This past weekend, Star Wars fans galore quite literally invaded Birmingham for a star-studded three days of talks, meet and greets and signings. Fantha Tracks were there in force over the weekend to cover the event and it was fantastic to see so many fans celebrating their love of a galaxy far, far away.
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The event took place at the Hilton Hotel just across the road from Birmingham’s NEC and the other side of the lake from Resorts World and the NEC Arena and boasted guests that were Celebration worthy (albeit without the Star Wars Celebration price tag) to meet your favourite stars.
From Jedi: Fallen Order Elizabeth Grullon was on hand, Ahsoka was also well represented with Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Ivanna Sakhno, Wes Chatham and Paul Darnell attending while representing The Mandalorian was Katy O’Brien.
Once again the Q&A sessions were so intimate you almost had to pinch yourself. Where else could you simply line up and ask Cassian Andor whatever question you wanted?
There are few traditional traders at Starfury: Invasion, so those looking to top up their collection of collectables and toys will need to look elsewhere. The real pull here is the relaxed and friendly nature of the photo ops and signings. There’s no rushing to be had here or staff pushing you along – as has become the norm at big cons in big cities lately. That’s not how Starfury operates, and its all the better for it.
I couldn’t resist the opportunity to meet Diego as I’d been told by a steward that he would be doing personalisation’s on whatever was being signed. That made up my mind as though I’m not a big autograph hunter, the ones I do have are all made out to me. In the afternoon I slipped out of the Q&A hall and took the queue. I really didn’t wait long, and I’d taken my Andor poster from Star Wars Celebration to get signed. Diego couldn’t have been friendlier, and my wallet saved a lot more money than if I were to do this at Star Wars Celebration Los Angeles in 2027. Other guests were taking the time to chat with fans and sign posters, pictures and figures galore.
The weekend runs more as a social event too so it’s a chance for fans to catch up, mingle and even party on the evenings with a disco and cosplay contest. It’s a full two-day event meaning that you don’t miss anything with signings and talks operating at different times and on different schedules for ticket holders so you can really get the full impact of the weekend.
The dates have been announced for Starfury: Invasion next year (26th – 28th June 2026) and if the guests were anything to go by this year, then no doubt the wheels are already in motion for a stellar line up.
Stay tuned for more panel reviews, and check out the latest episode of Making Tracks, recorded at the Hilton Metropole over the weekend of Starfury: Invasion 2025.
Words by Jonathan Hipkiss. Photographs by Mark Newbold.