Cobi Product Overview - London Toy Fair 2020

While at Toy Fair 2020 Neil stopped by the Cobi stand, where Alexandra, Business Development Director at the company, was kind enough to show us around the stand and showcase a few of their key releases.

Cobi specialise in creating accurate representations of vehicles using their building block system. Unlike other similar brands they have a more real-world approach to how they create their models and use some unique sculpted pieces in their designs to create a less 'blocky' end result.

And although they are essentially still toys that can be played with, Cobi models also make impressive display pieces, which at a distance can be mistaken for die-cast models.

You can see more at Cobi's website below:

https://cobi.pl/en/

Scalextric Product Overview - London Toy Fair 2020

While at London Toy Fair 2020 Neil was lucky enough to spend some time with Sarah Frame, Brand Manager for Scalextric who kindly talked us through some of the most exciting new products coming from this classic brand.

NOTE: Sadly we experienced an audio issue with our usually trusty microphone setup in this video. Our apologises to Sarah that she didn't get to experience the might of our Singstar mics...

Ravensburger presents Jaws - A Game of Strategy and Suspense - London Toy Fair 2020

Join Neil as he stops by the Ravensburger stand while at London Toy Fair 2020 to speak with Sara Jane about a wonderful little board game based on that movie with the shark, you know the one...JAWS!

Find out more here.

EGX 2019 - Mao Mao Castle - Asobi Tech Interview with Viet

We had a smashing time at this year's EGX at London's Excel playing Mao Mao Castle by the talented team at Asobi Tech, consisting of brothers Quang and Viet.

Viet was kind enough to spare some time to chat about this fantastic throw-back to Space Harrier with our resident interviewer extraordinaire Neil Kenny, enjoy!

EGX 2019 - Tony Slopes - Jon May Interview

Downhill racing, riding upon a humpback whale...if that isn't enough to get your interest we don't know what is!

The game in question is Tony Slopes, created by SEEDTECH Studios and it certainly caught Neil and Tom's eye as they prowled the London's EGX 2019 show looking for the next big BP interview.

Join Neil as he chats to Jon May about a game which was turning heads aplenty in Indie Devs section of the event.

Let's Talk Paper Cut Mansion with Space Lizard Studio | i65 Gaming Event

Ever had a paper cut? Not the most pleasant of experiences but an ideal name for this procedurally generated puzzler.

Themed to look like it’s a world made of paper and incorporating an escape room vibe, we caught up with Space Lizard Studio at Insomnia 65. And remember once inside you can't cut corners.....!

For more on Paper Cut Mansion:

http://spacelizardstudio.com/work/pap...

and here:

https://www.facebook.com/PaperCutMans...

Lawless 2019 - A Celebration of British Comics and Tribute to Carlos Ezquerra

Back in the day comics would print a coupon which you could cut-out and present to your local newsagent to reserve the next issue (and the issues following on from that). Now fast forward to the present day and thanks to social media we were all prepared and notified to the renaming and recalibrated Lawgiver (the Judge Dredd convention) into Lawless (the convention of British comics). So, on the 18th of May Neil found himself in Bristol once again with Tom’s camera and this is the result!

For more on Lawless; https://www.facebook.com/groups/14170...

As a guide these approximate timings might be of use;

Lawless event guide 6sec, Steve McManus 15secs, ROK of the Reds fan and Judge Glass 20secs, https://www.rokofthereds.com/ Colin MacNeil 30secs, Marshal Metta Lawson and Johnny Alpha 47 secs, Glenn Fabry 51secs, Soviet bloc hypnosis leaflet 1:08secs, Ian Gibson 1:16secs, John Higgins 1:29secs, http://artofjohnhiggins.com/ Absolute Batman: The Killing Joke 1:34secs, --That matches the carpet!-- Tribute to Carlos Ezquerra 1:40secs, Carlos Art Droid 3:07secs, Welcome to Lawless from Lawless! 3:12secs, Panels! 3:16secs, Draw off! 3:23secs, Max Normal 3:31secs, --Buys a self-portrait!-- Dan Cornwell 3:40, https://dancornwell.wordpress.com/ Henry Flint 3:46, https://henryflint.wordpress.com/ Torquemada 4:01secs, Mike Collins 4:06secs, http://www.freakhousegraphics.com/ Abigail Bulmer 4:20secs, https://abigailartryder.wixsite.com/d... Steve Austin and Dylan Teague 4:41secs, http://www.stevenaustinart.com/ https://www.instagram.com/dylbot2099/ John Wagner [don’t blink!] 4:44secs, Original art for sale 4:49secs, Sector 13 fanzine 4:57secs, https://www.facebook.com/sector13thef... Battle Badger 5:01secs, https://www.facebook.com/beasthunting... art ninetwo studios 5:08secs, https://www.artninetwo.com/ Awesome Comics 5:24secs, David Lloyd and Patrick Goddard 5:32secs, http://www.lforlloyd.com/ https://twitter.com/PaddyGod1 Planet Replicas 5:45secs, https://www.planetreplicas.com/ Steve McManus closeout 5:51secs, Judge Death – THE SENTENCE IS DEATH 5:56secs

Nigel Parkinson draws Minnie the Minx! - Northwich Comic Con 2019

Neil popped along to Northwich Comic Con, where he met up with Beano Comic Artist, Nigel Parkinson once again.

Nigel kindly agreed to create a very special* Minnie drawing for him, thanks Nigel!

* The other character is Mina the Minx (Wilhelmina "Mina" Murray) as seen on issue 4 (of6) of 'The Tempest'. This is volume IV; the final book of Alan Moore's and Kevin O'Neill's 'League of Extraordinary Gentlemen' series.

You can check out Nigel's blog at the link below: http://nigelparkinsoncartoons.blogspo...

For more on the adventures of the 'League': https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lea... https://lxg.fandom.com/wiki/The_Leagu...

MATTEL DreamToys 2018 Christmas Showcase | Barbie Ultimate Kitchen, Harry Potter & more!

Blast Process was fortunate enough to be invited to DreamToys 2018 - Yay!

The DreamToys list is the most authoritative independent prediction of toys that will be sought after for this Christmas.

Many toys and games were nominated by the panel and Mattel made into the top 10. So keep watching and celebrate your Christmas with a Barbie!

Funko DreamToys 2018 Christmas Showcase | Fortnite exclusives, Harry Potter, Wreck-it Ralph & more!

Blast Process was fortunate enough to be invited to DreamToys 2018 - Yay!

The DreamToys list is the most authoritative independent prediction of toys that will be sought after for this Christmas.

Many toys and games were nominated by the panel and Funko made it as a stocking filler that many children would want.

So keep watching and make your Christmas go with a POP!

LEGO DreamToys 2018 Christmas Showcase | Harry Potter, Jurassic World, Lego City Arctic Expedition

Blast Process was fortunate enough to be invited to DreamToys 2018 - Yay!

The DreamToys list is the most authoritative independent prediction of toys that will be sought after for this Christmas.

Lego unsurprisingly has made the list.

So keep watching and you'll get to see Marius Lang, UK Head of Marketing at Lego, give Brian (our man on the ground) a guided tour of the Lego display.

So sit back and enjoy the bricks!

Ian Kennedy at The Lakes International Comic Art Festival 2018

On a very wet Saturday Neil attended the Lakes Comic Art Festival and after watching the 'Flying High - Meet the Kennedys' drawing demonstration caught up with Ian Kennedy at the Scottish Comics Bothy. A very popular and crowded location.

The comic courses mentioned by Ian are in association with the University of Dundee;

https://www.dundee.ac.uk/english/comics/ https://www.dundee.ac.uk/study/pg/com...

See some of Ian's work here;

https://www.comicartfans.com/searchre...

The Art of Stranski - Lorenzo Etherington interview at the Wildman Gallery

Neil attended a very wet 'Lakes International Comic Art Festival' but that didn't stop him from interviewing!

Here he talks to Lorenzo Etherington; who along with his brother Robin is more widely celebrated as the Etherington Brothers and whose comics for all ages are adored by an army of fans. A point admirably demonstrated earlier this year when their 'How to Think When you Draw' Kickstarter campaign became the biggest funded UK comic project ever.

When Neil caught up with Lorenzo it was at the Wildman Gallery where his Art of Stranski Exhibit had just opened (12th October to 15th November). So sit back and discover together this forgotten lost 1940s masterpiece.... [Spoiler - Its all Lorenzo!]

For more information about the Etherington Brothers (and links to their free teaching materials);

http://etheringtonbrosportfolio.blogs...

https://twitter.com/etheringtonbros

https://www.instagram.com/etherington...

Thanks also to 'Turtle Steve' for stepping in as camera-operator!

https://www.instagram.com/willy_geek_/

FAB Worlds of Anderson - National Space Centre - Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Space 1999 and more!

Neil's out and about again, this time he headed over to Leicester to visit the National Space Centre where a fantastic event was held on the 22nd - 23rd of September to celebrate the FAB Worlds of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson.

Find out more at the link below:

https://spacecentre.co.uk/event/the-f...

Rare: From 8-Bit To Xbox One - Exhibition Tour

Neil headed off to The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry last weekend to witness a fantastic new exhibition celebrating legendary British video game developer, Rare!

The exhibition is called 'Rare: From 8-Bit To Xbox One' and covers three decades of iconic games such as Battletoads, Banjo-Kazooie, GoldenEye and Viva Piñata.

Then set sail on the Sea of Thieves and explore how Rare’s latest release was made!

The Exhibition is on until the 23rd of September, for more details, check out the link below:

http://www.theherbert.org/whats_on/13...

The Old Haunts of Forbidden Planet London | 40th Birthday Tour

We visit Forbidden Planet on it's 40th Birthday; with a trip down the streets of London taking a look at where Forbidden Planet opened its first store.

https://forbiddenplanet.com https://twitter.com/ForbiddenPlanet

Forbidden Planet image archive https://forbiddenplanet.com/plu/posts...

Barrage Wargames Show Feature

Barrage Wargames is an event that takes place in Stafford, UK that is dedicated to Wargaming and also a spot of D&D, in short if you enjoy table top games of a Historical, Fantasy or Sci-Fi nature, you're sure to enjoy the event!

John Potter Guildford, the event's organiser was kind enough to give Neil a guided tour of the event, taking him around all of the event's 3 halls and chatting with some of the show's key exhibitors.

 For more info about this yearly event, check out of the link below:

http://staffordwargames.wixsite.com/b...

To find out more about 'House of Bread', the event's chosen charitable cause, you can follow the link below:

https://www.hobstafford.co.uk/

STC25 - 25 Years of Sonic the Comic

On the 3rd of June 2018, Neil and Tom headed to Manchester to attend STC25, an event celebrating 25 years since the first issue of Sonic the Comic.

The British Sonic the Comic was quite different from others, often referred to as Fleetway Sonic, after the comic's publisher. It had it's own unique characters and stories built around the video games.

It's amassed a massive following since it was first published, a enthusiastic group of fans even created their own continuation of the Comic online, having recently released their 275 Issue to co-inside with the event.

You can check out more here:

stconline.co.uk

LAWGIVER MK.4 - UK Judge Dredd Convention

We like to keep things interesting here at Blast Process, as you may have noticed we've been covering some Comic events recently and even done a feature on Starlord, a classic British comic that was closely connected with 2000AD, bringing us nicely to our latest 'On Tour' video...

Lawgiver is a dedicated Judge Dredd fan convention. The fourth such gathering was held at the Doubletree Hotel in Bristol on the 26th of May 2018. Neil went along, camera in hand, to check it out! For more info on Lawgiver, check out the website below:

http://lawgiver.co.uk/

Neil's Free Comic Book Day Adventure in London 2018

Saturday May the 5th, Neil was London bound to attend the 2018 Free Comic Book day, an event that spanned 3 main London based comic shops, with guest appearances and signings galore!

So we handed him a video camera to grab a first hand account of the event, resulting in this little video, enjoy!

You can find out more about Free Comic Book Day here:

https://www.freecomicbookday.com

https://twitter.com/Freecomicbook

Featured Stores:

Forbidden Planet Shaftsbury Avenue  https://www.forbiddenplanet.com https://twitter.com/ForbiddenPlanet

Gosh! Comics https://www.goshlondon.com https://twitter.com/GoshComics

Orbital Comics http://www.orbitalcomics.com https://twitter.com/orbitalcomics

Guests Gosh! window painting:

Dan White https://milkthecat.wordpress.com https://twitter.com/Thebeastmustdie

Crom http://cristianortiz.com https://twitter.com/BITSOFCROM

Lord Hurk http://www.lordhurk.com https://twitter.co/LordHurk

Lizzy Stewart http://www.abouttoday.co.uk https://twitter.com/lizzystewart

Paul Shinn http://paulshinndraws.com https://twitter.com/paulshinndraws

Isabel Greenberg http://www.isabelnecessary.com/ https://twitter.com/isabelgreenberg

2000 AD:

 https://2000ad.com/ https://twitter.com/2000AD

http://www.nedhartley.com/index.html

https://www.twitter.com/nedhartley

Matt Smith http://2000ad.com/ https://twitter.com/2000AD

Alec Worley http://www.alecworley.com https://twitter.com/alec_worley

Colin Bell https://about.me/colin.bell https://twitter.com/colinbell

Pye Parr http://www.pyeparr.com https://twitter.com/pyeparr

Tanya Roberts https://www.enolianslave.deviantart.com https://twitter.com/enolianslave

Keith Richardson

Indio! http://fistfullofindio.blogspot.co.uk https://twitter.com/Laughing_Indio

Neil Googe http://neilgooge.com https://twitter.com/neilgooge

Owen Michael Johnson http://www.changelingstudios.com https://twitter.com/Owen_Johnson

Doctor Who:

George Mann http://george-mann.com https://twitter.com/George_Mann

Rachael Stott https://www.rachaelstott.co.uk https://twitter.com/rachaelatwork

Simon "Si" Spurrier http://simonspurrier.co.uk/ https://twitter.com/sispurrier

The Guardian Cartoonists:

Stephen Collins http://www.stephencollinsillustration... https://twitter.com/stephen_collins

Tom Gauld https://www.tomgauld.com https://twitter.com/tomgauld

Simone Lia http://www.simonelia.com https://twitter.com/simoneliadraws

The Wicked + The Devine:

Kieron Gillen http://gillen.cream.org/wordpress_html/ https://twitter.com/kierongillen

Jamie McKelvie https://jamiemckelvie.com https://twitter.com/McKelvie

Allred:

Michael Allred and Laura Allred http://www.aaapop.com https://twitter.com/AllredMD

Agatha Christie Memorial:

 http://www.agathachristiememorial.co.uk/