August is going to be a busy month for con goers. There’s Nine Worlds and WorldCon in London, an official Discworld con in Manchester… and EuroCon will be in Dublin (22-24 August).

The true ruler of The Seven Kingdoms, George RR Martin will be attending this year’s European Science Fiction Convention (the 35th annual EuroCon, this year dubbed “Shamrokon”). As well as Martin taking his seat on the Iron Throne, a myriad guests from comic book creators and authors to illustrators and filmmakers will also be attending. Guests of honour include Judge Dredd ‘s Michael Carroll, Hugo award-winner Seanan Maguire (an occasional contributor to SFX , also known as Mira Grant), author Andrzej Sapkowski and novel translator Yvla Spangberg.

Renowned illustrator and artist Jim Fitzpatrick will be discussing and exhibiting his work alongside Shamrokon’s art show. Fitzpatrick is most famous for his iconic two-tone Che Guevara portrait and Irish Celtic art. If you want your work displayed beside his at the show, you can apply via the Shamrokon website .

The Golden Blasters ( The National Irish Science Fiction Film Awards ) will be showcased as part of the convention this year. The Golden Blasters are dedicated to the art of short genre films; it’s currently taking submissions for both “Best Short Film” and “Best Short Screenplay” categories. Check out www.goldenblasters.com for more details on how to enter.

As with every EuroCon, Shamrokon will feature the European Science Fiction Society’s annual awards – proudly promoting sci-fi in Europe and European sci-fi globally, including a party on the Saturday providing plenty of food and drink from around the continent. Last year, SFX magazine was itself a winner in the Magazine category .

If all of that hasn’t tickled your fancy yet, know that there will also be panels as diverse as only sci-fi can be: explore the influence of renowned Irish Gothic author Sheridan Le Fanu on the horror genre in celebration of his 200th Birthday; discuss Celtic gods and magic, ideas of time-travel and indulge in some zombie talks.

The portal to the worlds of science fiction opens midday on Friday 22 at DoubleTree by Hilton on Burlington Road, Dublin. It runs until Sunday 24 August. Become a member now or feel the wrath of a price rise… Membership is currently €35 for over 21s but will increase to €40 on 1 August. Concessions are €25 and under 21s €10 with under 12s going free with adult accompaniment.

Check out the website for more details: www.shamrokon.ie

Alice Pattillo

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• Variety confirms Game of Thrones has, unsurprisingly, been renewed for two more seasons. The return of the series to HBO on Sunday attracted the largest audience to the channel since The Sopranos finale back in 2007. DB Weiss, show co-creator, mentioned in last month’s Vanity Fair that he hopes the show will run its course over a total of seven or eight seasons – which means we are almost half way through. George RR Martin better hurry up and pen the final two books!

• Marvel has released an all-new clip via MTV of up and coming film, Guardians of the Galaxy . The clip extends the original trailer and reveals how Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) escapes his predicament… Nathan Fillion has also teased a possible role in the blockbuster, set to be released this summer. Fillion is no stranger to Guardians director James Gunn (they worked together on Slither and Super ) and at a Firefly panel at St Louis Comic Con answered an excited fan’s question whether he was wanting to be in Guardians with a cryptic “Wanting to? Or maybe, did?” It may just be a cheeky rumour spread by the actor, but cross your fingers and check the credits!

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• The film adaptation of Joe Hill’s Horns has received a UK release date. The dark fantasy thriller will star Daniel Radcliffe and is set for release this Halloween in the UK. source: Nerdist )

• According to Yahoo! Doctor Who has been approved for viewing in North Korea – bizarrely on the country’s highly censored, state-controlled TV channel. Perhaps dickie-bows are set to be the next Korean fashion trend?

• David Goyer is to produce a big screen adaptation of Vertigo’s Federal Bureau of Physics . The scribe of Man of Steel and the Dark Knight trilogy has teamed up with Warner Bros and Jungle Book writer, Justin Marks to bring the comic book series to life. The comic series by Simon Oliver and Robbi Rodriguez brings us a world where the laws of physics are so commonly disturbed that a wormhole is as routine as a sudden shower. Sounds like a good basis for sci-fi adventure! (source: Deadline )

Alice Pattillo

The post Wednesday Link-A-Mania appeared first on Game News.

• 7 February – RoboCop Not technically a created as a comic book character, RoboCop nevertheless feels like one of our own, partly because of the debt he owes to Judge Dredd, partly because of the Frank Miller association (he penned scripts for the second and third movie) and partly because he’s starred in so many comic books by so many different companies. The film is very different in tone and style from the original, but put prejudices and preconceptions aside, because it’s actually a pretty darned good movie in its own right

• 14 February – The Lego Movie Which stars a whole host of plastic brick DC superheroes .

UK TV

• 10 February – The Walking Dead 4.9 “After” – Fox UK
• 17 February – The Walking Dead 4.10 – Fox UK
• 20 February – Arrow 2.10 “Blast Radius” – Sky 1
• 24 February – The Walking Dead 4.11 – Fox UK

Marvel’s Agents Of SHIELD returns to Channel 4 in March

Events

• 8 February – aniManga POP! in Plymouth http://www.fantasyevents.org/
• 15 February – MCM Midlands Comic Con in Telford http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/midlands/
• 16 February – Demoncon in Maidstone https://www.facebook.com/events/549656095112449/?source=1

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February Comic Highlights

Six of the best and six more for luck

(If it looks like there’s a Marvel bias, it’s because they’ve got a lot of key issue in Feb)

• February
Ms Marvel #1 (Marvel)
Archer & Armstrong: Archer #0 (Valiant)
Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (Dynamite)

• 12 February
She-Hulk #1 (Marvel)
Royals: Masters Of War #1 (Vertigo)
The Winter Soldier: The Bitter March #1 (Marvel)
The Fuse #1 (Image)

• 19 February
Rogue Trooper #1 (IDW)

26 February
Cataclysm: The Ultimates Last Stand #5 (Marvel)
Bloodshot and Hard Corp: Hard Corp #0 (Valiant)
Fantastic Four #1 (Marvel) – James Robinson takes over
Revenger #1 (Image)

The post The Month In Comics February 2014 appeared first on Game News.

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CamCon may only be in its second year but on Saturday 31 August, organisers are promising a bigger, better convention with a unique style.

The convention is the only event of its type in the region, bringing a celebration of all that is geeky to the city of Cambridge. “We’re a multi genre convention,” explains head organiser Ziggy Newman. “We have lots of different things going on. There’s an alternative fashion show, karaoke, screenings, cosplay guests and we’ve got some big gaming companies coming.” Attendees can expect previews and competitions from big games companies Ubisoft and Nintendo.

For anyone who wants to find out more about graphic novels and fantasy fiction there’ll be a host of special guests giving talks and taking part in shows. Guests will include writer of Power Rangers and Spectacular Spiderman Adventures , Alan Cowsill, alongside other artists and authors. This may be a one-day event, but it lasts long into the night with a grand finale in the form of a club night, DJed by J-Pop Go! and PsychoCandy.

Many who attended CamCon2012 have questioned why the event has been moved to August, the same month as AyaCon. “We are going for the end of the summer holiday because CamCon is an all-age event,” says Newman, who also attended AyaCon. “We just thought that it was a nice thing to do before you go back to school.”

VIP tickets are no longer available but there are still standard tickets starting at £7. This event is sponsored by Final Boss Fight, Game and Cineworld. For more info and to book your tickets, visit the official website .

Cecily Mumby

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The bass woofer-voiced actor is teaming up with Arash Amel (the upcoming Grace Kelly biopic Grace Of Monaco ), to create the action movie franchise for Universal, according to the Hollywood Reporter .

Soldiers Of The Sun is about a squad of soldiers searching for a fabled city of gold in a post-apocalyptic Mexico. The fact that the city is overrun with alien Orcs doesn’t help matters. The franchise is designed to be another The Fast And The Furious ensemble affair with the Diesel character as the ringleader.

Diesel is just about to start filming Fast And Furious 7 , and will then go into production with The Last Witch Hunter (not sure whether that means he’s the last hunter of witches or the hunter of the last witch). Somehow he’ll fit voicing Groot in Guardians Of The Galaxy into the schedule (not that he’s been officially confirmed in the role yet, but he seems happy to talk about it to anybody who’ll ask … or maybe he’s playing some almighty prank?). And if Riddick becomes a major hit, there may even be more films in that series too.

• Riddick : New Artwork
• Riddick : New Trailer
• Riddick ’s Game Of Thrones

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Welcome To Our Village, Please Invade Carefully airs on Thursday 5 July, from 9.30-10.00pm. At the moment it’s just a pilot, but the hope is that it will go to a full series.

Parkinson plays Katrina Lyons, who stands up against alien invaders after they take over an English village. An impressive cast also includes Green Wing ’s Julian Rhind-Tutt as the alien leader, and Fifth Doctor Peter Davison as Katrina’s dad.

When it comes to SF, writer Eddie Robson certainly knows his onions – he’s written 17 Doctor Who adventures for audio producers Big Finish. Not only that, but he’s been a regular contributor to SFX for many years – surely the ultimate hallmark of quality for any SF writer? We asked Eddie to spill the beans on his latest venture.

SFX: Can you describe the scenario in a nutshell?

Eddie Robson: Katrina Lyons goes to the village where she grew up to visit her parents for the weekend, and while she’s there aliens called the Geonin invade and seal the village off from the outside world. The Geonin want to study humanity in preparation to invade the entire planet: Katrina tries to kick-start the resistance movement, to a less than enthusiastic response.

And all that has happened before the pilot starts. I did write an episode where all of that happened, but we junked it in favour of just dropping straight in with the situation already set up, because it’s hard to make set-up funny. A “normal” episode will always be funnier.

When we first heard about the show it was going by the title The Resistance – why the name change?

It was called The Resistance for two and a half years of development – I was thinking, let’s not scare people off with a big sci-fi title, let’s try to slide it under the radar. And then the head of radio comedy asked if we could have a big sci-fi title, so that it gets on people’s radars. Titles are very important, especially these days – you need to tell people as much as you can in a title.

What kind of things are the butt of the joke?

It’s very much about small mentalities and Middle England. The villagers are quite easily appeased as long as the aliens pitch everything the right way. The alien leader, Uljabaan, poses as the local toff and everyone likes him because he’s got this slick, posh exterior and seems the right sort of chap, even though his intentions are totally malign: I came up with that before David Cameron came to power, but it’s become nicely relevant! But there are also silly jokes about cakes and alien measurements and stuff.

How accessible is it – are there references that only dyed-in-the-wool SF fans will get?

I think it’s pretty accessible. In the first draft the village was cut off with a heat barrier, like in the 1971 Doctor Who serial “The Daemons”. Then I decided “forcefield” was an easier concept to get across if you hadn’t seen the 1971 Doctor Who serial “The Daemons”. (Can you imagine not having seen the 1971 Doctor Who serial “The Daemons”? Crazy!) There’s the odd thing in there, like the alien leader says “younglings” which is something that stuck in my mind from Revenge Of The Sith – Obi-Wan says it and I thought, “Why not just say ‘children’?”

The shadow of Douglas Adams looms over any SF comedy for radio. How much of a problem is that as a writer?

It’s not a problem when you’re writing something, because Hitchhiker’s has a very specific style: it’s not really a sitcom, because it keeps shifting the situatio – it’s a cross between a comedy serial and a sketch show. By contrast, WTOVPIC (catchy!) is far more of a traditional sitcom, in fact the sci-fi element ties the characters directly to the situation and stops them ever leaving. So I never felt like I was writing in Adams’s shadow, although his influence did creep in – there’s a comedy alien computer, for example.

I did wonder whether it’d be a problem in pitching it, both to the BBC and to the audience, that people wouldn’t be able to get Hitchhiker’s out of their minds – but it hasn’t been a problem at all. I love Adams’s work, but I don’t think I’m that much like him as a writer. I wouldn’t mind if I was, though.

Did the idea change much from the original treatment, or is this very much the show you pitched?

There was one very significant change: originally the show was based around four characters who formed the resistance, and those were our main regulars. I wrote two scripts with that set-up and we decided something wasn’t working – the problem was that the focus was split, because there was tension within the group about how to achieve their aims but also tension between them and the aliens, and between them and the villagers. So I removed two of the resistance characters, keeping one to give Katrina someone to work with, and that enabled us to focus more on her relationship with her parents and the conflict with Uljabaan.

Everything else is very much the same though – the village, Katrina, her parents, the forcefield, the aliens and their plan all appeared in the very first version of the idea.

What are the odds of more? Do pilots like this often translate into a full series?

Yeah, there’s a good chance of more. It’ll help if people who like it make their opinions known, so if you like it, let the BBC know, post online, and tell your friends to catch it while it’s still on iPlayer. If you don’t like it, SSSSHHHH .

The post IT Crowd Star In New SF Sitcom appeared first on Game News.

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SKYRIM DLC HAS A NAME

Remember on Monday we mentioned Bethesda’s plans for a Skyrim DLC reveal? Well, reveal it they have. An atmospheric image has gone up on Bethesda Blog, accompanied by the name: Dawnguard. They also say “Coming this summer to Xbox 360”, and confirmed on Twitter that the first content drops will be exclusively available on 360 before anywhere else. Sadly it looks like this is all we get until 5 June at E3.

(Via Bethesda )

CRUISE IS GOING VAMPIRE HUNTING

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Universal has decided to resurrect vampire-staking hero Van Helsing despite his last outing taking a beating from critics and fans alike. But which dashing figure is slated to play the legendary monster hunter? Why, it’s none other than Tom Cruise, who is also on board to produce. The venture will be the first for Fringe creators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci under a new deal with Universal, and they’re due to bring back The Mummy as well.

(Via Variety )

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ARTISTS ASSEMBLE

To celebrate the release of Avengers Assemble , Marvel comics has been releasing special variant covers based on historical works of art, across its comic lines. Supremely talented Marvel artists have aped the style of some of history’s greats to create beautiful, cool and funny covers featuring Earth’s mightiest heroes. Beautiful.

(Via Comics Alliance )

CELEB LAWYER TURNS COMIC CREATOR

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Hollywood superlawyer Skip Brittenham (who counts Eddie Murphy and Harrison Ford among his clients) has announced his intention to write a graphic novel called Anomaly . Teaming up with artist Brian Haberlin, it will tell the tale of human explorers arriving on a planet only to be drawn into a conflict, and appear as a hardcover and a tablet app in October.

(Via Hollywood Reporter )

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HALO WEB SERIES APPROACHING

Microsoft is planning to spend big on a Halo live-action web series, due to air before Halo 4 ’s release in November. Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn will be available on Machinima and Halo Waypoint, and will follow a young UNSC cadet inspired by Master Chief to rise though the ranks. The series will play out over five 15-minute instalments, and should whip fans into a frenzy ready for the game launch.

(Via Variety )

LITTLE MURDER HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE

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Guillermo del Toro’s production company Necropia Entertainment is teaming up with Angry Films to shoot The Bloody Benders . The script is based on the true story of a family-run hotel on the Kansas prairie, where up to 20 guests disappeared. Del Toro told Deadline he suspects Angry Films will want to hire a director and move quickly, while he is still working on post-production for alien invasion flick Pacific Rim .

(Via Deadline )

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AN AMERICAN LAWYER IN PARIS

Hollywood Reporter has heard that Vik Sahay, of Chuck and American Reunion , has joined the cast of horror movie Wer . The story follows an investigation into the brutal killing of a Parisian family, with Sahay playing a member of the legal team who discover their client, the suspect, is a werewolf.

(Via Hollywood Reporter )

STARGATE COMPOSER JOEL GOLDSMITH DIES

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We’re sad to report the death of Joel Goldsmith, the composer on all three Stargate TV series. Goldsmith passed away on 29 April at the age of 54. His adaptation of the original Stargate film’s theme was used for SG-1 , and he also created the Emmy-nominated theme for Stargate Atlantis .

(Via Gateworld )

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A very special piece of abstract sci-fi art will take pride of place in a charity auction next month, courtesy of Gillian “Scully” Anderson. The actress has donated a sketch to the Bristol Autism Project , who are holding an art show and auction on 28 April 2012 from 11 until 5pm at The Centre Space Gallery (6 Leonard Lane, Bristol).

The aim is to raise several thousand pounds for the local cause. There are many items in the art show and auction but SFX reader Deborah Cogan was particularly pleased with this one of a kind frame piece signed by Anderson. “This is all to raise funds for the Bristol Autism Project and to support the children’s need for soft sensory play as Bristol City Council can’t afford,” she told us. “We are hoping the interest will bring a lot of people to the show and people will like to help or buy a piece.”

Find out more at the official Facebook page or the Bristol Autism Project fundraising website .

The post Gillian Anderson Sketch In Charity Auction appeared first on Game News.

The Kapow! Comic Convention is back for a second outing in May, and this week has seen a few exciting new announcements about who and what you can see at the event.

Joe Quesada, Marvel’s Chief Creative Officer and longest serving Editor in Chief since Stan Lee (you may have heard of that guy), is making a rare UK appearance, and five lucky people who purchase a weekend or VIP ticket before the end of March could win the chance to have a good chinwag with him over lunch. As well as talking to Quesada about the inside secrets and goings on at Marvel, the chosen five can also chat with Marvel talent scout CB Cebulski.

For anyone who’s ever wanted to play Mastermind or even wanted to be an alien from Quaxxonn, Kapow! is giving you the chance to do both. To celebrate 35 years of comic book greatness there will be a 2000 AD Mastermind super-fan quiz. The fortunate contestant, drawn from the audience, could win the chance to edit an issue in the 2000 AD office and be Tharg the Mighty for the day.

Plus, writer Scott Snyder and artist Sarah Pichelli are the latest comic book talent to join the stuffed guest list. Pichelli is one of Marvel’s best current artists and is working on the X-Men: Pixie title and has also contributed to other titles such as Eternals and Runaways . Snyder is best known for his short story collection Voodoo Heart and the American Vampire series, on which he collaborated with one Stephen King. Snyder now works for DC Comics where he’s writing for both Batman and a new Swamp Thing series.

Other guests include comic book stars Mark Millar, Warren Ellis, Dave Gibbons, Paul Cornell and artist Bryan Hitch, and comedians Jimmy Carr and Frankie Boyle. All these and more will descend upon the Business Design Centre in London on 19-20 May. Tickets are only available in advance and through the Kapow! website but make haste, true believers, as tickets for last years event sold out ahead of the event.
Joanne Paul

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First Class Writing Comingsoon.net reveal that Simon Kiberg will be writing the – currently unnamed – second instalment of the X-Men: First Class series . His previous writing credits don’t go far from the X-Men world with his penning of X3: The Last Stand . Does that fill you with dread or glee? Depends how you felt about the last of the trilogy, we suppose. He’s no stranger to the world of First Class , though, having been a producer on the first movie.

Once Upon A Time On Another Time According to TVline.com ABC’s Once Upon A Time has been ordered for a full-season . After starting strongly (it’s become the network’s best Sunday-night show in three years) it’s maintained its momentum – its second episode gained an audience of 11.6 million. That’s better than Saturday’s X-Factor .

GaBoom-ing Great Last year in the magazine we told you about GaBoom, a peer-to-peer videogame swapping site started by a 21-year-old student. Kudos to her, it’s attracted loads of users and has now re-launched with new functionality and new URL. The swapping process has been simplified with the inclusion of Booms the site’s own currency (100 booms = £1).

The Sequel Of The Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes… …will star Andy Serkis doing his performance acting thing. It’s no surprise really given his long list of credits and awards in the area. It’s been revealed (again by the team at Comingsoon.net) that he’s signed a seven figure deal to reprise the role of Caesar .

The Avengers Theme Tune Latest The news was let slip a few weeks ago by his wife but it has now been officially announced by Filmmusicreporter.com that Alan Silvestri has been confirmed to score The Avengers . SFX ‘s own Dave Golder has been campaigning for The Avengers theme tune to be as good as John Williams’s Superman or Danny Elfman’s Batman And Robin . Now hopefully Silvestri, the man responsible for Captain America ‘s score as well as The A-Team , is up for the job.

Bargain Wars! For a limited time only there’s a discount on our Star Wars: The Unofficial DVD Viewer’s Guide ebook. That’s right, we’ve dropped this fantastic moment-by-moment trivia guide (opens in new tab) to all six Star Wars movies to a ridiculously low price this week. It’s only £1.99 at the moment – to your Kindles at once!

SCI-FI-LONDON Looking For Submissions Short film submissions for the 2012 SCI-FI-LONDON film festival are open. The annual festival is looking for both short films (up to 15 minutes long) and feature-length movies. A small submission fee has been introduced to help fund the festival but you can also submit through festival submission tool WithoutABox at a smaller charge. For more information go to www.sci-fi-london.com/submission .

Obligatory SFX Sci-Fi Quiz Plug Of The Day Got an iPhone or iPad? Think you know your science fiction and fantasy trivia? Then you should be playing our pub-quiz-in-your-pocket, the newly launched SFX Sci-Fi Quiz. It’s the most fun you can have for 69p , probably.

Gateway Drug Of Thrones “The immensely popular A Game Of Thrones books are leading thousands into the desperate squalor of fantasy addiction , it has been claimed.” Don’t worry, it’s a spoof news story from The Daily Mash, but our Rob identifies.

There And Back Again Finally, in a Link-A-Mania hat-trick for Comingsoon.net today, here’s a new video from The Hobbit . The first part of the Tolkien adaptation is due to hit cinemas as a Christmas treat next year and filming is well underway. Peter Jackson has offered another video (it’s been nearly four months since the last!). It features behind-the-scenes footage from the soundstage and the use of 3D in the film; there’s also heavy amounts of dwarves and running with a promise of a next instalment on location.

Today’s news by Jen Neal

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