MCM expo London Comic-Con returns to Excel London on October 26-28, 2012. This year’s event will bring a fantastic line up of special guests, videogames, comics, sci-fi, anime, & cosplay to entertain the shows 60,000 plus visitors. Below are some of the first announcements for Britain’s biggest pop-culture festival.
Special Guests
- Doctor Who's Matt Smith will be attending the Friday of the show to mark the launch of the Doctor Who Series 7: Part 1 DVD. Matt will be hosting a panel alongside Doctor Who executive produce Caroline Skinner, as well as signing copies of the new DVD.
- Jeffrey Demunn and Andrew Rothenburg, stars of hit zombie apocalypse series The Walking Dead. Jeffrey plays Dale Horvath, the moral centre of the small community of survivors, while Andrew plays taciturn mechanic Jim.
- Tony Amendola and Roger Cross from hot new Canadian sci-fi police show Continuum. Tony and Roger both play leading members of Liber8, a future terrorist group, who have escaped through time to present day Vancouver.
- Tony Amendola is also at the show for fantasy drama Once Upon A Time, alongside fellow cast member Keegan Connor Tracy. Keegan plays The Blue Fairy in the fairytale-inspired show, while Tony takes on the role of Geppetto.
- We welcome back A Town Called Eureka creator, writer and executive producer Jaime Paglia. He is joined by Colin Ferguson and Tembi Locke, who play Sheriff Jack Carter and Dr. Grace Monroe in the popular sci-fi show.
- Film, TV, anime and videogame voice actor Ali Hillis, who stars as central character Lightning in Final Fantasy XIII and its sequel Final Fantasy XIII-2.
- Videogame voice actor Courtenay Taylor, best known for playing Jack/Subject Zero in Mass Effect 2 and Ada Wong in the upcoming Resident Evil 6.
- Top voice talent Liam O'Brien, whose many roles include Jushiro Ukitake in Bleach; Gaara in Naruto; War in Darksiders and Vincent Law in Ergo Proxy.
Videogames
- Nintendo will be giving Comic-Con visitors the opportunity to try out their revolutionary new Wii U console ahead of its public release later this year.
- Ubisoft will be bringing the much-anticipated Assassin's Creed III: Liberation, first person shooter Far Cry 3 and Wii U survival horror game ZombiU.
- Visitors to the Capcom stand will have the chance to get hands-on with Lost Planet 3 and Devil May Cry, the latest in the hit beat-em-up franchise.
- Namco Bandai will be hosting a Tekken Tag Tournament 2 contest, as well as previewing the gorgeous-looking Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch.
- Iconic games characters Agent 47 and Lara Croft both return as Square Enix shows off Hitman: Absolution and their upcoming Tomb Raider reboot.
- 2K Games will be bringing sci-fi turn-based strategy game XCOM: Enemy Unknown and acclaimed role-playing shooter sequel Borderlands 2.
- THQ will be demoing their upcoming role-playing game South Park: The Stick of Truth, written by the cartoon's creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.
- Gamespot UK are back with their dedicated games stage; hosting panels and presentations, and giving show visitors sneak peeks at the hottest new titles.
Anime, Comics, Cosplay & other Attractions
- Best-selling British sci-fi author Peter Hamilton is making a welcome comic con return to celebrate the launch of his latest novel, Great North Road.
- For the first time, Comic-Con will play host to VidFestUK zone – a celebration of all things online video – with guests including Simon's Cat and Eddsworld.
- Our Comic Village shows off the talents of some of the UK’s top comic artists and writers, including Gary Erskine; Rufus Dayglo; Emma Vieceli; John McCrea; Al Davison; Lee Townsend and many others – for the full list of creators announced so far, see www.londonexpo.com/comicvillage
- October's show sees a revamped JapanEx area, with the addition of food stalls giving visitors a literal as well as metaphorical taste of Japanese culture.
- Letraset is hosting a Manga Alley Art Competition, giving artistically-inclined visitors of all ages the chance to win over £120 worth of Letraset products.
- London Comic-Con is easily the UK’s largest cosplay event and the centrepiece of this October's show is the EuroCosplay Championship Finals, which sees contestants from more than 20 nations competing for the cosplay crown.
- The MCM Expo also boasts the Totally Cosplay zone, hosting workshops, a photography area and its own stage for panels and performances.
- Genki Gear is offering an exclusive 'Invasion of the Cute' official MCM London Comic Con T-shirt which is available for pre-order until 25 October from www.genkigear.com
Tickets for MCM London Comic-Con on October 26-28, 2012 can be purchased at www.londonexpo.com/faq/tickets
*Writer's Opinion*
All of the first announcements sound great! It looks like those of you whom are going will be in for a real treat this year. Unfortunately, I will not be attending as I do not wish to cross the Atlantic to get there. However, I may join the masses at San Diego Comic-Con In 2013. Here’s hoping!
