Hello everyone! 🙂
Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!
It’s time for me to share my final set of ‘convention memories’ on ‘Bradley’s Basement’. 🙂 Today, I’m sharing my memories of attending the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ at the Bournemouth International Centre from Saturday the 29th to Sunday the 30th of August 2015. A terrific weekend! 😀
I stayed overnight on the Friday and the Saturday before going home on the Sunday. The 2015 ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ featured a plethora of ‘Doctor Who’ stars, who I was pleased to see. Here’s how each day went and who I saw each day at the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’. 🙂
Day 1 (Saturday 29th August 2015)
Saturday was the best day for me, as I got to see Sarah Sutton (Nyssa) at the convention. 🙂 I also saw ‘Doctor Who’ guests like Sophie Aldred (Ace), Terry Molloy (Davros), William Russell (Ian), Bonnie Langford (Mel), Katy Manning (Jo), Matthew Waterhouse (Adric), John Leeson (the voice of K-9), Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor), John Levene (Sgt. Benton), Camille Coduri (Jackie Tyler) and Dan Starkey (Strax and the Sontarans). I’m happy and thrilled that I got to see these amazing guests.
There were also guests like Chris Barrie, well-known for playing Arnold Rimmer in ‘Red Dwarf’ and Gordon Brittas in ‘The Brittas Empire’. There was also Jeremy Bulloch, who played Boba Fett in ‘Star Wars’ as well as Tor in ‘The Space Museum’ and Hal in ‘The Time Warrior’. I also saw Max Grodenchik, who played Rom in the ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’ series. It was nice to meet them. 🙂
Incidentally, my best mate from school, Stephen Buckley, joined me at the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ on the Saturday. It was good to catch up with him and I’m glad he enjoyed the comic con. We later had a meal at the local Harry Ramsdens restaurant and shared how much we enjoyed the day. 🙂
It was lovely to see Sarah Sutton again, having previously seen her at the ‘H-Con’ event with Peter Davison back in July 2015. Sarah just had her holiday in Africa, and I had my holiday in Oxford before attending Bournemouth. 😀 I gave Sarah a couple of presents, including a bar of chocolate and an ‘Alice Through The Looking Glass’ postcard. Sarah liked the ‘Alice Through The Looking Glass’ postcard. We chatted about how she played Alice in the 1973 BBC TV production. She recalled Geoffrey Bayldon who played the White Knight with great affection. We also chatted about the 1951 Disney film. 😀
At the event, I had my CD cover of ‘Renaissance of the Daleks’ signed by Sarah. I had a couple of photos with Sarah, including one using my digital camera and one done by a professional photographer. It was at the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ that Sarah told me she had recorded ‘The Moon Stallion’ audiobook, based on the novelization by Brian Hayles, recently reprinted by Fantom Films. I was pleased to hear the news and was looking forward to the audiobook’s release. 🙂
The ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ is special for me, as I got to do a little interview with Sarah Sutton for the first time at a convention, using my MP3 player. I’m pleased I got to interview Sarah that day and I shared the interview on YouTube as well as on ‘Bradley’s Basement’ back in 2015. I was so nervous when I did my first interview with Sarah back then, but I enjoyed doing it and I’ve done more interviews with Sarah since then. Please check out my first interview with Sarah Sutton below.
It was great to see Sophie Aldred in Bournemouth. We had some nice chats as well as a couple of photos taken via my digital camera and by a professional photographer. We chatted about the Big Finish audios that Sophie has done with Sylvester McCoy and Philip Olivier as well as ‘The Curse of Fenric’. We also chatted about the ‘New Adventures’ books featuring the Seventh Doctor and Ace. 🙂
I’m glad I met up with Terry Molloy at the convention, and he signed my CD cover of ‘Terror Firma’ that day. I also had a photo with Terry, using my digital camera. I’d just listened to the ‘I, Davros’ spin-off audio series by Big Finish beforehand, and I shared with Terry how I found it disturbing and interesting in exploring Davros’ history. I’m sure he enjoyed the ‘I, Davros’ series when he made it. 🙂
It was nice to meet William Russell for the first time at a convention that day. I didn’t get to have a long chat with him, but I’m glad I met him during a signing session where he signed my CD cover of ‘The Five Companions’. I also got to have a photo taken with William Russell, using my digital camera. I shared how much I’ve enjoyed him as Ian in ‘Doctor Who’, and I’m sure he was glad to hear it.
Bournemouth was also the first time I saw Bonnie Langford at a convention. It was lovely to meet Bonnie for the first time and she was very nice and friendly to me. She signed my CD cover of ‘The Juggernauts’ as well as my autograph book that day. I also had a photo with Bonnie, using my digital camera. We chatted about the Big Finish audios. I shared how I enjoyed her as Mel in those. 🙂
It was lovely to see Katy Manning in Bournemouth, and she still has that bubbly energy that keeps everyone happy at conventions. 😀 I had my photo taken with Katy that day, using my digital camera. We chatted about ‘The Green Death’ and how it had a very emotional farewell for Jo Grant in the TV series. We also chatted about the giant maggots featured in the story and whether she liked them or not. 😀
I enjoyed seeing Matthew Waterhouse. He signed my CD cover of the ‘Doctor Who – Full Circle’ audiobook that day as well as my autograph book. I shared how much I enjoyed him reading the ‘Full Circle’ audiobook and he had an interesting voice for Tom Baker’s Doctor. I had my photo taken with Matthew that day, using my digital camera. I also asked him whether he was doing any more Big Finish audios of ‘Doctor Who’. 🙂
It was very nice to see John Leeson at the Bournemouth convention, and he signed my copy of the ‘Novel Adaptations, Volume 2’ CD collection, which contains ‘The Well-Mannered War’. I shared with John how I found it interesting that K-9 went into politics in ‘The Well-Mannered War’ and whether he’d make a good PM. 😀 I had my photo taken with John that day, using my digital camera.
I’m pleased I saw Sylvester McCoy. He signed my copy of the ‘Novel Adaptations, Volume 2’ CD collection too, as it contains ‘Damaged Goods’. I asked Sylvester what it was like to play the Seventh Doctor in a ‘Doctor Who’ story by Russell T. Davies. I had two photos with Sylvester, including one using my digital camera and a professional one where we were at ‘The TV Movie’s TARDIS console. 🙂
I got to meet Chris Barrie for the first time, and he signed my autograph book that day. I shared with Chris how much I enjoyed him as Gordon Brittas in ‘The Brittas Empire’. I recall how he enjoyed doing the series and he enjoyed working with the cast, including cast members like Pippa Haywood and Harriet Thorpe. I got to have a photo taken with Chris Barrie at the event, using my digital camera. 🙂
It was nice to see Jeremy Bulloch for a second time at a convention, having previously met him at the ‘Collectormania 22’ event in Milton Keynes in November 2014. Jeremy signed my CD cover of the ‘Doctor Who and the Time Warrior’ audiobook that day. I told him how much I enjoyed his reading of the classic ‘Doctor Who’ story. I had my photo taken with Jeremy, using my digital camera.
I’m amazed I met Max Grodenchik who played Rom in the ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’ series. I shared with Max that ‘DS9’ is my favourite spin-off ‘Star Trek’ series and I enjoyed him as Rom. He signed my autograph book with a very special message in it, saying he wished me ‘much profit’. It was lovely to receive that message from him. I also had a photo taken with Max, using my digital camera.
I also met up with John Levene for the second time at convention (the first one being the ‘Pandorica 2014’ convention back in September 2014). John Levene signed my DVD cover of ‘The Three Doctors’ at the convention. I shared how much I enjoyed watching him as Benton in ‘The Three Doctors’, as it’s one of his best stories. I also had a photo taken with John, using my digital camera. 🙂
I’m pleased I got to see Camille Coduri at the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ that day. Camile signed my DVD cover of Series 1, Volume 2 of ‘Doctor Who’, which contains the two-part story ‘Aliens of London’/’World War Three’. I shared how much I enjoyed her as Jackie in ‘Doctor Who’, especially with Christopher Eccleston. I also had a photo taken with Camile, using my digital camera.
Dan Starkey was also a great guest to meet at the Bournemouth event. He signed my CD cover of ‘The Five Companions’ and I got to have a photo taken with Dan, using my digital camera. I shared with him how very impressed I am by his repertoire of Sontarans voices for both TV and audio and I asked him whether he prefered playing the Sontarans on audio compared to TV when he’s not in make-up. 😀
Mat Irvine was one of the guests at the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ that Saturday. I got to meet and chat with him, and he signed my DVD cover of ‘Warriors of the Deep’. It was interesting chatting to him about what it was like to make ‘Warriors’ and the trials involved, especially after hearing him on the DVD audio commentary and see him be interviewed for the DVD documentaries.
Day 2 (Sunday 30th August 2015)
Sunday was a less busy day for me, as I went home around lunch-time, but I still enjoyed attending the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ that day. There were ‘Doctor Who’ guests like Nicola Bryant (Peri), Louise Jameson (Leela), Lalla Ward (Romana), Samuel Anderson (Danny Pink) and Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor). I enjoyed the chats I had with these pretty incredible people. 🙂
The first guest I saw was Nicola Bryant. I had a lovely chat with her and had a photo taken with her, using my digital camera. Nicola also signed my VHS cover of the educational video drama ‘TravelWise’. It was lovely to hear from Nicola that she remembered doing ‘TravelWise’, especially with Bryan Lawrence, which is a contrast to Sarah Sutton, who cannot recall being in ‘TravelWise’. 😀
Next, I saw Louise Jameson, who I had a nice chat with and I had a photo taken with her, using my digital camera. I shared with Louise how much I enjoyed the ‘Philip Hinchcliffe Presents’ audio box set by Big Finish with her as Leela and Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor. I shared with her that I was looking forward to the Series 3 of ‘The Fourth Doctor Adventures’ and we talked about ‘Dimensions In Time’.
I was pleased to see Lalla Ward at the convention, as I had a nice chat with her and I had a photo with her, using my digital camera. Lalla signed my copy of the ‘Novel Adaptations, Volume 2’ CD collection, which contains ‘The Well-Mannered War’. I shared with Lalla how much I enjoyed ‘The Well-Mannered War’ as well as the other Big Finish audio adaptations which feature her and Tom Baker.
It was good to meet Samuel Anderson who played Danny Pink in Series 8 of the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series. He signed my autograph book, and I had a photo taken with him, using my digital camera. I shared how much I enjoyed him as Danny in Series 8 and that I was saddened when he exited in ‘Death of Heaven’. I hoped that Danny would come back in ‘Doctor Who’, as he deserves his return to the TV series. 🙂
And of course, it was good to see Colin Baker in Bournemouth. Colin signed my VHS cover of ‘TravelWise’, though like Sarah Sutton, he can’t seem to recall being in it either, which is interesting. I also had my photo taken with Colin, using my digital camera. I shared with him that I was pleased that Big Finish have treated his Doctor well, especially since he did ‘The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure’ recently.
So, to conclude, the ‘Bournemouth Film & Comic Con’ in 2015 was a great weekend for me to see ‘Doctor Who’ stars. The highlight guest star was of course Sarah Sutton, but I’m glad I got to see more stars like Sophie Aldred, Nicola Bryant, Louise Jameson, Lalla Ward, Sylvester McCoy, Colin Baker, etc. The two days were exciting and I’m pleased I got to have chats and photos with the stars.
I’m also pleased that I was able to conduct my first ever interview with a ‘Doctor Who’ star using my MP3 player and I’m glad it was with Sarah Sutton, since she’s my favourite ‘Doctor Who’ companion. I live in hope that Showmasters Events can run another comic con event like this with plenty of ‘Doctor Who’ stars attending it. 🙂 I’ve enjoyed meeting the ‘Doctor Who’ stars at their events over the years. 🙂
Incidentally, Lou Ferrigno who played the Hulk in ‘The Incredible Hulk’ TV series was there on the Sunday of the Bournemouth event. I didn’t get to meet him then since I hadn’t seen ‘The Incredible Hulk’ TV series by that point. 😀
I leave you now with a YouTube video containing footage of the Bournemouth event, recorded by Gazzuppa. See if you can spot me meeting up with Sarah at her signing table as well as me escorting her to a room where we did the interview. 🙂
Well, that’s it for me in terms of sharing my ‘convention memories’ from 2010 to 2015. I hope you enjoyed them. The next convention I attended was the ‘Pandorica 2015’ convention in Bristol in September 2015. It was shortly afterwards that I shared my convention report about it on ‘Bradley’s Basement’. I’m hoping to share a list with links to all of my conventions reports and memories soon.
Thanks for reading!
Bye for now!
Tim 🙂
Bradley's Basement 
Thank you for sharing, Tim.
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Hi scifimike,
Glad you enjoyed my convention memories on the ‘Bournemouth Film and Comic Con 2015’.
Many thanks,
Tim 🙂
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