# Comic Con Northern Ireland

Comic Con Northern Ireland is a fan convention held once a year in the city of Lisburn, near the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom attracting 18,000+ attendees across the large venue Eikon Exhibition Centre situated in Lisburn, that celebrates films, cult television, video gaming, anime, cosplay and comic books and which is organised by UK based events company Monopoly Events.

## History and organisation

Comic Con Northern Ireland began its annual run of events in 2022 when the obvious need for a large pop culture convention in the Northern Ireland area arose. Monopoly Events CEO Andy Kleek sourced a venue large enough to not only launch a first event from, but also house future expansion plans for the event to make a substantial event for the people of Northern Ireland to be proud of and to bring economic drive into the community. The first event which took place in September 2022 sold over half it's entry tickets more than a year before the event itself took place.

## 2023 SAG-AFTRA Strike

The SAG-AFTRA Strike of 2023, affected many fan conventions worldwide. During the strike, SAG guidelines for appearances at fan conventions had to be followed by both guests and the convention organisers. While appearing at any event, guests were unable to discuss any past, present or future work projects as they would normally do when meeting fans, they were also unable to answer questions regarding work projects while on stage during Q&A panels.

## Show features
### Celebrity guests

Often guests will choose to visit famous landmarks or attractions in the hosting city, in 2023 Comic Con Northern Ireland guests Elijah Wood, Sean Astin and Bernard Hill visited the famous Titanic Belfast museum as Hill previously portrayed Captain John Smith in the 1997 film Titanic.

### Cosplay

A large part of the event is devoted to the cosplay hobby where members of the public are allowed, and encouraged, to take part in dressing up as characters from popular genres such as film and television. Cosplaying has become one of the most popular parts of many fan conventions around the world and can be used as a platform to showcase the costumer's latest handywork, to show devotion to their favourite characters or engage in role-play with other cosplayers in the same series, as well as to meet new people with mutual interests as themselves.

## Location, dates and notable guests

| Dates | Location | Notable guests |
| 17–18 September 2022 | Eikon Exhibition Centre | Candice King, Daniel Gillies, Matt Davis, Michael Trevino, Michael Malarkey, Kayla Ewell, James Marsters, Kim Coates, Mark Boone Junior, Michael Cudlitz, Chandler Riggs, Steven Ogg, Katelyn Nacon, Robin Lord Taylor, Cameron Monaghan, Sean Pertwee, Erin Richards, David Mazouz, Alec Utgoff, Ed Westwick, James Murray, Keith Gillespie, Zach Galligan, Karyn Parsons, Bai Ling, Jason Faunt, Jorgito Vargas Jr., Luci Christian, Monica Rial, Tia Ballard, Andy Secombe, Femi Taylor, Tim Rose, Paul Blake |
| 9–10 September 2023 | Eikon Exhibition Centre | Alex McKenna, Bernard Hill, Elijah Wood, Graham McTavish, Grant Goodman, Gwydion Lashlee-Walton, Ian Somerhalder, Jackson Rathbone, John Barrowman, Kellan Lutz, Kerri Green, Kristy Swanson, Mara Wilson, Michael Rooker, Nathaniel Buzolic, Paul Wesley, Peter Blomquist, Peter Facinelli, Riley Voelkel, Rob Weithoff, Roger Clark, Ross Marquand, Sean Astin, Sean Gunn, Tami Stronach, The Burns Twins, Tom Payne, Trey Best |
| 7–8 September 2024 | Eikon Exhibition Centre | Jodie Whittaker, Mandip Gill, Billie Piper, Andy Serkis, Joseph Morgan, Persia White, Valorie Curry, Laz Alonso, Mark Sheppard, Samantha Smith, DJ Qualls, Jimmy Vee, Spencer Wilding, Khary Payton, Cooper Andrews, Pollyanna McIntosh, Maggie Grace, Kat Graham, Mick Foley, Trish Stratus, Amy Dumas (a.k.a. Lita), Rikishi, Mark Williams, Matt Ryan, Tim Downie, Dave Jones, Tracy Wiles, Amelia Tyler, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Walter Jones, David Yost, Michael Redmond, Patrick McDonnell, Ben Keaton, Joe Rooney, Peggy (a.k.a. Dogpool) |
| 6–7 September 2025 | Eikon Exhibition Centre | Sylvester McCoy, Peter Davison, Paul McGann, Colin Baker, Michelle Gomez, Kevin Nash, Tyler Mane, Christian Serratos, Laurie Holden, Steven Ogg, Ned Luke, Shawn Fonteno, Maggie Robertson, Nadji Jeter, David Hayter, Quinton Flynn, Devora Wilde, Theo Solomon, Jennifer English, Aliona Baranova, Matt Ryan, Will Mellor, Ralf Little, Ricky Tomlinson, Michael Winslow |