The Horror Writers Association has announced BFS President Ramsey Campbell as their first Guest of Honour for the Bram Stoker Awards Weekend 2013. The event will be held in New Orleans from 13 – 16 June 2013.

Ramsey – who is a HWA Lifetime Achievement Award winner -  will be participating in all aspects of the convention, including an in-depth interview, panel discussions, a mass signing, and presenting during the Bram Stoker Awards Banquet.

See the website HERE for further details.

The full line-up has now been announced and tickets are on sale for the 11th Fantastic Films Weekend from 15 – 17 June 2012 at the National Media Museum, Bradford. Here, from the website, is just a taste of what’s in store:

“We will be schlocking and rolling you with some of the most outrageous horror and fantasy ever committed to celluloid. Fans of schlocky horror should look out for an ultra rare print of 70′s Grindhouse classic I Drink Your Blood, our Troma triple-bill, and our Saturday night special guest Harley Cokeliss talking about his career in the genre alongside a screening of the Roger Corman-produced Battletruck. Cokeliss’ career in the genre has spanned decades and features second unit directorial duties on The Empire Strikes Back.

We’ll also be proving that sisters are certainly doing it for themselves with screenings celebrating women in the genre including Grace Jones’ classic Vamp, saucy sci-fi opus Barbarella and the soon-to-be-remade Red Sonja. We will also peek behind the scenes of Hammer with Renée Glynne, script supervisor on many of the studio’s classics including The Quatermass Xperiment which will screen alongside her interview.

One of FFW’s trademarks is its love of genre retro and we have recruited guest curator, Hammer film historian, writer and publisher, Robert Simpson to programme a unique and premiere-packed Hammer strand. We are also proud to present a FFW first – a not-to-be-missed, 3-strip widescreen Cinerama presentation of The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm. While TV Heaven will be going timelord-tastic with a Doctor Who takeover celebrating every Doctor across one weekend.

FFW also teams up with Leeds International Film Festival’s Fanomenon for an evening of giallo including a rare screening of an archive 35mm print of Four Flies On Grey Velvet and an onstage interview with new heir to the giallo crown Andreas Marschall, followed by a screening of his new films Masks.”

For further programming details and to buy tickets visit the website HERE

The World Horror Convention 2013 will be hosted by the Horror Writers Association, and will incorporate the Bram Stoker Awards. The event will be held in New Orleans from 13 – 16 June 2013. The event is billed as the Bram Stoker Awards Weekend incorporating World Horror Convention 2013, and it has its website HERE.

The convention will be held at the historic Hotel Monteleone in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Membership sales will begin in the second half of 2012, as will voting for the WHC Grandmaster Award. Guests of Honour will be announced in due course.

For further details as they arise visit the website HERE

Rob Hansen is compiling an internet resource – THEN: The Archive – which is a repository for some of the material referenced when researching and writing THEN, his history-in-progress of British science fiction fandom from the 1930s to the 1980s.

He is seeking a photograph of the frontage of the Imperial Hotel in Birmingham. The hotel hosted several SF and fantasy events before it was demolished, including some early FantasyCons. Here, from the archive, is a page detailing the 1959 Eastercon held at that venue. Rob would love to be able to add a photo of the hotel frontage to this page.

If you can assist by providing a photograph of the frontage of the Imperial Hotel, please contact Peter Coleborn at pkcoleborn [at] gmail [dot] com. Please do not send the photograph in the first instance but simply contact Peter explaining what photo(s) you have.

As part its historical theme of “Arthur Machen @ 150”, World Fantasy Convention 2013 is pleased to welcome acclaimed British sculptor Tessa Farmer as a Special Guest to Brighton.

The great-granddaughter of the influential Welsh fantasy writer, she works with sculptural installation, stop-motion animation and drawing to explore the fantastical world of a species of insect-sized malevolent skeletal fairies that have existed since the late 1990s. Not unsurprisingly, the artist acknowledges that her great-grandfather’s fiction has been an important influence upon her own work.

Tessa Farmer studied Fine Art at The University of Oxford, and in 2007, she was artist in residence at London’s The Natural History Museum. Her solo exhibitions in 2011 include “Nymphidia” at London’s Danielle Arnaud Contemporary Art Gallery, and “ISAM: Control Over Nature”, a collaboration with DJ and producer Amon Tobin, at the city’s Crypt Gallery.

“I am delighted to have been invited to attend the World Fantasy Convention in 2013,” she says, “and for the opportunity to show my work alongside inspirational and influential artists and writers. I am looking forward to celebrating the anniversary of Arthur Machen’s birth amongst equally inspirational enthusiasts. (What I really mean is that the evil fairies are excited about parasitising all these great minds . . . I think they are in for a treat!)”

Tessa Farmer joins previously announced Author Guests of Honour Richard Matheson and Richard Christian Matheson, Artist Guest of Honour Alan Lee, and Master of Ceremonies China Mieville, in the picturesque and vibrant seaside town of Brighton, on the south coast of England, over the weekend of 31 October – 3 November 2013. For further information and how to book please see the website HERE

It has been confirmed that the 64th Eastercon – appropriately named Eight Squared Con – will be held at the Cedar Court Hotel in Bradford, West Yorkshire, from 29 March to 1 April 2013. The Guests of Honour have been announced as Walter Jon Williams, Freda Warrington, Anne Sudworth and Edward James.

To keep up to date with announcements and information please see the website HERE

Day tickets have now gone on sale for Alt.Fiction, the festival of SF, fantasy and horror, which takes place on 14 & 15 April 2012 at the Phoenix in Leicester.

The festival, run by Writing East Midlands, provides an opportunity for readers and writers to hear from their favourite authors, find out more about the world of publishing and learn more about the writing process, while networking with agents, publishers and other writers. There will be author readings, panel discussions, writing workshops, and much more.

To book a day ticket on either the Saturday or Sunday, or to book for the whole weekend, and to book a place on any of the workshops, visit the website HERE

For its April meeting this year the Birmingham Science Fiction Group is proud to welcome Robert Blackham, noted Tolkien expert, who will be showing his new presentation about Tolkien’s experiences in the World War. Bob returns to the BSFG following his successful and popular presentation in 2009.

Bob is the author of several books about J.R.R.Tolkien, including The Roots of Tolkien’s Middle-Earth, Tolkien’s Oxford, The Pitkin Guide to Tolkien and Tolkien and the Peril of War. Bob’s presentations always give a fascinating insight into Tolkien’s experiences, as well as suggesting possible inspirations that would later turn up in Middle-Earth.

The meeting is on 13 April 2012 at the Briar Rose Hotel on Bennett’s Hill, Birmingham; this venue is just 5 minutes walk from New Street Station and handy for all bus routes. The meeting opens its doors at 7:30 pm.

The group itself has many members of all ages, and between them the membership has an enormous wealth of knowledge of literary SF, as well as film, television, etc. If you want to know about a particular author or book, the BSFG may be able to help you! Just let them know you are a first timer when you turn up and any member will be happy to introduce you to the committee and make you feel as welcome as we can…

If you live anywhere in or around the West Midlands, the BSFG is the group for you! For further information, and a copy of our monthly newsletter, please email: BHAMSFGROUP@YAHOO.CO.UK

This July, QUAD in Derby brings together a host of leading science fiction, fantasy and horror writing for Edge-Lit, an exciting new day event for one of the city’s leading venues. The ideal day out for fans, readers and aspiring writers of genre fiction, Edge-Lit gathers together over thirty authors, agents and speakers for a wide range of workshops, panels, readings and much more.

There are many more leading names to be announced for the event, with the first two Guests of Honour for the 2012 event confirmed as Christopher Fowler and Geoff Ryman.

Christopher Fowler is a multiple award-winning author with thirty novels and twelve short story collections to his name. He is best-known for his Bryant and May mystery novels, with his most recent title in the series being Bryant and May and the Memory of Blood. Christopher has also written a number of successful thrillers, as well as the highly succesful graphic novel Menz Insana. His other credits include creating the War of the Worlds video game for Paramount, as well as running a successful film marketing company and writing for TV and film stars such as Kenneth Williams, Michael Caine, Pierce Brosnan, Leslie Neilsen and the stars of Monty Python.

Geoff Ryman is an acclaimed author of science-fiction and fantasy, with his most recent title, The King’s Last Song, drawing stellar reviews. Other leading titles include Was…, Lust and Air, with his novels having claimed a host of awards including the British Science Fiction Award, World Fantasy Award, Arthur C. Clarke Award, The Philip K. Dick Award and many more. He is also a lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester University.

Edge-Lit runs from 10am – midnight on Saturday 14 July 2012, with tickets just £25, including access to all activities on the day. For more information, and to book your tickets, visit the website HERE