Manchester Comic Con '19

Manchester's Annual Comic Con is took place this weekend at Bowlers in Trafford Park. I dropped into the Exhibition Centre yesterday to check out the graphic novels, cosplayers, set builds and celeb guests.

The main stage featured the key guests' Q&A sessions. One of the first panels is Police Academy, a discussion with cast members Michael Winslow, Steve Guttenberg (at his first ever convention), Marion Ramsey and Leslie Easterbrook, where Guttenberg tells a story of how his dad's lucky shirt got him his first acting job, and Winslow busts out his trademark sound effects.

Police Academy Panel

Selfie bombing Steve Guttenberg

I'd paid for a couple of photoshoots. The first was Zach Galligan, who played Billy in Gremlins. The Comic Con team lovingly recreated the kitchen scene set, complete with blender and gremlin puppet.

“Gremlins scared the shit out of me when I first saw it,” I told him.

“That's good, man,” he replied.

This is 'Arnold the Entertainernator,' a Schwarzenegger impersonator raising money for cancer charities via signed photos, selfies, and Austrian-style karaoke.

He signed a pic with a favourite Arnie quote.

Upstairs of Bowlers was transformed into the Star Wars Cantina, a little bar just like the watering hole from the movie.

As you can see, the recession seems to have hit Mos Eisley as well as Manchester.

With so many celeb appearances it's sometimes easy to forget that a comic con is about comics. Bowlers had provided a large room for comic / graphic novel / toy salespeople to set up stalls. I had a wonder around, but I found the range of graphic novels to be a little limited.

After this I dropped into the Star Wars 'Creature Feature' panel, a discussion with Tim Rose, Admiral Akbar, and Paul Blake, Greedo (who jests that Manchester is 'terrible, hate it, hate the people...') Rose describes how the costume was easy to get into, but was 'very hot and very sweaty' and a lot harder to get out of after filming. Making it harder was that he'd broken his ankle a few weeks before whilst working on a Bollywood film.

The filming was that strenuous for him that some scenes became method acting. “After the Death Star Explodes, instead of jumping around celebrating, and of course being so close to Vietnam, I just slumped in my chair. They left it in!”

During the Q&A an audience member asks if they kept any souvenirs. Blake kept the gun he pulled on Harrison Ford's character Han Solo, but it broke and- regrettably- he threw it in the trash. Rose kept a call sheet.

Blake is asked if he felt Greedo was misunderstood.

“Terribly!” Blake complains. “All I wanted was money for the Millennium Falcon, and I end up getting shot. Mrs Greedo is still at home with two hundred and twenty two little Greedos. Greedo was such a rebel assassin that everyone sympathises with him,” he claims. Then, just to push the boat out, he ends with, “If I'd shot first I'd have ran off with Princess Leia, shot the ewoks and barbecued Jar-Jar Binks.”

After the Star Wars panel, we welcome to the stage Erika Eleniak, Shauni McClain in Baywatch, Jordan Tate in Under Seige (the cake girl. You know), and a child extra in ET. In remarkably good spirits considering the 12-hour flight, Ms Eleniak dives straight into discussing her big break, via her dad's girlfriend, who knew Spielberg. “In the beginning scene of E.T. there's a boy delivering newspapers. In the marquee you can see 'A Boy's Life,' the working title for E.T.”

Ms Eleniak discusses her 'arduous' auditions for Baywatch (“your costume is your motivation,” she reminds us), her break in modelling and time spent working with Playboy, and her favourite movie experiences. (Favourite low budget movie she's worked on: The Opponent, a tale of a ring girl in an abusive relationshipp who learns to box. Favourite high budget: Beverley Hillbillies, with a 'phenomenal' cast. Well, there was Dolly Parton and Za Zar Gabor) She tells us of being 'attacked by every animal' she's ever worked with, including a deer that was trying to warn her about cold water, being bitten by a racoon and scratched by a possum.

An audience member asks about Steven Segal, her Under Siege co-star. She says he has a 'large entourage,' and 'sometimes had a sense of humour, sometimes straight to business. I saw him 6 months ago. He was incredibly kind and soft spoken.'

Next question: what about The Hoff?

David Hasslehoff, her Baywatch costar, was a 'lot of fun,' a practical joker on set, always pulling faces behind the camera.

In response to another question she recalls an episode called 'Gilligan's Island,' in which she got to kiss the titular actor, the now deceased Bob Denver. The kiss is here at 33:35. The new Dwayne Johnson movie she mercifully describes as 'cute,' and admit she regrets not asking to keep the outfit from her part in the original show.

After the Q&A, Ms Eleniak moves over to the photoshoot area. I tell her Under Siege is a masterpiece and she thanks me. I didn't mention that the cake scene has been indelibly etched into my psyche since aged 15. Which was probably for the best.

A great day.

Ms Eleniak's panel