With Celebration Europe coming back to the UK for the third time, Fantha Tracks were determined to be as involved as possible, so in addition to our podcast slot at Boonta Eve 4 on Thursday 6th April at The Breakfast Club Canary Wharf, being a part of Sail Barge to Celebrationon Saturday 8th as we sail up and down the River Thames and hosting the #CANTINA VIP After Party at the Indigo at the O2 on Sunday 9th, members of the Fantha Tracks team can be found across the convention.
Fantha Tracks are proud to be a part of the shared Galactic Senate area on the show floor along with the Rebel Legion, Mando Mercs, Saber Guild, The Dark Empire and the Galactic Academy, and here are the panels and locations where you can see us (and maybe grab a patch, badge or a high-five).
First off, one of the very first panels of the whole convention on the University Stage where Fantha Trackers Sander de Lange and Mark Newbold take you on a galactic journey.
PANEL: “Star Wars Tourism: Visiting the Galaxy Far, Far Away on Earth”
HOSTS: James Floyd, Sander de Lange, Jeanett Diaz, Mark Newbold
TIME: Friday 7th April at 11.00am – 12.00pm
LOCATION: University Stage
From the deserts of Tunisia and California to the glaciers of Norway and the palaces of Italy and Spain, Star Wars filming sites are on everyone’s travel bucket list. Our team of seasoned travel experts from GFFA Journeys, James Floyd (Star Wars Insider magazine) and Sander de Lange (Teekay-421 & Star Wars Insider magazine), will help you learn about where to go, how to get there, and how to get the most out of it with your fellow Star Wars fans. With a special focus on Europe, and especially the many locations around London and the UK, we’ve got the info and tips for you to plan your next journey! Rounding out our crew of galactic tourism panelists are Jeanett Diaz (Visit Hoth & voted Norway’s biggest Star Wars fan), and Mark Newbold (Fantha Tracks & Star Wars Insider magazine).
Interested in visiting SW filming sites? We've got the panel for you at #StarWarsCelebration! Star Wars Tourism – Fri 4/7, 11 am, with me, @Prefect_Timing, Jeanett Diaz, and Sander de Lange! We'll focus mostly on European sites, from the UK and beyond! https://t.co/zRA9ok9XnB pic.twitter.com/GQPWq7fWPx
— James Floyd (@jamesjawa) March 14, 2023
Just FYI, this is the first of 2 location panels at the show, and to avoid any confusion here’s details of the second.
PANEL: “Star Wars Location Hunters: Tunisia”
HOSTS: Gus Lopez, Jeremy Beckett, Davin Anderson
TIME: Sunday 9th April at 12.30pm – 1.30pm
LOCATION: University Stage
There’s nowhere on Earth that evokes a galaxy far, far away as much as Tunisia does, and this presentation — filled with detailed maps, graphics, engaging photos, and entertaining first-hand accounts — provides the groundwork for fans of all types, whether they are novice travelers or globetrotting experts, to make the once-in-a-lifetime trip to Tatooine. Escape pod not required!
Then it’s a quickstep to the Collectors Stage where Making Tracks co-host and Rebel Legion UK Commanding Officer Mark Mulcaster discusses collecting via costuming.
PANEL: “Well-Dressed Collectors: Collecting Through Costuming and Cosplay”
HOSTS: Greg Alonso, Mark Mulcaster, and Phillip Parker
TIME: Friday 7th April at 12.00pm – 1.00pm
LOCATION: Collectors Stage
Not every Star Wars collection sits permanently on shelves and in display cabinets – some collectors wear their collections! Not every part of a Star Wars costumer’s costume goes into storage between events – some go proudly on display as part of collections. Celebrating the relationships between Star Wars collecting and costuming, this panel shares the paths that link collecting replica costumes/props, wearing our collections, and the fan communities who can help. Costuming/cosplay groups are a great way of finding information collectors can use to source and build replica props/costume pieces for their collection. This is an enticing way to introduce a collector to Star Wars costuming/cosplay. The real-world parts used to create the Star Wars props we see on screen are valuable resources for assembling cosplay costumes, and a fascinating category for collecting. And Star Wars costuming/cosplay groups also have patch, coin, and card collecting traditions with world-wide communities.
That’s not all. As part of the long-running and essential Vintage Rebellion podcast, Richard Hutchinson (co-host of Collecting Tracks on Fantha Tracks Radio alongside Chris Leddy) and Fantha Tracks contributor Andy Preston joins their TVR cohorts for a look at some fascinating British collectibles.
PANEL: “Best of British? Eccentric vintage collectibles from Blighty”
HOSTS: Peter Davis, Andy Preston, Jason Smith, Andrew Norton, and Richard Hutchinson
TIME: Friday 7th April at 1.30pm
LOCATION: Collectors Stage
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has a well-deserved reputation for the eccentric — from crackpot inventors to Morris Men, funny food to minding your manners, curious customs and odd attire. The world of Star Wars collecting is no exception. From the first collectibles in 1977, to the end of the vintage period in the late 1980s, kids in Britain were treated to a world of weird and wonderful merchandise, officially licensed or otherwise. This panel looks at an assortment of unusual Star Wars memorabilia that was made in Britain, or for the British market, during the vintage period. We’ll be bringing you the best of the quirky, the unusual, and the downright odd, including toys, games and puzzles, stationery and food packaging, toiletries and homewares, magazines, and more. Join us for a light-hearted, entertaining, and educational panel, delivered by five dedicated collectors who keep up that great British tradition of eccentricity!
PANEL: “Good Morning Tatooine”
HOSTS: Brian Cameron, Matt Booker, Florian Baur, Adam Christopher
TIME: Saturday 8th April at 11.00am – 12.00am
LOCATION: Holonet New Stage, Room 17
Fantha Tracks’ Good Morning Tatooine is a weekly live-streaming show covering everything happening in the galaxy of Star Wars. Expect lively debate and crowd interaction on all the latest-breaking news at Celebration. Whether it be comics, books, toys, film or TV – we will be covering it all!
Brian Cameron and Matt Booker join forces with Florian Baur of Jedi-Bibliothek and @swbooks along with special guest Star Wars author Adam Christopher to discuss, and debate the latest Star Wars news with you the audience.
PANEL: “Desert Planet Discs Star Wars Fandom and Music”
HOSTS: Carl Bayliss, Greig Robertson
TIME: Saturday 8th April at 5.30pm – 6.30pm
LOCATION: Galactic Senate Stage
Desert Planet Discs has been a showcase for fan-powered music since 2018, combining chat about the latest goings on in the galaxy far, far away with a variety of music created in tribute to the greatest saga of all time. Alongside our regular episodes we also have featured artist specials where we have spoken to creative artists who cite Star Wars as an influence on them – Mark Hamilton (Ash), Toby Jepson (Little Angels, Wayward Sons), Julie Dolan (Star Wars voice actor and musician), Emily Dolan Davies (Kim, Wilde, Bryan Ferry) and many more. One of our hosts, Greig Robertson, is also known in the fan community as the alter ego of Darth Elvis, the cheeky dark lord of rock n’ roll who debuted at Celebration in 2007 and has gone on to play many shows at conventions across the world, including appearances at Celebration events in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2022. With music being an integral part of Star Wars, our aim is to spotlight some of the talented artists out there who are creating both original and parody music to a wider audience.
Later that day sees our Social Media Manager Matt Booker hit the stage to discuss – what else – Boba Fett and the iconic bounty hunters of the GFFA.
PANEL: “Bounty Hunters, Smugglers, and Gangsters: The Scum and Villainy Through the Years”
HOSTS: Chris Abbott, Adam Christopher, Dominic Jones, Ciaran Duggan, Matt Booker
TIME: Saturday 8th April at 6.00pm – 7.00pm
LOCATION: University Stage
Celebrate the Star Wars Underworld with us as we look at the unsavory characters that make up the galaxy. Whether it be Boba Fett, Doctor Aphra, Jabba, or Din Djarin, this panel will highlight characters from all mediums and eras of the timeline. Moderated by Chris Abbott (Creator of the Starrapter YouTube Channel). Panelists include Adam Christopher (Author of Star Wars: Shadow of the Sith), Dominic Jones (Producer at The Star Wars Underworld Network), Ciaran Duggan (Contributor at The Star Wars Underworld Network), and Matt Booker (Co-owner of Fantha Tracks).
Sunday 9th is a big day as not one but two Fantha Tracks podcasts arrive on the HoloNet News Stages. First up it’s a first-time appearance for Start Your Engines, followed by a third Celebration appearance in a row for Making Tracks.
PANEL: “Start Your Engines”
HOSTS: Paul Naylor, Mark Newbold
TIME: Sunday 9th April at 2.30pm – 3.30pm
LOCATION: HoloNet News Stage
Join Paul Naylor and Mark Newbold for Start Your Engines as they delve into one of Return of the Jedi’s most iconic vehicles, the Lambda Class Shuttle. Technical statistics, collectibles, memorable moments and other appearances are under discussion, so bring your hydrospanners for a special LIVE episode of Start Your Engines.
PANEL: “Making Tracks LIVE”
HOSTS: Mark Newbold, Mark Mulcaster
TIME: Sunday 9th April at 5.30pm – 6.30pm
LOCATION: HoloNet News Stage
The safest hyperspace route through the latest Star Wars news, with special guests, convention reports, reviews, and much more, brought to you by those fine folks at FanthaTracks. Join our hosts Mark Newbold and Mark Mulcaster as they dissect the latest happenings, look back, look forward, and enjoy all there is from Celebration and the galaxy far, far away.
Finally we wrap up Fantha proceedings on Sunday 10th with another Celebration debut for Planet Leia (but not Clair’s first Celebration podcast – anyone remember the impromptu ‘Nobody’s Really Gone‘ podcast at Celebration Chicago?)
PANEL: “Planet Leia”
HOSTS: Clair Henry, Johanna Nybelius
TIME: Monday 10th April at 12.30pm – 1.30pm
LOCATION: HoloNet News Stage
Planet Leia takes you through the galaxy far away, from a female perspective. Join Johanna and Clair as they celebrate the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi –the original trilogy film that cast the most female characters. It promises to be a fun chat focusing on characters from all angles.
We’ll update as more news and details arrive, and if you see us at the show (or equally likely outside it) then please come over, say hi and get to as many of these panels and podcasts as you can so you can make a LOT of noise – we want you to be a part of the shows.
- Hardcover Book
- Scott, Cavan (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 96 Pages - 10/17/2023 (Publication Date) - Dark Horse Books (Publisher)
