Red Dwarf convention descends into chaos

Organisers of an official Red Dwarf convention have apologised after a chaotic event saw fans queuing for hours, and failing to get the autographs and photographs they had paid hundreds of pounds to secure.

Fans paid up to £435 for a gold pass to attend the two-day event in Nottingham at the weekend, attended by all the core cast – Chris Barrie, Craig Charles, Danny John-Jules and Robert Llewellyn, as well as co-creator Doug Naylor and several supporting cast.

But they were left furious at the poor organisation – with one even dubbing it ‘Fyre Fest 2’ in tribute to the notoriously ill-planned music festival – and filled online forums with complaints about the lack of things to do or see, as well as information about what was happening.

Other gripes included poor staging of the Q&A sessions, with flickering screens and insufficient seating as well as  poor access for disabled people – including tiny lifts, no proper toilets and no free tickets for carers. They also complained that the cafe’s food ran out by lunchtime 

Charles’ sappearance was particularly fleeting, further angering fans, as he had to leave for a DJ set elsewhere. One person who had paid for the gold VIP pass said they were only told at 3.30pm on the Saturday that Charles, who plays Lister, would not be doing the meet-and-greet they had been promised.

Scores of comments registered complains such as ‘It was horrendously managed’; Total shambles’, ‘This lot really put the CON in CONVENTION’; ‘I've never witnessed such a shambolic event’;  ‘Been queuing for nearly 4 hours.. no autographs, no photos, no end in sight. The organisation is diabolical.

Others posted furiously: ‘People having to queue for wristbands and then queue again for entry. The autograph queues haven't moved, I've never experienced something so badly organised’ and ‘Two hours into queuing and it's stalling for so long, not moving… noticeboard says it will be Cut Off at 1pm. How are we supposed to get our prepaid autographs?’

More comments highlighted the ‘lack of information around the venue, detailing which queue was which and from the people on the stage was staggering’, with another commenting: ‘How clueless are this event management? The crowd waiting around the photos are causing a hazard and tempers are getting frayed. Sort out a system for collection now.’

‘This convention has been a total disappointment from start to finish. Me and my sister have bronze VIP passes [which cost £120]. We were queuing outside for over an hour to get in and because the queue was moving so slowly we missed the welcome talk and the first talk with Hattie [Hayridge, who played Holly] and Chloe [Annett, who played Kristine Kochanski]. We have been unable to get any autographs. The cafe sold out of food. The merchandise sold out.’

One attendee said: ‘‘I really hope that the organisers see these comments and offer refunds. It's been a shit show from start to finish. Nobody knew where to queue including the staff. Once we finally got into the convention (if you can call it that) there was nothing there! A stage with only a few panels, autograph area, 1 merch stall and a cafe. ‘Where's the entertainment and stuff to keep people interested all day? Those poor buggers who travelled from around the world to be there, and the people who brought VIP [passes]. They got truly shafted! 

‘Then to top it off, the photo op was a disaster. Not only did nobody organise a proper queue. We were queuing for hours before the queue started moving and we were near the front.’

However even after having their picture taken they complained that the printer broke and they had to wait even longer. Another said they waited two hours for the hard copy of their pictures. 

Following the torrent of complaints, organisers Em-Con posted a jokey response on social media, saying: ‘We’ve spotted the queues (hard to miss, unless you’re Kryten running a diagnostic). Thanks for sticking with us — you’re absolute stars. We’re also aware that some parts of today haven’t run as smoothly as a well‑oiled Starbug. That’s on us. The team is already working through feedback and making improvements for tomorrow.’

But it did little to quell the anger.

‘You've completely ruined something I've looked forward to since last year, no one bothered to say what was going on [queueing] two hours for auto[graphs] only got one as I was completely in pain,’ said one attendee.

Comedy agent Susanna Clark of Ingenious Fools was among those at the event.

She told Chortle: ‘The event was oversold, queues went on for hours and then were cut before people reached the autograph tables. People queued so long that the queue for the morning autographs became the queue for the afternoon photoshoot and then people were still turned away with nothing.

‘There was no easy access to food or water, a few people I spoke to hadn’t eaten all day for fear of losing their place in the queue. There was no signage for queues and staff hadn’t been properly briefed. Most events started at least half an hour late and some events were cancelled as they could no longer fit them in. 

‘Even with the Silver and Bronze VIP passes, people who had spent hundreds of even thousands on flights, accommodation and tickets for a once-in-a-lifetime trip, who queued for many hours and didn't get to meet the cast members they'd paid to meet.  I'm not sure what happened behind the scenes, but you can't compensate for that kind of disappointment.’

Another attendee said: ‘The schedule in general was thrown to the wind. Virtually nothing ran to time. Literally nothing else to do. No decorations up, barely even heard the Red Dwarf soundtrack played. No models or props except for about six costumes on display so no photo opportunities. Venue completely ill suited and ill equipped for such an event. Came away feeling like we'd just been milked of our cash.’

The official Red Dwarf fan club ran a fan convention called Dimension Jump for several years, but this event, held at Nottingham music venue The Level, is the first organised by Em-Con. It was run under licence from Grant Naylor Productions – the company that owns the Red Dwarf Rights – and Doug Naylor Management Ltd.

Chortle approached the organisers for comment this morning, and asking if they would entertain the many demands for refunds, but they did not respond.

However they since posted an apology on Facebook.

It read: ‘To everyone who attended the Official Red Dwarf Convention this past weekend, we want to sincerely apologise for the concerns and disappointment that have been raised.

‘Many of you are waiting for answers, and we understand how important clarity is. Before commenting in detail, we need to fully establish the facts. We are now conducting a thorough internal review of everything that took place so we can provide a clear, honest, and comprehensive response.

‘Once this review is complete, we will issue a full statement addressing the issues raised, accepting responsibility where appropriate, and outlining the actions we will take to ensure lessons are learned and improvements are made.

‘For many years, EM-Con Events has organised experiences for fans — from our Red Dwarf evenings to our larger conventions, that have almost 10,000 attendees. Whenever something has fallen short of the standards we set for ourselves, we have worked hard to put it right. We know we won’t always get everything perfect, but we have always believed in listening, learning, and doing everything we can to make things right.

‘Above all, we want everyone to know that we are fans too. We organise these events because we genuinely care about these communities and the experiences they have. That is why the issues raised this weekend matter so much to us, and why we are committed to responding with honesty, transparency, and meaningful action.

‘Thank you for your patience while we complete this process. We will provide a full update as soon as we are in a position to do so.’

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Published: 21 Jul 2026