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Stretford Comic Fest, on today, offers great British comic guest line up

By John Freeman on October 9, 2021

Bury-based comic shop Wow Comix have teamed up with Stretford Mall to bring comic fans Stretford Comic Fest, the town’s first free entry comic event, taking place today, Saturday 9th October.

(Yes, somehow, I missed this, until now…)

Comic fans will find lots of stalls showcasing comic book products and memorabilia, and there’ll be plenty of special guests appearing giving attendees the chance to hang out with some SF stars for autograph sessions and photos.

Attendees will also be invited to get in on the ‘cosplay’ act via a competition for the best-dressed character. Families and fans are encouraged to come dressed as their favourite comic book character, superhero/villain or any pop culture icon and a cosplay winner will be judged on the day taking home the Best Dressed Comic Fest Crown and some fantastic prizes!

Here is a quick look at some of the special guests…

Marc Jackson is a cartoonist from Macclesfield in Cheshire. He has created comics and characters for the BEANO, Aces Weekly, Comicscene and various other publications. His work will shortly be seen in The Phoenix.

Marc has also created a comic in partnership with Able Child Africa, seeking to help disadvantaged children in Rwanda navigate basic hygiene issues and COVID.

He runs cartoon art workshops in Schools, Libraries and at different festivals. He is the man behind the very popular MACC-POW! comic art festival in his home town of Macclesfield and this year opened ROOM FOR COMICS, a creative space dedicated to the teaching and love of comic art.

Rachael Smith’s debut graphic novel House Party came out in 2014 with Great Beast Comics to critical acclaim. The Rabbit, released by Avery Hill Publishing in 2015, was her second graphic novel and was nominated for Best Book in the British Comic Awards 2014/15. Quarantine Comix, her latest collection, has proven an award-winning hit.

Rachael is also the creator of Flimsy the Kitten and One Good Thing. She continues working on her webcomic, Bess, which launched November 2015. She lives in Hebden Bridge, in Yorkshire, in the UK.

Brian M Clarke (Crikey!, Mancunian ) and John Jackson (Albert the Mouse, Cyborg Gerbils, Count Duckula, Mancunian) are the creative force behind Wallop! Comics, which started after two self-published two issues of the new British superhero comic Mancunian.

They have also just released the fantasic Wallop! Annual, a 64 page book that is packed full of great entertainment for kids and ‘big kids’ alike.

Neil ‘Bhuna’ Roch is a comic book artist and creator on a number of projects, most recently for Killing Moon Rises 1 – A 32 page full colour Sword & Sorcery comic from the team that brought you the award nominated Killing Moon.

For fans of fantasy fiction, up and coming young author Victoria Bates will be attending Stretford Comic Fest to sign copies of the first two instalments of her fantasy series “Regal”.

David Leach is the man behind cult favourite Psycho Gran. David is one of Britain’s most experienced comic professionals, having worked for both Marvel UK and US, as well as many of the major UK publishing houses over the last 30 years.

His work has appeared in publications as diverse as Toxic and The Sunday Times. He has written for Spider-Man, Ren & Stimpy and numerous other strips. He is currently Senior Creative Editor at Titan Comics and is editor of the popular Blade Runner series. He has been the winner of Come Dine With Me on TV and recently designed an advertisement for Wow Comix featuring Psycho Gran.

Actor Nathan Head is best known for his star roles in films Theatre of Fear and Exorcist Chronicals.The Manchester trained actor enjoyed success in the theater before being spotted and signed to the cast of thriller Archangel Murders. He has since enjoyed a successful career in film often involving the use of horror prosthetics, creature make up and special effects costumes.

Colin Mathieson is best know for his Moments of Adventure series and his work with Accent UK comics. You can even find some of his work down in the National Army Museum in London. He is currently hard at work on his Zulu Wars graphic novel.

Willie Coppen is a guest for the Star Wars fans out there, best known for Star Wars Episode V1: Return of the Jedi as well as various films and TV shows. He recently played the title character in the movie Perran, which is currently in post production.

Liam Mulvey is best known for playing Libertus Ostium in Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV and Final Fantasy XV Comrades. He will be available for photos and autographs on the day.

Dan Whitehead is a prolific writer whose work spans comics, games and television. He is the author of graphic novels Ella Upgraded, Frankenstein Texas and the upcoming Hex Loader. As well as developing his own projects he has also written for Star Wars, Minecraft and Looney Tunes.

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.