Star Wars actors to bring the 'Force' to Jersey

Sunday 01 April 2018

Actors from the original Star Wars trilogy will be bringing the 'Force' to the island in a brand new 'Comic Con' event to hit the island in June.

Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar), Femi Taylor (Oola), as well as Richard Oldfield and Paul Blake, will be the special guests for Prestige Events' 'Galaxy' showcase for all ages between 22 and 24 June.

Visitors will be able to meet them and take photographs with them on 23 June at the Radisson Hotel. On 24 June, a special Q&A panel will also take place at Jersey Opera House.

But if Star Wars is not exactly your cup of tea, many other fandoms will also be catered for.

A replica of 'Back to the Future' time machine, the infamous DeLorean, which was built by members of the Movie A-Car Restoration Team, Joe Walser, Sean Bishop and J Ryan, will also make the trip. Signed by Robert Zemeckis, Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd, it is the only correctly-built DeLorean in the UK and Europe.

A large collection of life-size Doctor Who will also be exhibited at the 'Galaxy Exhibition Centre', as well as props from other popular movies. 

There will also be a live show with performances from Boogie Storm, a troupe of dancing Stormtroopers who were finalists on Britain's Got Talent in 2016. Cyber Kydd will also be performing an LED & Laser show while Jersey Premier Bass will be playing science-fi themes.

For those who would like a cinematographic throwback, classic sci-fi movies will be screened at the Opera House. Those will include ET, Blade Runner, Back to the Future, and Terminator.

The event is organised by Michael Lopes and his wife - both sci-fi enthusiasts - who recently created Prestige Events to organise themed events in Jersey. Mr Lopes said: "We want to organise different themed events based around popular themes that people can relate to, such as sci-fi, fantasy, magic or horror. We wanted to capture a lot of popular themes and create an imaginary world locally in a family and community-driven event.

"If you want to go to a convention or a Comic Con style event in the UK, there is a big cost that goes with it. With work and kids, sometimes people have to make their holiday around it. But how many can actually afford it? We wanted to do something that wouldn't just be a 'cool' event but would give people the opportunity to attend something they wouldn't otherwise. We don't want to copy anything and want to make it unique."

As Michael and his wife designed the event "from fans to fans" they have enlisted the help of local groups. The Jersey Garrison team has been heavily involved as well as Jersey Ghostbusters and Archon Academy, a group specialised in theatrical sword fighting.

Pictured: The Jersey Garrison team will be on deck for the Galaxy event.

While the event is mainly designed to be a celebration of all things sci-fi, Michael also wanted to "make a difference" through it. As Michael and his wife were both volunteers at Headway they chose to make the charity the beneficiary of their first event and will donate fees from the Exhibition Centre. Michael explained: "We wanted to make the community better and support charity. It's all about a good cause and not just to make children smile."

The couple hopes that this first event will go well and are planning to make it an annual staple on the calendar. They also hope to add other events to the calendar, including one for Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings fans and one around Halloween. Michael said: "Sci-fi is more accepted today. Before it used to be more hidden and if someone talked about it they would be called 'nerdy' or 'geeky.' It's good that it can put to a good cause to help charities and the community.

"It's been challenging to organise this first event and get guests over. But it wouldn't be fun if it wasn't. It was a real team effort and a lot of energy has gone into it, it has been an eye opening experience. We really hope people enjoy it and that we can make it into something annual."