STAR Wars and Star Trek characters, pirates, Ghostbusters and Steampunk are set to descend on Caerphilly when the town’s first ever Comic Con takes place in June.
The charity event, to be held at Caerphilly Leisure Centre, takes place on Saturday, June 10, 10am-5pm, raising money for Caerphilly Children’s Centre and featuring four celebrity guests.
It is part of ‘Superhero Weekend’, which is being held in the historic town from Friday, June 9, until Sunday, June 11.
Caerphilly Comic Con is the brainchild of Vik Yadh, a resident of the town and a regular on the Comic Con scene as both a visitor and private seller.
Vik, of Affordable Science, a science education teaching business in the town, said: “There has never been a Comic Con in Caerphilly so I decided to host one with a difference.
“Instead of full commercial cons or ones which donate profits to a named charity, we find and work with a local charity and help raise money via donations over the year until the day of the actual Comic Con.”
There will be a huge variety of people attending the Comic Con, including artists, cartoonists and illustrators, as well as stalls selling comic books, collectables, cinema memorabilia, living candles, jewellery and more. There will even be a replica of the JP29 Jeep from Jurassic Park at the event.
There will also be some well-known celebrities with Game of Thrones star Ross O Hennessey (Rattleshirt), Jabba the Hutt co-pilot puppeteer Toby Philpott (Star Wars: Return of the Jedi), Claire Gutteridge – who recently appeared as Sherlock Holmes’ younger mother in Sherlock, and finally Doctor Who star Francois Pandolfo – best known for his portrayal of Quintus in ‘The Fires of Pompeii’ alongside David Tennant and Peter Capaldi.
Craig Mapstone, left, director at W3iRDTRiANGL3, and Vik Yadh promoting the official Caerphilly Comic Con T-shirt at the ICE Business centre in Caerphilly. W3iRDTRiANGL3 designed the official T-shirt and will be selling it on the day (pre-orders via their website http://www.weirdtriangle.com/)
On Friday, June 9, as part of Superhero Weekend, a Superhero dress-up will take place in schools in Caerphilly county borough. Youngsters can dress up as superheroes to help raise money for Enable – which raises funds for Caerphilly Children’s Centre. They can also design and wear a superhero costume and be in with the chance of winning a walk-on role in a short movie. There will also be prizes including signed limited-edition artwork.
Youngsters at participating schools will get ‘Golden Tickets’ which can be used during the weekend (details have been sent to all Caerphilly schools). Full details on the website.
On Sunday, June 11, families can dress up as superheroes and enjoy special deals and events at many local pubs, including the Red Kite and Toby Carvery, both in Caerphilly, which will have their staff also dressed up as superheroes.
If you would like to take part in the event and/or get a stand, email Vik at comic.con@yahoo.com or to find out more about the event visit its website at caerphillycomiccon.co.uk
- Tickets are available via the Caerphilly Comic Con website, on the door or at one of several vendors listed on the Comic Con website. They will be limited and on a first-come first-served basis.