As we left the event on Sunday afternoon I turned to my fiancé and said, “This has probably been the greatest Star Wars event I’ve been too and maybe one of my favourite days as a Star Wars fan.”
So, let me explain why.
The event is held in an industrial area of the city and the space is a decent sized venue that covers four or so halls. Though there were fans galore there, never once did it feel overcrowded or too much. To go to this event had been a Christmas gift from Kristina and I’ve always wanted to attend but like some things in life – it just hadn’t panned out.
The big day finally arrived, and it was nothing short of spectacular. THIS is how you run a Star Wars event. It had dealers, photo ops, autographs, panels, Garrisons, it was decked out in stunning style everywhere you looked, tattooist, Jedi schools, video game areas, plenty of space to sit and relax and I’m probably forgetting some things.
The organizers had spared no expense with the venue. Models, props and flags adorned the walls to look like the Empire.
There are plenty of traders to satisfy your Star Wars collecting needs and I picked up some truly wonderful and unique items including things I didn’t event know existed. The prices were all incredibly fair and if I hadn’t had been flying with Ryanair and their infamous bag policy then a good suitcase was needed.
In terms of the autograph signers, it was dream. The line-up was incredible and included Anthony Daniels, Denise Gough, Paul Blake, Garrick Hagon and Barry Lowin, Mando himself, with whom I picked up an autograph. As always with these events there’s no rush at all and we spoke with Barry for a good five minutes about The Mandalorian. He was brilliant to talk too and gave all the fans the time they needed and after a minute of talking to him it felt like we were fast friends. All the prices were incredibly fair too.
The panels here run like a well-oiled machine and give all Star Wars fans an intimate chance to hear from their heroes about a galaxy far, far away. Never once to you feel rushed in anyway and any queues or booths are run down to a fine art form.
Even as I write this, it doesn’t feel enough to convey just how much fun I had at this event. Everywhere you look there are fans experiencing joy. If there’s any concerns about Star Wars surviving in the future, then it’s not to be found here in Germany as there are younglings everywhere having the time of their lives. Little Lukes and Vaders were battling it out everywhere you looked. There’s a fantastic video game area where you can play all sorts of Star Wars games. There was event a stall discussing Star Wars and mental health.
The cosplayers were wonderful, and it was fantastic to see so many people interacting, relaxing and enjoying themselves. Socialising played a big part in this weekend and it seemed friends old and new had come to hang out, have a drink with fellow fans and enjoy themselves. It really did make me so happy to see.
One of the highlights, of which the whole day was to be honest, was attending Roger Christian’s panel and being in the company of the very first lightsaber ever built. I could have listened to him talk all day. From Barry Lowin we learned that no one on the small set learned that Mark Hamill was returning to Star Wars until the day of filming thanks to endless ‘dummy’ scripts and from Grant Feely’s panel we learned that he wasn’t a huge Star Wars fan when he got the job and Deborah Chow asked him to not dive in too deep for research. Luke was so disconnected to the main story during the events of Obi-Wan Kenobi that she wanted Grant to remain the same.
The star of the show here was Anthony Daniels. Due to the relaxed nature of the event, you could see him interacting with fans for his autographs and Kristina commented on just what a gentleman he was being and he was so gracious with fans. I’ve met Anthony a couple of times over the decades but I wanted a professional photo with the stalwart of Star Wars and it came out brilliantly.
I was made up. Could the day get any better? Well, as it turns out, it could.
I loved, loved, loved this event and took in everything one last time. I picked up a few bargains to end the day with and it was time to head back to the city for the train to the airport.
I needed one last run to the loo, however, and who should I bump into for a chit chat at the toilets? Well, C-3PO himself, of course. Only at an event like this would it happen. Outstanding. I was quite literally on cloud nine. Still am today.
A banner showed that next year’s event is running 16th – 17th May 2026 and I fell in love with this show that much that I’ve already cleared the diary. I will be attending, no question about it.
Now, as we know, only a Sith deals in absolutes, but I can guarantee you this. You will not be disappointed with this event. Well done to all involved on a triumphant weekend where passion, joy, collecting, cosplay and all areas of fandom collided.
The true power of the Force, it seems, appears to be in Cologne.
