Leeds to London and back in a day! It meant an early start, a late finish and a lot of rushing around but I was hoping that James Marsters would be worth it and I wasn’t disappointed.
Arriving at Kings Cross half an hour later than planned, (apparently due to a technical fault, very reassuring) only to discover that the Circle line, which would take me direct to Blackfriars, was closed at Kings Cross and I would have to change at Victoria, meant a mad rush to the Mermaid Centre instead of the leisurely stroll and lunch by the river that I had planned. Oh well.
By the time I got to the Mermaid Centre the queue was wrapped around the building but I managed to hook up with some friends and regular con goers and queue jump a little. The queue moved fast and, I later learned all 600 ticket holders were in and registered in just over an hour.
After receiving my wrist band with ticket number and seating row, I was directed to the hall where the usual screenings of home made Buffy music video’s were showing (including the hilarious United States of Spike and the even funnier My West Hollywood Lifestyle, Whatever featuring Angel) and told that we would be called for our signing by row number. As I was row F and James had already started signing I didn’t have to wait long to see the man himself.
The queue was relatively quick and it wasn’t long before it was my turn. Looking much less than his 42 years and sporting his new shorn locks (which, by the way, does a lot for him), James was chatty and had a smile and a hand shake for everyone. My two minutes over, and feeling slightly shaky, I clutched my now quite well autographed Buffy Season Seven DVD and signed picture and headed to the bar where I met some old friends and made some new ones.
At three o’clock it was time to head back to the auditorium where James and his band Ghost of the Robot were taking questions. Questions had been submitted earlier via e-mail and those whose question had been chosen had cards with their questions on, while this lacks spontaneity it certainly helped weed out duplicate questions and all the cheesy ‘who would you like to lick chocolate sauce off’ questions. Once the carded questions ran out the floor was open but questions were still vetted. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and variety of the questions asked, and the knowledgeableness of the
attendees on Ghost of the Robot. I was certainly expecting most of the questions to be aimed at James, but this was not the case.
James and the other band members seemed very relaxed and to be genuinely having fun. We learned that they have been very influenced by British bands such as Blur and that they will be heading back to the States to finish work on their new album.
After the question and answer session James went back to signing and we were treated to Amber Benson’s film Chance featuring both James Marsters and Andy Hallett then more videos while we waited for James to come back.
Although James appeared 30 minutes behind schedule (leaving me worried for my train home) all credit to the organisers who kept us updated as to what was happening, and after all, when you don’t have a train to catch, 30 minutes is quite a reasonable amount of lateness. At last James appeared and was at first presented with a gift from the members of morethanspike.com who have been giving blood and raising money for charity in Spike’s name for some time now. James thanked all the members for all their support.
After a quick raffle in which three lucky punters won a piece of Ghost of the Robot merchandise, James started taking questions. He was brutally honest at times, revealing that when he was young he was quite an awkward young boy and when reached adolescence he became quite violent and got in fights with bullies ('cos he really didn't like them), admitting that this came in useful when reconciling weedy William the Bloody with the stronger character of Spike. He told us that in each role he played he found a part that was close to his own personality and used this as a basis on which to develop that character.
Amongst other tales he told us an amusing tale of when he had first started with the role of Spike he was out and saw some young teenage girls giggling. Thinking they must have seen him on TV he thought he would make their day by going over and talking to them. He chatted to them for a while until the girls, obviously not having a clue who he was became freaked by the fact that this older man was chatting them up!! He learnt a lesson there!
James admitted that when he was first asked to look at the script for Buffy he was desperate for work and would’ve taken any job but he had a shred of dignity that would not allow him to be in a show called Buffy The Vampire Slayer. His agent, however, persuaded him to watch an episode and then come back to him, which he did and was then determined he had to get the part. The rest is history.
James disappointed fans by discounting any appearances on the West End stage any time soon. Having a family commitment that prevents him from spending long periods of time away from California would prevent him from doing theatre in the three places that would appeal to him, Chicago, New York and London. Doing any theatre in California, he told us, would be a step backward as he has already done that.
It was all over too soon, and thankfully with just enough time left for me to get my train.
James appears to be a very grounded person and not at all affected by the immense international stardom that surrounds him. He is pleasant, friendly and appears genuinely pleased to meet and to really appreciate his fans. He lived up to all the great things that everybody has ever told me about him and An Audience with James Marsters made for a very enjoyable day out.
The event was very well organised, I heard no complaints whatsoever and the event appeared to run very smoothly from an attendee’s point of view. Having seating rows allocated was certainly a welcome idea which meant that you could take your time and relax at the bar (where there always seemed to be the same faces, you guys know who you are) without having to worry about losing your seat. At times the stewards managing the signing crew could have been a little better informed as to which numbers had been called, but what’s a convention without a little confusion, huh?
As I was dashing out of the building, I did hear an announcement made that there would be news of a further event on their website within the next couple of weeks.
Cider 16/05/04
