized.
They say 1,000 PE teachers instead of 6,000 and that was Norman’s line, they should have just got an AI to do this if they wanted this standard
It reads as if written by a distracted child who’s trying to tell you all their favourite funny bits, out of context, at high speed.
Very Happy Arthur Smith will be my chosen new autograph to get. I dont know if it’s extra to have him write it backwards.
Very Happy Arthur Smith will be my chosen new autograph to get. I dont know if it’s extra to have him write it backwards. He erases it and pays you
They really need to stop using AI to write their social media posts. Whether he’s admiring his reflection, hunting space rats in a three-piece suit, or accidentally joining a religious cult of himself, The Cat is pure feline fabulousness
Not only are the ChatGPT posts really fucking obvious but they’re also hiding comments from people calling them out on it. Deeply unprofessional. It also feels so unnecessary. I don’t think anyone interested in a Red Dwarf convention needs four paragraphs explaining who Danny John-Jules is. So, whether it’s being a waste of space, destroying precious resources or being a tool of paedophile fascists, AI is here to stay — strap yourselves in for a smegtacular adventure, cowboys, because where we’re going we don’t need roads!
destroying precious resources While the energy intensity of AI is beyond dispute, I do often find this a bad faith argument. People use it because they already dislike AI, while they often give a pass to say Internet streaming and cloud computing generally, which are just as bad from an ecological standpoint. Being an emerging technology, there is a good chance AI at least will get more energy efficient over time too (probably still more intensive than a human writer though).
They really need to stop using AI to write their social media posts. Whether he’s admiring his reflection, hunting space rats in a three-piece suit, or accidentally joining a religious cult of himself, The Cat is pure feline fabulousness Are the rates in a three piece suit, stood on each other’s shoulders? Who’s eating this chicken?
destroying precious resources While the energy intensity of AI is beyond dispute, I do often find this a bad faith argument. People use it because they already dislike AI, while they often give a pass to say Internet streaming and cloud computing generally, which are just as bad from an ecological standpoint. Being an emerging technology, there is a good chance AI at least will get more energy efficient over time too (probably still more intensive than a human writer though). Yeah I mean the amount of water required to come up with a few paragraphs of text via an LLM is always going to be extortionately higher than the amount of water required for a human being to come up with a few paragraphs of text. The issue with energy efficiency is always a case of whether it can be justified by the end result, and in this case it absolutely cannot, so I wouldn’t say it’s a bad faith argument in the slightest.
Yeah I don’t understand how it’s a bad faith argument when it’s true, just because people saying it don’t like AI.
Yeah I don’t understand how it’s a bad faith argument when it’s true, just because people saying it don’t like AI. As I feel I made abundantly clear, the argument against AI is true, but is also true of cloud computing generally. And yet Microsoft gets slated for AI investments way more than say forcing people not to be able to use local accounts in Windows and pushing people to store everything on OneDrive. Its the disproportionality that bothers me. The tech dystopia is a many headed hydra. The AI at least produces an actual result, however flawed, while running perfectly feasible local processing through a massive server farm is just centralization for the sake of it.
Well it may be ruinously resource intensive, cost trillions to operate and require massive power plants that kill people and destroy the wildlife but at least it doesn’t work properly.
It is in the sense that most aspects of modern society require great ecological costs, many of which are judged differently based on other factors. A direct download model is more energy efficient than streaming for example, but most people nontheless tacitly accept the convenience of YouTube, Spotify, and Netflix. None of this suggests generative AI at scale is a good investment of limited resources (though I do think it is worthwhile as a research endevour), just that its intensity is not a unqiue characteristic to it, and so the deployment of that critique strikes me as often oppurtunistic. See as well the massive energy cost of a Google search compared to using a locally stored thesaurus or encyclopedia. I just can’t help shake the feeling that the specific dislike of AI is that it risks automating middle class creative and administrative jobs, unlike past technologies that merely automated manual labour. The question emerges, would generative AI suddenly be more acceptable if its power usage was quartered or halved? Which, after a point, it almost certainly will be after peak deployment.
I get what you’re saying Technopeasant. The extreme energy inefficiency of generative AI is a legitimate issue with it, but people only bring it up if they already hate AI for other reasons. Basically nobody loves the functionality of LLMs but is overall against the technology because of its energy consumption. I don’t agree that it’s bad faith or hypocritical though. People aren’t saying it’s generally bad to use lots of energy, they’re saying it’s bad to waste lots of energy – and if all that energy is being consumed by services which are making a negative or only minor positive impact, that is wasteful. The energy cost isn’t an argument against AI on its own, but it’s something you have to consider when deciding if it’s worth it. Right now tech companies are building their AI features so fast and at such scale that the environmental impact is genuinely concerning, so those features better be perfect! The argument is a counter to people just saying “eh, might as well” about AI. Like yeah, you might as well leave all the lights in your house switched on 100% of the time (except for the room you sleep in while you’re sleeping in it) to save you the effort of switching them on when you go into rooms, but is that actually worth the cost?
I don’t agree that it’s bad faith or hypocritical though That’s fair, and I should clarify I was by no means trying to attack the integrity of anyone in this conversation. I am also not arguing in favour of generative AI. I have never actually been able to get it to help with any project I have attempted, and the murky copyright status of it as a derivative work renders it largely off limits to me as a free culture creator anyway.
Just popping in 3 days later to say, ‘oh okay, now I get what you mean and I agree with you.’ I get hung up on specific phrases, I apologise if this caused any aggravation for you.
I think the main reason people cite energy consumption for AI over other things is that they’re aware of it. If more people were aware of the absurdity of Windows cloud computing, I’m sure many of them would argue against it in the same way.
I think the main reason people cite energy consumption for AI over other things is that they’re aware of it. If more people were aware of the absurdity of Windows cloud computing, I’m sure many of them would argue against it in the same way. I certainly hope so yes.
This is my first proper convention, so I didn’t realise you had to book your photoshoots etc in advance. Hopefully I can get some tickets at the event in the morning. I’d suck off a BEGG for a group photo.
Thinking of trying to get a Robert Llewelyn signed photo and getting him to write ‘did you yomp from Goose Green to Stroud Hill?’
Must have been a bugger for him squatting on the one leg! Thinking of trying to get a Robert Llewelyn signed photo and getting him to write ‘did you yomp from Goose Green to Stroud Hill?’
I’m currently sat in a Nottingham café then will be going on a pub crawl so will write up a detailed breakdown of the absolute shambles of a convention later in Great detail. But my post on their Facebook (probably get deleted soon) attached. Rimmer not fixing the drive plate was relatively minor in comparison to what I’ve just walked away from. My heat goes out to the two people I spoke to who spent north of £500. I just got General admission ticket so made it easier for me to walk away (not before collaring one of the main event organisers who was dealing with two people demanding refunds)
I’m currently sat in a Nottingham café then will be going on a pub crawl so will write up a detailed breakdown of the absolute shambles of a convention later in Great detail. But my post on their Facebook (probably get deleted soon) attached. Rimmer not fixing the drive plate was relatively minor in comparison to what I’ve just walked away from. My heat goes out to the two people I spoke to who spent north of £500. I just got General admission ticket so made it easier for me to walk away (not before collaring one of the main event organisers who was dealing with two people demanding refunds) Oof. This sounds awful. What happened?
> My heat goes out to the two people I spoke to who spent north of £500 £500!!!! HOW?! Did they know it was real money they were spending?
Just goes to show what happens when you put capitalism in charge of these events rather than putting fans in charge
It was giving inept Willy’s Chocolate Experience vibes through the marketing, but it’s depressing to see it play out like that.
“Official Red Dwarf con” review.. the con isn’t short for convention when it’s an actual con job. Apologies for any spelling mistakes or nonsense, I’ve been writing this on and off via few Nottingham pubs & bars after walking away from the JMC version of the Wonka experience. Am a few pints in. I only paid for the cheapest “general admission” as suspected that this convention might be a bit rough, or potentially cancelled, with it being the debut so I didn’t want to tie up a lot of money and end up fighting for an expensive refund down the line. I got to The Level at 9:20 (general admission doors due to open 9:30 with VIP 9AM), confused (a feeling that most people, staff and attendees would wear) that there was two non-moving queues as according to the schedule the VIPs should have already been in by then, there was no signage or staff directing anyone. I wander part way down one queue to see four “em-con” staff with orange shirts all with a face of confusion getting instructions from an “organiser” member of staff wearing a white shirt (more of him later) explaining “no, THIS is the VIP queue and THAT is main queue” which answered my question so a shuffle off to the back of a very long queue. Eventually couple of Em-Con orange shirts shuffle down looking briefly at peoples tickets and slapping arm bands on, just as they were getting to me one mentioned to the other that she “should be checking names to make sure they don’t pass tickets on”, the other one shrugs “haven’t been told to do that”. The bar code on tickets weren’t being scanned or counted so you absolutely could just WhatsApp one screen shot of a ticket on to multiple people in exchange for an unlimited armbands for unlimited amount of people (I’m one of THEM people that happens to have an IOSH H&S qualification & that’d be #1 point of failure on my assessment). Approx 20 mins later my queue was moving, which was odd as the other VIP queue didn’t appear to be moving at all, so much for those poor sods paying a premium. What was immediate apparent when getting inside was that “The Level” is not ideal setup for any kind of convention. The middle floor has a balcony (already packed) overlooking the main stage and off to one side was the bunk set for photos (which looked very good!) and a row of tables for the main cast autograph signing on a thin landing. The queue for the autographs was back out the very same door we just came through and into another queue. About 9:50 a compere came on, after a brief warm up and asked us to put hands together for first set of guests. Everyone claps for a long time and no one appears. Compere leaves stage comes back five minutes later and tries again. This time after bit clapping Hattie, Chloe, Kerry & James “Jesus” Baxter walk on stage. Hattie takes the first batch of questions from the compere and, as always, is predictably warm, lovely and funny. Then chaos ensues thereafter as Chloe’s microphone didn’t work, she eventually got passed someone else’s mic that did but it was so quiet I couldn’t hear most of what she said from the balcony. After that it was pass the parcel of working microphones for anyone to be able to talk. Jesus made a joke about spreading germs when he had to pass his mic to the one into the audience (which also didn’t work) so they could actually ask them questions. The main screen behind them blinked off at least once I noticed. At this point the main cast (Robert’s table was essentially behind where I was stood with Doug next to him) was well into signing apart from Danny who was totally missing in action, his minder sat patiently for him to turn up. Most way through the onstage antics Danny wanders on to the stage with a McDonald’s bag in one hand and proceeded to hug everyone on stage until he was told he was supposed to be upstairs signing and not on the stage. Very funny to witness but this was essentially an hour into his signing slot so by this point the Em-Con staff had created a new “Danny only” queue at his table, they had to do this because the queue for autographs, outside, already consisted of two queues. I asked a member of Em-Con inside what the deal with the autograph queue outside was “ask someone out there” so very, very helpful. So I got chatting to a member of security outside, one of a few before I left, who was lovely and if I saw them in a bar before I head home absolutely will buy a pint for their suffering, who hadn’t been briefed about which queue was which only that they were confused about bronze silver or gold and made it absolutely clear that Em-Con staff were solely responsible for the organisation of event, queues, lines etc. Both security I spoke to had reservations (harsher words were used but I’ll not repeat them here) about the plan that Em-Con had presented to them not long before kick off time that morning (“one look and we knew it wouldn’t work”) as they were intimately familiar with their building and setup but they were told just to check bags and Em-Con would handle it. I keep mentioning colour of t shirts as she said “we didn’t even know they (Em-Con) would be wearing orange t shirts until this morning” which added to their frustration as all the security have orange t shirts too so the security was getting full on heat from all the unhappy punters which should have been directed to a different set of orange t shirt wearing folk. I must have stood there watching two different autograph queues pile up with frustrated, annoyed people for about half an hour, neither of which (I was the dude with beard and t shirt with a polar bear smoking a pipe on it if I spoke to anyone reading this!) was moving whilst talking to security. I said I’m leaning towards sacking the con off and just meeting my missus, who was in town, for drinking and that going shopping with her was preferable to this disaster. As I was was walking out I passed Mr White shirt organiser again who was in the middle of a group of angry peed off people in their queue. All of which were irate that they had been in that particular queue for ages and it wasn’t moving. There was a distraught woman who said she had brought kids, spent £500 couldn’t work out what was going on and another dude who had a handful of prepaid autograph tickets who basically said this queue hadn’t moved, the PM session was due to start at 4pm then all of which were due to go on stage half an hour later, not enough time to do a pm autograph session judging by the speed of the current queues. Mr White shirt didn’t have any real solution so that chap basically said f#?% it how do I get a refund so I can go home. I tapped Mr White shirt on the back and said that I was leaving and just wanted to say before I do that I’ve been to a lot of cons and events and just wanted you to know that I’ve never witnessed a shambolic thing such as this. He said something that he appreciated that and scurried off “how to sort refund” for the red shirt gentleman. I walked off to front of a building and another member of security was getting it from someone who had a VIP lanyard on so I interrupted and pointed him towards the white shirt guy if he wanted refund or to complain someone to someone in charge. He heard word refund and immediately ran off to Mr White shirt. I chatted with this member of security and backed up what I’d been told adding that the level was essentially a student union and they do lots if events for up to 2000 people but this was the first convention thing they’d done and likely be the last at this rate, that Em-Con just hired the building would do all the organising and just for their on site staff to handle bags. I said Em-Con were already starting to talk about 40th anniversary con next year, I won’t tell you what he said to that as would need to top up a swear jar. As I was about to walk off one security shouted to another that there was no way that were “doing this all this again tomorrow”. I never managed to get to a dimension jump (sadly) but went to Weekend of the Dead convention in Manchester that was fan ran by Marcus and his family for fans of George Romero films and was always well organised, ran and joy to attend as well as larger events and honestly never seen such a shambolic, expensive, poorly organised car crash that this “Official” Red Dwarf con was. Smoke me a kipper I’ll never be back again.
Christ, I’m so sorry to read that. I sold my ticket because I realised I’d have to spend a lot more than I could afford once I got there, and because it’d quickly dawned on me how vastly different the whole experience would be to attending a DJ. It didn’t occur to me that it could turn out to be such a poorly run shitshow. Everyone who paid good money and was hoping for, and expecting, a great experience, has my sympathy, and the people posting the smug, smirking Facebook comments should take a look at themselves and just think.
Thanks for the detailed report, Cornelius! What a travesty that the first ever fully Official™ Red Dwarf convention would be run like this, when TORDFC gave them a template of how to do it properly 21 times in a row. I’m sure this isn’t quite on the level of DashCon or Fyre Festival when it comes to disastrous public events, but charging such exorbitant amounts and then providing such a frustrating and subpar experience is criminal. The fact that they oversold the VIP tickets so much that the queue for standard ticket holders was moving faster… just wow.
I’m going to echo Si’s comment that we could probably show a bit more kindness. Why did Dimension Jump end? I never managed to make it to one despite it probably being a bucket list experience for me, that I’ll never get to achieve.
I am actually having a good time at the official red dwarf convention. Here is why… Its a red dwarf convention. I like red dwarf. I like seeing the creative fans here dressed up. They are friendly. I like the cast they are being enthusiastic funny and charming. There are some props and costumes and a bit of merch here. I think freelance hire Ash is a good cos play comp host. And Al’s hosting has been okish for standard good but not earth shattering Q&aS and that’s fine. We did a Rimmer Mexican wave. Great dog costume, mighty light, monroe droid and mutton beast with mini lister man+ doll. James Baxter is my highlight. I got to tell him he’s a dvd spine! He loved that and took a photo of it he’s such a lovey chap to welcome to dwarf cons world. And Kerry almost apologised for Taiwan Tony in a “couldn’t do that now” kinda way. I’m lucky in that Cornelius has written such a prefect description of high cost vs low organised not enough fore thought cluster fuck of how not to organise queues that I don’t have to cover it all. But I will add, that gold silver and bronze vip, mixed with day and weekend standard is 4 or 5 types of ticket. So needs 4 or 5’clear signed or communicated lines per happening. That didn’t happen. It fucked everyone. All 5 types of tickets. Fast track or not. In all efforts. And all staff un communicated to deal with the fall out. Photo lines. Autograph lines. To cast devided into Headline / Standard / Bonus – the only signage. A white board only the front of queues could see, that wasn’t updated after the first try. The programme (only given to vip) the only guide to what’s where. Plus it’s online post. and then the queue for photo printouts failed to get all the shots printed And the staff fucked off. Then venue closed. Craig headliner on the most money got delayed and fucked off to Lichfield before being back for a later venue changed party that looks fun. He cancelled his golf meet and greet perk until tomorrow. Ricky was a no show, no announcement. Norman has had a fall, get well Norman. This was slightly announced. Refund protections aren’t worth the money as they cover almost nothing. Al you muppet you really can’t say “the first red dwarf convention in Nottingham” as your opening line. When the reason I am having a good time is, I don’t need to catch every autograph because a lovey bunch of people called at the time TORDFC ran something thought in detail with reaction speed called Dimension jump. Those dudes sorted my fandom soooo bloody well from 93 – to 21. I don’t need much from this years differing event. So I am having a good top up. Previous conventions gave respect, planning and value (unlike this em-con convention) to all its punters and didn’t over sell a venue causing the infirm to sit on the floor. So no, your the latest the convention not the first. And you’re the biggest rip off however much I know you must charge in an era of costs etc. the value isn’t there because the care isn’t in planning and comms. Although unrelated. Although fan club isn’t the same as corporate. All the people with less than the deepest pockets or the most shalllow of expectations. Feel like this picture at the end of Saturday…
Yeah, just have to feel sorry for the fans who spent a lot of money and will have been bitterly disappointed. I imagine Doug also won’t have been happy to have the Red Dwarf brand associated with this kind of debacle (not that I’m suggesting he was in any way to blame). Not sure how Craig thought he was going to be able to appear in 3 places in one day. Not surprised that turned into a disaster. I read some comments that Norman was unable to attend having fallen at an event recently. Hope he is doing ok.
Oh man, I’m so sorry to hear it was so dreadful. I don’t have anything else to say, it sounds like it was beyond a shambles and I’m just really sad for all the attendees and guests. Best wishes to Norman for a speedy recovery.
I guess I’m similar to Jonsmad in that I have all the autographs I could want from previous DJs. I was hoping for one photo of Robert with him having written ‘did you yomp from Goose Green to Stroud Hill’ on it but I wasn’t going to go out of my way. This next bit might not reflect well on me but once I saw the schedule and that Doug’s bit was at 3pm I thought to myself ‘I may as well explore Nottingham and listen to David Bowie albums for a bit and get to the convention sometime after midday’. I got to the Level at 1pm just as a lot of people were leaving for lunch. I was immediately impressed with how many people were there and the Kryten costume on display. I also got chatting to lovely people immediately both inside and outside the venue. I gathered from what people had said that the morning had been a shambles and I was glad to have missed it. I glanced at the autograph queue for my prized Bobby pic and immediately thought ‘that ain’t happening’. Doug was wonderful with a tribute photo of Rob behind him telling stories of the early years. Rob and Doug really were inseparable and went to every movie together so their influences were in sync when it came to that. Doug also said later on that he hadn’t given up on the script he had been working on for the Red Dwarf TV special and that there had been some interest. Any thoughts I had of getting a book featuring unmade material any time soon evaporated but good luck to the guy. I heard about Norman’s fall – get well Norm! As I was walking out I heard that Craig had another engagement and would be back for a DJ set. I realised as I was back out in the streets of Nottingham that I’d had pretty much everything I wanted from the experience and went for an Indian after which I definitely would be no use at a funky DJ set. Having been initially impressed by how many people there were at the start turned back to my default curmudgeonly opinion that there were in fact too many people and there weren’t enough seats and Doug had to compete with some pretty abysmal crowd noise during his bit. I’ve been spoiled by past experience, I have all the autographs I would want, some of these people had come from Stoke (Australia too). In the spirit of ‘you’re not in traffic, you are traffic’ I’ve decided to abandon my search for a Bobby pic and go home instead of turning up for day two. I got the early bird cheapo ticket so don’t feel hard done by. I hope people who are going have a fantastic day two and all their smeggy dreams come true!
Doug also said later on that he hadn’t given up on the script he had been working on for the Red Dwarf TV special and that there had been some interest. Any thoughts I had of getting a book featuring unmade material any time soon evaporated but good luck to the guy. I half-expected him to announce plans for the stage show, but glad to hear he’s still got his aims set on another special. If there’s anything to be said about Doug its he never gives up from what he sets his mind to.
A decent journalist could probably write an interesting article about the past week in the world of Dwarf, contrasting the relative calm of the Titan launch on Thursday with the chaos of Saturday.
A decent journalist could probably write an interesting article about the past week in the world of Dwarf, contrasting the relative calm of the Titan launch on Thursday with the chaos of Saturday.
I find it strange given the cost that some of these queue monitors are “Volunteers”. Today looks better. Venue staff and Emcon people are in different colour tops which helps, you know who you are speaking too. They have clearly spent the evening planning to make today better and there are clear queues and entry signs. Things are starting early with autos.
First-time poster but needed to vent. I was at the convention for day one. Arrived by 11ish with a standard entry ticket and a group photo shoot. Immediately upon arrival, there were multiple queues outside the venue. I had to ask a member of staff where the entrance was, as there was no signage. My friend and I walked right in—no bag check and no one checked our what I believe to be expensive entry tickets. There were no signs up inside as to where to go, but the venue is relatively small so it wasn’t hard to figure it out. I did ask a guy looking at a programme if I could take a photo of the layout map so we had some idea of where to go for our photo. Having been to many conventions, I was half expecting a lot of vendors, merchandise, and other curiosities, but there was only one person upstairs selling some figures and a stand downstairs selling seemingly unsold merchandise from season 11. Regardless, the prices weren’t as inflated as I suspected they would be so I picked up a cap and a tee and thought we should aim to queue for the photo shoot a good hour in advance—an idea many others also had. This is where the main problems started. I asked a staff member what queue was what and she didn’t know. She laughed it off and said she “needed a beer” after the morning she had, and asked if I had a wristband as “I couldn’t get anywhere without it”—which was clearly not true. I thought I’d ask the people in the queues and established everyone else was there for the bulk shoot. So we waited. And waited. 13:30 came around (the photoshoot start time) and nothing. It was another half hour before any movement, and multiple queues had started—overlapping queues, aimless incorrect queues, with no one on hand to organize them. Arguments started with queue jumpers, and frustrations were clearly high. There were mutterings of the queue filtering the gold and silver VIPs to get priority, but there was seemingly no clarity on this. We finally made our way in to meet the crew and couldn’t believe they were doing the solo photo shoots and group shots at the same time. So if someone wanted a photo with just Chris, they would move the other three crew members out of the shot and then return them for the group shots. I could clearly see Craig was livid. When I went up and shook his hand, I said something along the lines of, “This looks like a complete shambles,” and we had a good exchange where he agreed and expressed his unhappiness with it. The crew, as always, were cordial and pleasant, and shook my hand when offered. The photo itself was great. I wished them good luck for the rest of the day given the queues, which they appeared genuinely grateful for. I grabbed my bag and looked for my photo printout, only to be told it would be downstairs. Fair enough. I went downstairs and again, to my shock, found out they were manually printing out the photos and displaying them for people to take—something I haven’t seen since around 2012 at aLondon Comic Con. Then… the printer apparently broke, leading to yet another queue for people waiting for their photos. I finally got the photo in hand at around 16:30—three hours to have a photo taken and have said photo in hand. After that, there was nothing to do. We grabbed a couple of beers and waited for the talks. This was introduced with awkward time-killing by the host, who resorted to throwing out sweets to the crowd. Anyway, after a long wait yet again, the guys (minus Craig) appeared and were in great spirits and engaging. We left happy knowing the mission objectives were completed (buy a little merchandise and meet the crew) but underwhelmed by the rest of the show. The venue was too small for the number of people and wasn’t set up to be a typical convention as you would expect. The staff, some at least, appeared to be fans of the show, but that alone is not good enough. Tickets were on sale some 10 months prior, so to experience something where clearly there had been no thought on how any of this would work in that time is baffling. I can see they have made some adjustments to day two and I hope those attending have a better experience. But from my experience, the others I spoke to throughout the day (all very friendly) were equally as frustrated and disappointed as I was. If they attempt to do a similar event next year, they really need to seriously take on board all criticism, research how other companies host these events, and make solid assurances that it will be better. It very much felt like they were winging it all day—something completely unacceptable when tied to such a beloved IP as Red Dwarf.
If they attempt to do a similar event next year, they really need to seriously take on board all criticism, research how other companies host these events, and make solid assurances that it will be better. From the sounds of it, they shouldn’t. Doug/GNP should just get someone else in, and work with someone who can actually organise something to a respectable standard, and put on a worthy celebration for the 40th Anniversary in a couple of years.
Have to love that they announced that Danny didn’t turn up this morning … Before an hour later excited saying, “DJJ is on the site.” Seems from the Facebook comments that the queues are just as bad as yesterday.
Have to love that they announced that Danny didn’t turn up this morning … Before an hour later excited saying, “DJJ is on the site.” Yeah… sounds like Danny!
For context I attended today and didnt experience anything negative. Didnt arrive until around midday but it certainly wasnt over-crowded and didnt need to queue to get in. I was disappointed with the lack of things on display – as someone said the bunk room looked great – but it is a small venue. Not sure I’d go again though.
It’s a shame a lot of people had bad experiences and I’m baffled as to why anyone would be pleased by that. Hopefully we’ll hear of some more positive experiences in the coming days and maybe see some footage of the Q and A’s etc.
It was my first proper convention and to be honest, I’m not rushing to attend another. It’s interesting but refreshing to hear that some of the cast seemed pissed off too but after all the queues which were apparently partly backed up by Danny arriving late each day, I’m finding it hard to find that element of his personality particularly funny or charming right now. it just seems disrespectful. One fan I was waiting in line with today thought that he smelled like “pot”, when she met him, but who knows First-time poster but needed to vent. I was at the convention for day one. Arrived by 11ish with a standard entry ticket and a group photo shoot. Immediately upon arrival, there were multiple queues outside the venue. I had to ask a member of staff where the entrance was, as there was no signage. My friend and I walked right in—no bag check and no one checked our what I believe to be expensive entry tickets. There were no signs up inside as to where to go, but the venue is relatively small so it wasn’t hard to figure it out. I did ask a guy looking at a programme if I could take a photo of the layout map so we had some idea of where to go for our photo. Having been to many conventions, I was half expecting a lot of vendors, merchandise, and other curiosities, but there was only one person upstairs selling some figures and a stand downstairs selling seemingly unsold merchandise from season 11. Regardless, the prices weren’t as inflated as I suspected they would be so I picked up a cap and a tee and thought we should aim to queue for the photo shoot a good hour in advance—an idea many others also had. This is where the main problems started. I asked a staff member what queue was what and she didn’t know. She laughed it off and said she “needed a beer” after the morning she had, and asked if I had a wristband as “I couldn’t get anywhere without it”—which was clearly not true. I thought I’d ask the people in the queues and established everyone else was there for the bulk shoot. So we waited. And waited. 13:30 came around (the photoshoot start time) and nothing. It was another half hour before any movement, and multiple queues had started—overlapping queues, aimless incorrect queues, with no one on hand to organize them. Arguments started with queue jumpers, and frustrations were clearly high. There were mutterings of the queue filtering the gold and silver VIPs to get priority, but there was seemingly no clarity on this. We finally made our way in to meet the crew and couldn’t believe they were doing the solo photo shoots and group shots at the same time. So if someone wanted a photo with just Chris, they would move the other three crew members out of the shot and then return them for the group shots. I could clearly see Craig was livid. When I went up and shook his hand, I said something along the lines of, “This looks like a complete shambles,” and we had a good exchange where he agreed and expressed his unhappiness with it. The crew, as always, were cordial and pleasant, and shook my hand when offered. The photo itself was great. I wished them good luck for the rest of the day given the queues, which they appeared genuinely grateful for. I grabbed my bag and looked for my photo printout, only to be told it would be downstairs. Fair enough. I went downstairs and again, to my shock, found out they were manually printing out the photos and displaying them for people to take—something I haven’t seen since around 2012 at aLondon Comic Con. Then… the printer apparently broke, leading to yet another queue for people waiting for their photos. I finally got the photo in hand at around 16:30—three hours to have a photo taken and have said photo in hand. After that, there was nothing to do. We grabbed a couple of beers and waited for the talks. This was introduced with awkward time-killing by the host, who resorted to throwing out sweets to the crowd. Anyway, after a long wait yet again, the guys (minus Craig) appeared and were in great spirits and engaging. We left happy knowing the mission objectives were completed (buy a little merchandise and meet the crew) but underwhelmed by the rest of the show. The venue was too small for the number of people and wasn’t set up to be a typical convention as you would expect. The staff, some at least, appeared to be fans of the show, but that alone is not good enough. Tickets were on sale some 10 months prior, so to experience something where clearly there had been no thought on how any of this would work in that time is baffling. I can see they have made some adjustments to day two and I hope those attending have a better experience. But from my experience, the others I spoke to throughout the day (all very friendly) were equally as frustrated and disappointed as I was. If they attempt to do a similar event next year, they really need to seriously take on board all criticism, research how other companies host these events, and make solid assurances that it will be better. It very much felt like they were winging it all day—something completely unacceptable when tied to such a beloved IP as Red Dwarf.
a YouTuber who I don’t know but seems fair minded has done a video review https://youtu.be/FGTBbzd16lY
If it’s of any interest, I spoke to Doug about whether any other broadcaster would take over from UKTV for the special and he said that Channel 4 had completely passed on it (no surprise there), The BBC haven’t got any money (also no surprise), ITV was unsure about it (some surprise that they’d even consider it) and Sky were apparently somewhat interested (big surprise). Apparently Richard wrote a comedy sci-fi pilot for Sky and they really liked it (also something that’ll hopefully be commissioned) so Doug thought there was a chance they could make Red Dwarf alongside it but he seemed slightly trepidatious that the ITV and Sky merger might throw a spanner in the works. He seemed hopeful that it will be made which is much better than what I expected him to say.
Sounds a lot like what happened at MegaCon Live in Manchester a few years back when I met the full cast and the organisation was a shambles. Surprised to hear the official event being no better. Those who were there, was much talk of Titan?
Before Doug came on for his remembrance panel on Sunday the host had a copy of Sin Bin Island and made a long joke about how his son enjoyed it and mentioned it was in bookshops now and then after all that he mumbled “You can also buy a copy of Red Dwarf: Titan that was released last Thursday”. The final question in the main cast QNA was about Chris reading the Audiobook too.
Who were the vendors that were there? I’ve seen some stuff on FB that implies they allowed people to sell prints of RD fanart… might apply next year if that’s the case.
Who were the vendors that were there? I’ve seen some stuff on FB that implies they allowed people to sell prints of RD fanart… might apply next year if that’s the case. There was ONE vendor there, of the Supermarket Stall variety, selling mostly generic nerd art – he mostly displayed a Batman vs Superman piece and some video game stuff. He had a few Red Dwarf prints for sale, but it was not for me. Very poor.
Chortle have written up a piece (this is neither an endorsement nor recommendation, simply bringing its existence to people’s attention) https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2026/07/21/61032/what_a_smeg_up/
As someone who has had a tiny bit of experience helping with cons, it must be difficult to schedule and programme a con that has been promoted based so heavily based a relatively small number – four – of people. If you just have a signing queue with one person doing three signatures a minute (which seems quite aggressive), that’s 180 an hour. And if those people also are the main attractions on panels… The trick though is to provide enough Other Activities, and it’s there that this con seems to have particularly lacked. The lack of dealers is not helped by the lack of recent Red Dwarf merch (although from what I’ve gathered it seems they emptied whatever old lockup GNP has), and the tightness of the focus of the con. The panels seemed to be mostly the Gang of Four (and Doug) and then Other Actors Who Turned Up; you can imagine at an equivalent Doctor Who convention you’d have a bunch of writers, bunch of actors, bunch of crew doing specific panels about particular niche topics. Now I’ve never went to a Dimension Jump, but at the more trad SF conventions I have been to (things like EasterCon and WorldCon) you get panels that consist of well known fans / critics doing analysis. My understanding is that the Em-Con event that the organisers have previously run is very much more at the “comicon” style of event rather than the fannish event thing, looking at the lineups I see lots of guests with overlapping but separate fanbases. Anyway that’s some blathering.
you get panels that consist of well known fans / critics doing analysis Unfortunately Sir Terry and Hawking are dead and I assume Sir Patrick was busy.
Unfortunately Sir Terry and Hawking are dead and I assume Sir Patrick was busy. What are Eternal up to these days?
Unfortunately Sir Terry and Hawking are dead and I assume Sir Patrick was busy. What are Eternal up to these days? Being TERFs.
the con has now managed to do something worse than the actual con itself! they’ve just done what appears to be a massive GDPR breach by deciding not to charge for digital downloads of the photoshoot photos, and instead putting them all on a website to be downloaded. all of them. including children. they say you can only download them if you’ve registered but they’re right there in the gallery and whoever is making their assurances apparently does not understand how downloading or computers work.
We did watch them in real time kill everyone’s session and put it behind a password so it wasn’t accessible for long at all.
