Historic Victoria Theatre Pub to be Part of Birmingham Comics Festival

By John Freeman on January 25, 2015

Glasses will be raised at The Victoria Theatre Pub on Wednesday April 1st 2015 to officially launch the debut of The Birmingham Comics Festival taking place through the second city throughout the month.

Not an April Fools’ Day prank; comic fans over the age of 18 are invited to pop along on the evening and partake of all that the historic public house has to offer.

Get along and hobnob with local media personalities and comic book creators, find yourself being sketched by a local cartoonist, hear about other events taking place during the festival but most importantly of all, be prepared to test your wits in a comic book quiz of courtly precision with assorted prizes to be won over a series of individual and team games.

The Victoria Theatre Public House dates back to the end of the 19th century, and residing alongside The Alexandra Theatre many are the stories that can be told of stars and celebrities who have toasted their own successes there or needed a wee tot to overcome first night nerves there; or it could be that The Victoria’s notorious ghost gave them the frights!

These days the pub offers quality handpicked wines, cask ales and cocktails and was voted one of the Top Ten Gastro Pubs in the UK. It is also a monthly venue for the Midlands comics community, as hosted by Nostalgia & Comics, who are sponsoring the evening’s entertainment with management team member David Dearn taking on the role of quizmaster.

The Victoria Theatre Pub quiz night and launch is just one of the satellite events being held as part of The Birmingham Comics Festival, with Edgbaston Cricket Stadium being the venue for the major comic book convention that will be taking place on 18th April 2o15. A full programme of events and relevant updates will be announced in due course.

• For more information & to buy tickets for The Birmingham Comics Festival at Edgbaston Cricket Stadium visit: www.thecomicfestival.com

• For more information about The Victoria Theatre Pub visit: www.thevictoriabirmingham.co.uk

• For more on Nostalgia & Comics visit: www.facebook.com/NostalgiaComics

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as 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.