A record number of artists and writers will be flocking to MCM Expo London Comic Con’s Comic Village next month – and the organisers have just announced that acclaimed American comic book writer Gail Simone and best-selling British science fiction author Peter F. Hamilton will be among the special guests.

Perhaps best known for her acclaimed work on DC Comics’ Birds of Prey and Wonder Woman, Gail Simone’s writing credits also include Secret Six and The All-New Atom. Most recently, Simone has been penning Batgirl and co-writing Fury of Firestorm as part of DC’s massive September re-launch.

Noted for combining epic scale space opera with startling perspectives on tomorrow’s technological and cultural trends, Peter F. Hamilton’s novels include the much-praised Void Trilogy – The Dreaming Void, The Temporal Void and The Evolutionary Void – as well as the galaxy-spanning Commonwealth Saga and the groundbreaking Night’s Dawn Trilogy.

Speaking of sci-fi, Empire Magazine’s Ian Nathan will be interviewing Alien associate producer Ivor Powell and SFX supervisor Brian Johnson (who also worked on Gerry Anderson’s Thunderbirds, back in the 1960s) about the making of Ridley Scott’s seminal movie on-stage at London Comic Con.

He will also be signing copies of his new book Alien Vault, a celebration of the film featuring never-before-published on-set photos and exclusive interviews.

• For more information on the comics creators already confirmed for 28-30 October’s London Comic Con, visit www.londonexpo.com/comicvillage. For London MCM Expo tickets please go to: www.mcmexpogroup.com/store

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.

Categories: British Comics

Tags: Events Comics, London Comic Con, MCM Expo