Found courtesy of Greytor, Agent of a Hostile Power MANCHEXTER '97 INFO SHEET ------------------------- *NOTE: Due to matters beyond our control, the Convention has had to be postponed for a year until July 1997. We apologise to all for this. This is an Information Sheet to give details of the upcoming UK X-Files Convention in 1997. It has these sections:- 1. Document History 2. What is "Manchester '97" ? 3. The Committee 4. Special Guests 5. Venue 6. Accomodation 7. Date of Convention 9. Events 9. Price 10. Sponsors 11. Charities 12. How to Get Involved 13. More Information 1. Document History ---------------- Updated sections will start with # V1.0 - 6 November 1995. First Draft by Lee Staniforth. V1.1 - 13 November 1995. First revision by Lee Staniforth following Committee Meeting #1 V1.2 - 2 December 1995. Revision by Lee Staniforth to indicate reshuffling of responsibilities after one member had to leave. V1.3 - 10 December 1995. Revision by Lee after Manchester Meeting to add new Events. V1.4 - 6 January 1996. Revision to reflect resignations of two members. V1.5 - 25 January 1996. Updated How To Help section, and Committee section V1.6 - 31 January 1996. Added info about Attendee accomodation at the hotel. Updated new Web Address. Added Special Guest info. V1.7 - 5 February 1996. Following Meeting #3. Updated Events, Committee, Guest and Charity sections. V1.8 - 29 February 1996. Updated to reflect postponement of Con. V1.9 - 14 Marcg 1996. Updated to reflect change in Committee, and Videothon. 2. So, what is "MancheXter '97" ? ----------------------------- It is the name given to the upcoming X-Files Convention in the UK in 1997. The idea was first broached in the uk.media.tv.sf.x-files Usenet Newgroup around September 1995. Towards the middle of that month, Lee Staniforth took it upon his head to try and find the actual level of interest of such a convention, and started a poll to find out which city in the UK was the most popular. This poll started on the 13 September 1995 and ended on the 1 October 1995, with Manchester recieving the highest number of votes. Lee then announced the results, and then requested help in setting up such a Convention. This would be mailed to his personal email (lee@roogna.demon.co.uk), whilst interest could be registered at Mulder@roogna.demon.co.uk. Initially, only three people had volunteered to be part of the Committee, so Lee contacted each personally and arranged to have a Mailing List set up to discuss ideas. Each person was allocated a position within the Committee, and it was his/her responsibility to manage that position. A Website (http://www.keele.ac.uk/socs/ks26/conv/xfconv.html) to hold all relevant information was created on the 20 October. #This has recently had a major overhall to reflect the new situation. Lee had announced that the Convention could not proceed until at least 75 people had registered their interest. This marker was passed on 2 Nov 1995. The first Committee Meeting was held at 12pm on 11 November at Keele University. Not much progress had been made, but a re-shuffle of positions occurred: Advertising moved to Dave's responsibility. Also, the date to hold the Con was narrowed to July 1996. After showing the information Lee had gathered from a trip to Sacha's hotel in Manchester, the Committee decided to make that its Venue. The first event raising cash for the Con was the Keele X-Files Marathon, and raised around #80 towards the account. The second Committee Meeting was held in Manchester, and attended by Lee, and the newest editions to the Committee: Mark Woodward, Jason Turner and Neil Harding. More ideas were raised, and the Venue was changed to the Hotel Picadilly, after several messages were recieved by Lee complaining of Sacha's during a Star Trek Con in October '95. The other reasons for the Venue change were: lack of parking facilities and the function room capacitites were not enough to hold the (possible) 800-900 attendees. A third meeting was held in Keele. The Events were discussed in detail, and the few remaining positions within the Committee were dealt with. A final decision to go with the 27th/28th July date was decided upon (assuming the hotel would be vacant). It was decided to hold the meetings more frequently, with the next in five weeks time. Shortly after this, we were contacted by Hotel Picadilly to find out if we were still interested in the booking, as another company wanted that date for a conference. We couldn't state for sure, as the licence to hold the Con had not yet been granted from Fox - despite our continued insistance. The new date was decided to be 5-6 July 1997; a date when all of the members of the Committee would be available to help. #The fourth Committee Meeting was held in Manchester on the 2 Mar 1996. This #included a tour around the various rooms the Hotel had to offer for events # on the scale of MancheXter. #A week later, an event (The Manchester Videothon) was held in order to raise #cash towards the Con. Although enjoyed by those that attended, no profit was #made by the venture. This was attributed to poor advertising. # To date, we have 416 (+146) interested people. The number in brackets equates to the number of 'maybes'. The number of people on the Committee is now #ten. 3. The Committee ------------- There are currently (14 Mar 96) ten members:- o Lee Staniforth (lee@roogna.demon.co.uk). Chairman & Fox Liason o "Grail" (u4d41@cc.keele.ac.uk). Deputy Chairman & Events Organiser o Allie (u5g36@keele.ac.uk). Treasury/Events Organiser. o Natasha (u5g47@keele.ac.uk). Treasury/Events Organiser o Neil Harding (nharding@cix.compulink.co.uk). Venue Organiser. o Richard Oakham (Richard@earthpig.demon.co.uk). Technical Co- ordinator o Michele Stokes (mstokes@glam.ac.uk). Graphic Designer o Roy Temple (rst@roogna.demon.co.uk). Volunteers Co-ordinator. o Karen Yeates (u5e19@cc.keele.ac.uk). Treasury. # o Tony Spalding (Tony@urchin.demon.co.uk). Advertising & Merchandising. 4. Special Guests -------------- #UPDATE: Nick Pope (Real Life Fox Mulder currently working for the UK # Government) has agreed to attend on July 1997. We are currently in discussions with Fox TV, and thus have not yet finalised any guests of the show. #David Duchovny and Chris Carter have declined our offer to invite them. Due to this, we are attempting to arrange to have Mitch Pileggi (plays Assistant Director Skinner) and/or Amanda Pays (played Inspector Phoebe Green in "Fire"). #We have been in contact with Steven Williams (plays Mr X), who is very willing #to attend. A contract and discussion on fees has yet to be carried out. We also hope to have a lecture by Stanton T Friedman, the UK's leading expert on UFO sightings and the paranormal. Jane Goldman (author of "The X-Files Book of the Unexplained") has also expressed an interest in the Convention. #We have also asked Tim Good (well known UFO expert) if he would like to #attend. 5. Where's the Con Going to Be ? --------------------------- During the Meeting in November, the Venue was chosen to be Sacha's Hotel. However, following a recent Star Trek Convention (Wolf 359), which had in excess of the maximum 600 attendees that Sacha's can cope with, this decision may be changed in the light of the increased number of interested attendees. Further investigation have lead to having the Venue as Hotel Picadilly, with the Brittania Hotel being used as overspill. 6. What About Hotel Accomodation ? ----------------------------- This will be confirmed once we have booked the Venue. The rooms will be located in the same hotel as the Convention: Hotel Picadilly. We are hoping to organise a variety of deals with the hotel manager, in order to make the cost as low as possible. Types of rooms will probably range from quiet to 'adventurous' and single to shared (double or triple). The cost will be confirmed soon, but should be around #30.00 for a single. 7. When's It Going to Be ? --------------------- #The date has been decided as: Sat 5 July 1997 - Sun 6 July 1997. 8. Events ------ This is the largest part of the Information Sheet, and is split into two parts: Definite Events and Possible Events. (Some of the names have been taken from episodes from the Show.) 8.1 Definite Events --------------- o Guest Appearances When: Saturday & Sunday mornings What: Including speeches, book signing, autographing, tete-a-tete talks with fans and Q&A panels. o "The Host" parody play. The Show Must Go On! When: Sunday morning. What: The true and original first draft script of what this episode would have been like before the proper scenes hit the cutting room floor. Or maybe it's just a rip-off written by one of us... Featuring the efforts of the Keele Amateur Dramatics Society. o Screening of favourite episodes. When: Constant What: Take part in a vote to see YOUR favourite episodes. Round table discussions will follow. o "The Briefing Rooms" When: Constant What: Continuous screening of Season 3 episodes, not seen in the UK. Round table discussions will follow. o "Syzygy" When: Constant What: Round table nit-picking discussions following screenings. o "Single's Bar" Make a date with an unattached fan! He or she can't be that bad - after all, they like the X-Files! o "Little Green Men". When: Saturday afternoon What: Register your interest to take part in a Blind Date at the Single's Bar. o "Revelations" When: Sunday Afternoon What: Buzzer quiz on questions about the show. Pit your wits against other X-Philes. Form a team of up to four members to win a Big Prize! Numbers will be limited. o "FBI Entrance Exam" When: Constant (Results announced during Closing Ceremony) What: For those who've missed out on the "Revelations" buzzer quiz. Forms will be available from the Committee Stand. o "Men In Black" When: Constant What: Prizes will be awarded to the best impersonation of the mysterious Government agents (eg dark suit, dark glasses, ear piece etc) spotted by members of the Committee during the two days. Points will be deducted for those seen showing emotions. o "EBEs" When: Saturday Afternoon What: Look-a-like and Fancy Dress Competition Prizes awarded to the best costumes of characters from the series. o "The Walk" When: Saturday Morning What: Treasure hunt. Follow clues skillfully hidden around the hotel, to win a prize. o "Fresh Bones Banquet" When: Saturday Evening What: Formal banquet requiring evening wear. Numbers will be limited on this one! o Live-action Role Playing Game, based on the X-Files scenario. When: Saturday Evening o Merchandise Stalls. Buy! Buy! Buy! When: Constant What: The chance to purchase X-Files related goodies from a wide range of vendors, including t-shirts, mugs, calendars, videos, books and magazines. We will also be featuring stalls dedicated to the chosen charities. The number of stalls has yet to be announced. o Closing Ceremony When: Sunday Afternoon What: Closing speeches and thanks by Chairman. Presentation of awards and prizes. 8.2 Possible Events --------------- Much of this depends upon feedback from Fox TV. o Special Guests that we *hope* to invite include: - Mitch Pileggi (plays Assistant Director Walter Skinner) - Amanda Pays (played Inspector Phoebe Green in "Fire") - Jane Goldman (author of "The X-Files Book of the Unexplained") - Stanton T Friedman (world known UFO expert) - Tim Good (world renowned UFO expert) - Nick Pope (real life Fox Mulder working for the UK Government) o Screening Season 3 episodes. o "The Z-Files". Showing of the out-takes tape. o Memorabelia and Props auction. The chance to own some piece of the X-Files set! We also hope to have a run of those "I Want To Believe" posters from Mulder's office. o Launch of 'Official UK X-Files Fan Club'. 9. How Much is This Going to Cost ? ------------------------------ #Assuming all the guests appear that we want, and we hold all the Events, the #registration pricing structure will look like: #REGISTERING BEFORE 1 JANUARY 1997 #Adult (16+): One Day = UKP20.00, Both Days = UKP30.00 #Concession # (Student/OAP): One Day = UKP15.00, Both Days = UKP23.00 #Junior (11-16): One Day = UKP10.00, Both Days = UKP15.00 #Family/Group*: One Day = UKP50.00, Both Days = UKP75.00 #REGISTERING AFTER 31 DECEMBER 1996 #Adult (16+): One Day = UKP25.00, Both Days = UKP35.00 #Concession # (Student/OAP): One Day = UKP17.50, Both Days = UKP25.50 #Junior (11-16): One Day = UKP12.50, Both Days = UKP17.50 #Family/Group*: One Day = UKP57.50, Both Days = UKP82.50 #(* Family/Group = 2 Adults & 3 Juniors, or 3 Adults only) #Note 1: Volunteers will pay the Concession rate. #Note 2: Kids below 11 get in FREE! #Note 3: Students will need to prove their status (ie photocopy of Student card in application.) #Note 4: Kids below 16 MUST be accompanied by an adult. On top of this, will be any charges for accomodation (details will be posted here). The price could be at around UKP30.00 for the night for a single room. We are arranging to include special deals. #There will be shared accomodation available: double and triple. 10. Sponsors -------- The more Sponsors we get the less the ticket price is. At the time of writing, these have not yet been decided upon. 11. Charities --------- As common with the majority of Convention, MancheXter '97 will be NON- PROFIT. All proceeds will be donated to a worthy charity/charities. We are hoping to find out the favourite charity/charities of the cast and crew of the show. One charity we are considering is the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. (WDCS). They are affiliated to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). 12. How to Become a Volunteer ------------------------- During the run up to the Convention, we will require a number of volunteers to pitch in and help with such things as Gophering, Stewarding, collecting tickets, and fetching beer for the Committee and Guests. There are two ways in which you can help: A. Security/Steward This is a catch-all position, and some of the duties will not become clear until the Con is actually running. However, as Security, you will be responsible for checking entry badges both on the door and in the Con itself. Anyone not clearly wearing an official badge will be escorted from the hotel. As well as this, you may be required to guard rooms, organise queues and help attendees with any queries, help an evacuation in the event of an emergency, and other jobs that arise during the day. You may be needed to attend a short briefing session. The work will be done in shifts (of probably one to two hours in length), and it will be up to the individual to ensure our records concerning which shift(s) you have done are correct. You will report directly to the Security Co-ordinator. This is also quite a responsible job, and reaps the same benefits as above. The actual reduction in the ticket price will be made clear shortly. B. Gopher There may be one or two small tasks that we of the Committee might need help with. This will fall under the area of the gophers. There is no requirement to attend a briefing session, and to register your intention to help, you will just turn up to the Committee area. The benefits for helping with this are a self satifaction on your behalf of helping out. #If you intend to help with the first volunteer position, then register your #interest with Roy , or even to,offer other help. Thankyou for you help! 13. This Sounds Great, Where Can I Find Out More ? -------------------------------------------- o The Website. The MancheXter '97 Website will be updated as soon as there is more information. Keep pointing your browser at: http://www.keele.ac.uk/socs/ks26/conv/xfconv.html o Magazines. We will be posting information in several related magazines once the venue has been organised. Such magazines include: SFX, TV Zone, Cult TV etc. o The Listserver For those without access to a WWW browser, we have set up a listserver. It can be accessed by sending an email to: XFiles@roogna.demon.co.uk, with nothing in the subject, and commands in a list in the body. The two commands to use initially are 'help' and 'dir' (no quotes). o The Usenet Newsgroup. The main newsgroup for announcements is: uk.media.tv.sf.x-files, which will be crossposted to alt.tv.x-files and the X-Files Conference on CiX. o If All Else Fails Email the Chairman at lee@roogna.demon.co.uk. Ask him nicely, and he'll send you an updated version of this Information Sheet! ----End of the Document------------------------------------------------- ---- ************************************************************************ **** * The latest version of this file can be found by sending 'get InfoSheet' * * in the body of a message (no quotes) to: XFiles@roogna.demon.co.uk * ************************************************************************ **** ÿ@BEGIN_FILE_ID.DIZ MANCHEXTER '97 INFO SHEET ------------------------- This is an Information Sheet to give details of the upcoming UK X-Files Convention in '97 @END_FILE_ID.DIZ