Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?
I think it’s around 3-4 months before the event

What day is the busiest?
Definitely Saturday

Do many people attend the Friday?
I have only been to the Friday event once and that was the at the recent October Expo when Matt Smith was attending, so it was probably busier than the usual Friday events.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen?
I have never been glomped myself but I have heard that it does occur

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?
I don’t tend to buy much at these events – I mainly go Cosplay and take photos but you could easily spend a lot of money at the Expo. I normally take about £100, plus money for food.

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?
I spend the whole day/ weekend at the Expo or in the Excel grounds

I'll try to help you out a little. C:

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?
Not fully sure, but properly a month plus before the event itself.

What day is the busiest?
I'd say Saturday is the busiest. But over the weekend it's pretty equal.

Do many people attend the Friday?
Quite a few do. A fair few cosplay as well. There's not as much going on, but there's still many people there.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen?
I've had it happened once while at expo (that was a little scary given I couldn't see due to the costume). But I think generally, it depends on what you're wearing or age of person likely to glomp. I think those over 18 won't glomp, but those who are younger and get excited over their favourite character may be prone. Best to keep a watch out in case, but I do think it's becoming less now in personal experiences.


Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?
I usually take £100 spending money, but it's rare I buy things unless I've being looking for ages. I find the prices generally the same as any other event or online stores tbh. Better asking someone who buys at Expo more than I do.


Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?
I normally spend the whole time Expo is open around Excel/on the grounds, and chill explore afterwards if I'm not too tired.

The early tickets I think go on sale a good few weeks before, but don't quote me on that, I bought my a few days before.

I wouldn't really know which day is the busiest or how many people attend on Friday as I only went on Sunday.

Glomping, I didn't get glomped, people did recognise what my cosplay was which made me happy

The merch isn't that expensive in my opinion. When I went I did mainly buy from Tokyo toys and the merch was cheaper there than their store. Little tip that I got told is that on Sunday at the end of the day it is even cheaper for example I bought a wall scroll for £7 originally priced at £15, in store £16+.
I did have over £100 with me and I still had just over £100 at the end of the day, that is including food. If you are worried about money, every now and and then put some money in a money box and just think to yourself how much money you want put aside for things e.g. Food and drink throughout the day.

I personally did spend the whole day at the Excel centre, mainly for two reasons 1) I don't really know that part of London that well 2) I was to excited to leave before the end of the day.


Last thing don't be ashamed at being a newbie, and keep that hyper feeling it will help you to get through the day it surely helped me

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?
It depends. Usually a good few months before. I don't really pay too much attention since I usually buy them a few weeks before the event.

What day is the busiest?
Saturday. End of.

Do many people attend the Friday?
Quite a few actually. There were a lot of people this time (thank you BBC) but not as many as Saturday though. Usually it's somewhat quiet but I see this changing in the not too forseeable future.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen?
It does but not too often. It only really happens with the younger fans but it can happen (almost got glomped at LFCC. Those things are powerful) but it's pretty rare.

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?
It depends. I only took about £200 with me last time but some of that went to food. hotel and whatnot. Plus I'm picky in what I buy. Some of them can be pricey yes.

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?
I usually hang around the Excel though I do walk off sometimes. Last Expo I spent one night at the 02 which you can easily get to via the Skycart. Rather nice if I say so myself (if crowded)

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?

Not entirely sure but I suspect Arcane is about right.

What day is the busiest?

Saturday.

Do many people attend the Friday?

Never been on a Friday but heard it is typically significantly quieter. Especially since its usually only open to weekend ticket holders.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen? (I kinda have some back problems due to a neck condition, and from personal experience whenever my best friend glomps me, it hurts for a few days after -.- So I'd like to avoid it if possible ^^"

It does happen but its not super common. Some kids did glomp me from behind when I was cosplaying a popular character. Basically you need to be more wary if you're cosplaying popular characters from certain fandoms.

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?

It varies wildly. Also beware of bootlegs if you're looking for merch. Asto how much to take that depends on what you want to buy. Some people spend £100 on food, drink and a few bits and pieces but others will spend even more on expensive figures.

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?

I spend most of the day there but some of that is at meets or preparing if I'm in the masquerade.

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?
Idk sorry, if you're going on a Friday make sure that you buy your tickets beforehand (maybe a month or a few weeks before?) I went once and couldn't get in on a Friday because they wouldn't sell the tickets!!

What day is the busiest?
Saturday! At MCM London prepared to feel like a dead fish inside a can full of other dead fishes (a sardine)!!

Do many people attend the Friday?
Much less than Saturday or Sunday, if it's your first time going the Friday is like a little warm up for the Saturday, you actually have room to walk and it's pretty nice because you can get to know you're way around and work out the size of the expo

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen?
Stay out of people's way and try not to gain 'glompers' attention, I've heard of it but I've never experienced it myself or even seen it in real life. Take a body-guard with you if you're worried!!

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?
Prepare to get ripped off on most things, you may snag a deal if you're lucky but most of the stuff there is the same price roughly online, so if there is anything that you want maybe look it up and expect to pay around that price?

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?
It depends, when I have been to London MCM I've attended the whole event and then stayed for an extra day afterwards to do other things. It's a hard one to call really because Friday is the best for deals and to ease you into the expo when you're new, Saturday is when you see the best cosplays and the best events are on (e.g masquerades etc) and Sunday is the best chance to get cheap deals... But there are so many other nice things to do in London while you're there!! >.<

And also I just wanted to add that maybe if this is your first expo going to a smaller local one before hand might be an idea?? Although London is so different because of it's size that it may not make much of a difference whether you visit a smaller one or not!

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?
It'll be about February.

What day is the busiest?
Saturday. Friday was only busy this time round, because they sold Friday tickets separately for the BBC Panel

Do many people attend the Friday?
Not too many people, since a lot of people can't get the time off work/school, and arrive Friday evening for Saturday and Sunday.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen? (I kinda have some back problems due to a neck condition, and from personal experience whenever my best friend glomps me, it hurts for a few days after -.- So I'd like to avoid it if possible ^^"
It only happens if someone recognises your cosplay, and the other person happens to be overly excited, or if you have a FREE HUGS sign. You should be fine.

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?
A lot of the items are about the same price you'd find them elsewhere, but a lot are more expensive. I would say on average, people spend about £100 on Expo items. The rest of the money (depending on how much you eat/drink) is spent on food and booze. Oh and don't forget Oyster card or travel tickets

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?
There's nothing around to visit, unless you get back on the tubes and travel back into London. Some people get together in a big group and go into London, but most stay on site, hang in their hotel rooms, hang outside, etc.
Often, people hang about outside by the statue at night having a few drinks just chatting to other Expo goers, or if you don't fancy that, going back to your hotel room
I personally hang out with my mates onsite, having a few drinks between hotel rooms, or hang outside by the statue.

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale?

About 3 to 4 months prior to the event.

What day is the busiest?

Saturday by far, though this can be altered depending on what guests could be appearing on the other days, it would have to be something spectacular to really equal a full saturday though.

Do many people attend the Friday?

It varies, again with what guests are appearing and what is going on, but most times Friday is the quietest day of the three. Though it is worth remembering for the May MCM Expo, the dates it falls on this year are the May bank holiday... so with it being a 3 day weekend anyway (Monday), Sunday might be just as busy as the saturday with people not at work / school on the monday, so they can travel back then.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen?

Happened to me on the Sat at the october event. Won't say i saw it a lot, and it was mostly young (under 15) girls who get excited, or bunches of friends doing it to each other.

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku?

It varies what you want to buy really. If you're looking to update your DVD / BluRay collection with the latest releases, take a lot of money... if you're just looking to buy some chocolate, a few figures and maybe a manga or two, then you won't need as much...

Always take enough for food / drink though, and food is stupidly expensive inside the expo, i recommend a quick trip outside the actual event to tescos on the Friday, and stock up on noms in your hotel room... will save you money in the long run.

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...?

Mostly i spend the time in and around the excel center... either inside the event, wandering the halls and having fun, or outside doing photos / back at the hotel doing photos. Which pretty much takes up the entire weekend

Hope that helped

M

you'll find that if your looking for things like manga, they stay the same price for the whole weekend. You can find loads cheap - last time there was a £1 manga stall - but as their stock doesnt change, its best to go to those stalls first, I went last and only found volumes 14 and 7 left etc..
Also everything will be the same price for the whole weekend!! I dont think they go down in price on sunday nights or anything unless its a stall trying to get rid of old stock. :3

Thanks for all the help, guys! I really appreciate it!

I have visited a little con before, so I'm not sure if that counts or not! Thankyou very much for your help, I really appreciate it! <3

Around what time do early entry tickets go on sale? No idea

What day is the busiest? Saturday!

Do many people attend the Friday? I missed Friday in Oct as we were travelling via train and had to idea where we were going but we will in May.

Glomping - Myth or Reality. Does it still happen? No-one glomped me or even touched me, but when I was Loki EVERYONE was screaming my name like I was a freakin' rock star, it was AMAZING.

Are the items for sale fairly pricey? How much moolah does one take to satisfy one's inner geek/otaku? 90% of the items seem to be cheap knock offs at extortianate prices, if you aren't bothered about owning fakes, knock yourself out. I spent most of my money buying original art in artist's alley.

Do you, personally, spend the whole day at the Excel center? Or do you go off and find other attractions...? I like to stay in the centre, that's what I am paying for!

Haha thanks for your help! :3

Yeh that counts, if you know what a con is like, it'll be that on a VERY large scale
Have a great time x

For those not on the MCM mailing list - the tickets for the May 2013 London Expo went on sale a few days ago. I'll be buying mine as soon as my bank account has recovered from Christmas.

I have some more questions!

I've been invited to a photoshoot, plus there are other photoshoots and meets I'd like to drop by on. What is expected at a photoshoot/meet? And how long are they?

Depends on who's organising and what they want to do. Usually people hang around and do a selection of poses. Most are pretty informal. They last maybe an hour or so and usually you can leave earlier but they may run on longer if the host has something special planned. Hetalia meets seem to run on longer, for example, due to the sheer numbers of people.

To expand on Carmina's answer, as the meets/shoots are all fan-organised rather than "official" things, they vary from a handful of people being photographed in all permutations for half an hour then exchanging contact details and splitting, to the Hetalia/Homestuck masses which tend to meet up hours before the start time play games, have picnics, roleplay, parade the length of the Excel, and go on as long as people are willing.

You don't have to stay for the whole thing (although its polite to mention you might have to leave early in case people desperately want to take your picture). And if its a popular meet - like The Avengers or Final Fantasy - expect it to take longer as random photographers wander past and join the scrum

Thanks guys, this really helps

BACK.

Due to some misunderstandings, my friend, her family and I won't be getting early entry tickets...
... So, my question here is, just how LONG does this queue get, and how long do you have to wait until you finally get in?!?! (I've heard some pretty shocking statistics...) I don't mind the wait, but I'd like to know when it's likely we'll get in!

It's huge. Think about it, you're looking at about 40K people attending.

Oh I've thought about it! :/ So, do you know what time in the morning/afternoon it is once most peoples have shuffled inside?

About 1 - 2pm? Roughly. I#ve not really done Expo for a bit

HOLY MOLY. I think I'll try and talk early entry with my superiors again. (Thanks Nixie!)