Starfury Invasion: A Weekend of Star Wars in Birmingham
Last weekend I attended Starfury Invasion at the Hilton Metropole in Birmingham. Although Starfury conventions have been running for years, this was only their second dedicated Star Wars event, and my first time attending one. It was obvious from the schedule that this was going to be more intimate than a big convention, and that played out for a really unique experience.
An impressive guest lineup was totally centre stage, with actors from across Andor, Ahsoka, Mandalorian and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Over the three days we saw Ivanna Sakhno, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Paul Darnell, Wes Chatham, Katy O’Brian, Elizabeth Grullon, Denise Gough, Elizabeth Dulau, Robert Emms, Kyle Soller, and Diego Luna. Having that many cast members from recent Star Wars projects in one place gave the event a real relevance and excitement.
The weekend itself was well-structured, and all about getting close to, and hearing from, the guests. Things kicked off on Friday evening with a welcome ceremony and a guest reception meet & greet, for gold ticket holders, where each guest spent a few minutes at our table for a relaxed chat. Saturday and Sunday were filled with photo ops, autograph sessions, and Q&As, with a hillarious and very impressive cosplay competition and evening party on the Saturday. Sunday ended with a closing ceremony. There were also meet and greet opportunities during the weekend.
One of the biggest pros of Starfury Invasion was its scale. Compared to something like Star Wars Celebration, which can be overwhelming, this was much more relaxed, with hundreds not thousands of attendees it had a real sense of community. Guests and attendees shared the same hotel, and so the whole place felt like a Star Wars takeover. Cosplayers and droids roamed the lobby, banner stands displayed really impressive event artwork, and we were among fans in the hotel bar or at breakfast. At one point Diego Luna walked past me in the hallway, with no entourage, it was that relaxed.
The staff were accomodating, friendly and efficient. The queues for autographs were much more manageable than bigger cons, and the pace felt unhurried. Even the bigger names had time for a few words or answer a quick question. Ivanna Sakhno was particularly warm, asking me who else I wanted to add to my multi-autograph poster. Paul Darnell was meticulous in signing and happy to chat, while Denise Gough brought her wicked sense of humour all weekend. Elizabeth Grullon deserves special mention, attending even though she had only welcomed her daughter three months earlier.
The Q&A sessions were another highlight. Unlike larger conventions where panels are often heavily moderated, here it was simply the guests on stage for an hour with a microphone for the audience. Attendees lined up to ask questions directly, and this format made the conversations feel spontaneous and intimate. We got funny anecdotes and real insights from the likes of Diego Luna and Denise Gough. Denise pitched a follow-on where Dedra and Cassian cross paths, only to remember—“oh, but you’re dead!
Like any con there were some things to consider. A few guests could only attend on Sunday, or had to leave early, which made it trickier to catch them for autographs or Q&As. We prioritised autographs and so unfortunately only managed to see about one and a half Q&A sessions in total as the autograph sessions ran concurrently. Kyle Soller, for example, was only signing late on Sunday, by which time we’d already had to leave. It wasn’t a huge drawback, but it did mean making some hard choices between activities.
The Q&As started at 12pm each day, with autograph sessions also always falling in the afternoon, with nothing but photo ops in the mornings. We found ourselves having a very slow start each day, with not much else to do other than mingle in the hotel until midday, the event doesn’t have stalls or other activities. For us it would have been better if on at least one day the autographs were in the morning so we could have caught more of the Q&As on eafternoon. While the main hall was also available for the evening party, and there was music, it wasn’t seemingly well used by attendees. If there was more of a star wars theme to the party or an activity it may have brought people together slightly more than dipping in and out of the hotel bar.
Overall though, Starfury Invasion was a truly excellent experience. The small scale, the relaxed hotel setting, and the personable nature of the guests created something very different from the larger cons. It felt like a weekend spent among a community of fans, with genuine access to the actors who bring Star Wars to life. I’d love to attend again next year and really looking forward to see which guests are announced. It will be hard to top Diego Luna in particular, but if the organisation and atmosphere are anything like this year, it’ll be well worth the trip.
MTFBWY
