Tag Archives: Geek Girls Guide

Part of the Fangirls Guide to London Series

October 19, 2017

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There are loads of fun events taking place in London for Halloween 2017. But I have found a few fun things to do with an interesting twist for Halloween this year. These five events are all based on TV shows or movies, making them ideal for geeks.

Geek Girls Guide to Halloween 2017 in London.

WB Studio Tour
What is more Halloween than Harry Potter? The WB Studio Tour just outside London will be celebrating the Dark Arts all throughout October. With the Great Hall decorated with floating pumpkins, recreating the Halloween scene from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. On top of that over the Halloween weekend, they are hosting Hogwarts after Dark, a Halloween feast in the great hall.
Halloween Edible Cinema
The Edible Cinema offers a different movie adventure, rather than just experiencing the movie via your visual and audio senses, they add the elements of taste and smell. For Halloween, they are staging a showing of Beetlejuice at several the Everyman Cinemas around London. The tasting menu features numbered boxes to be opened throughout the movie to heighten your experience.
Supper Club UK presents The Red Wedding
The Supper Club UK is hosting an interactive dining experience based on the Red Wedding from Game of Thrones. On the 31st October, they will create an immersive dining experience based on the eventful wedding feast. The evening will include a five-course meal, music, and actors recreating the iconic feast.
The Walking Dead Maze at Thrope Park
As part of their Fright Nights at Thorpe Park for 2017, they have added an attraction based on The Walking Dead. Featuring two mazes (one indoor and one outside) fans of the zombie apocalypse programme can experience several scenes from the show facing off against the un-dead and Negan. The park also has a feature based on the SAW movies.
Hitchcock Themed Afternoon Tea
If you are looking for something a little less scary, but still with a Halloween twist. The Royal Lancaster Hotel has a Hitchcock Themed Afternoon Tea. Alongside the traditional finger sandwiches and scones, they are serving sweet treats based on classic Hitchcock movies like Cursed Blackbird Macaroon and Psycho Marbled Lollipops.

My Hacks

If you are looking for a Halloween party or club night, check out Design My Night, they have tons of listing for the Halloween weekend in London, from Silent Discos to a prison-themed pop-up called Alcotraz.
For ideas of Halloween actives with children, LondonTown.com has a list of family fun over half term. Including, pumpkin carving and sleepover in a museum.
If you are not in London for Halloween but want to add a scary element to your stay, Visit London has a list of 13 Spooky things to do in the capital from Jack the Ripper walking tours to Haunted pubs.

Geek Girls Guide to Halloween 2017 in London

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August 24, 2017

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Star Wars Identities at The O2 London is more than just a show of props from the movies. Instead, it is an interactive experience exploring what elements make an identity, against the back drop of the Star Wars universe. Saying that if you are looking for an exhibition showcasing props, costumes and artwork from the movies, there are over 200 on display.

Star Wars Identities Experience

The Star Wars Identities Experience has toured around the world for the last few years. It started in Canada in 2012 before heading to Europe, first in Paris and now London. Because the experience is over five years ago, there is no mention of the newer movies. In fact, the only reference to The Force Awakens is a model of BB-8. Instead, the focus is more on the original trilogy and prequels. There is even a large section devoted to Jar Jar Binks!

Upon entering the experience we received an interactive wristband and audio tour headset. We watched a brief video, in which they quickly outlined how a personality is formed. Giving the examples of how both Luke and Anakin are from the same planet. Yet ended up having very different identities.

There are ten stations in the exhibit. Each one designed to shape your character in the Star Wars universe. Some stations are as simple as picking which species you will be, or which planet you will live on. Others related more to your personality, for example, do you have an altruistic or egoistic drive. Each station features scenes from the movies. Or has artwork or props from the Star Wars mythology to accompany it.

At the final station just like Luke and Anakin, you are asked by the Emperor, if you wish to join the dark side. Then you can meet your character. One final tap of your wrist band reveals your Star Wars Identity on a giant screen. It would have been nice if you could have an actual print-out copy of your Star Wars Identity, photo and personality breakdown, however, that was not the case.

As a Star Wars fan, I loved the experience! I had been to Star Wars exhibitions, so I had seen a lot of the props and costumes before. This was an interesting twist on a traditional exhibition. I also loved thinking about what my role would be in the Star Wars Universe! I opted to be an X-Wing pilot and member of the Rebellion.

Geek Girl Guide

London is an amazing place to be a geek girl! I thought I would put together some tips and tricks from a local for other geek girls visiting the city. Everyone knows about the historic buildings, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and more modern attractions like the London Eye or Shard. I love to explore the geekier attractions!

Dozens of television shows and movies are filmed in London, from Jason Bourne to James Bond, even the recent Wonder Woman film featured a few scenes in the city. It is easy to find these locations on your own. However, you can take an organised tour (both bus and walking) around some of these locations. A quick search online can show you all the options from specialist tours for fans of Harry Potter to places include in British Rom Coms.

London isn’t just about film locations, the city has many museums and exhibits with a geeky twist. Currently, there are also several temporary exhibitions perfect for a fangirl. The Star Wars Identities at the O2, a journey into Sci-Fi at the Barbican. and at the end of the summer, the British Library will showcase their Harry Potter collection of manuscripts and props.

London also hosts several conventions. In May over the same weekend, two of the convention centres in London held cons. MCM London in the east and Heroes and Villains in the west of the city. Last summer, Star Wars Celebration was held in the city. Still, to come this year are London Film Convention and the Vampire Ball.

Escape Games (or Escape the Room scenarios) are all the rage at the moment, with locations popping up all over the world. Whilst these, in general, are fun for a geek girl, there are several in London that have added to the geekiness by adding a pop culture theme. Including one set in a wizarding school or another based around the disappearance of Sherlock Holmes.

Even going to the cinema in London can be an adventure. Secret Cinema has taken to film going to a new level. They recreating the fantasy world from the movie, resulting in an interactive experience rather than just watching a film. Or how about a movie marathon? The Prince Charles Cinema regularly has all-nighters including Marvel Phase One and Harry Potter marathons.

What is your favourite fangirl thing to do in London? Do you have a London themed Bucket List? What would you like me to write about in the Fangirl Guide series? Let me know in the comments below.

Recommended Reading

Geek Guide to London (Reddit Guide)
Upcoming Cons in the UK (League of the Non- Aligned)
Shaan Haider’s Top 10 London Attractions for Geeks

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June 15, 2017

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In attempt to share more of the photos I have taken and edited recently. I thought I would share my photos from W.B. Studio Tour – The Making of Harry Potter. We went on the tour last November, before the opening of the Forbidden Forest section. As it was during the winter months, it was during the Hogwarts in Snow celebrations. Many of the sets were decorated for Christmas and the model of Hogwarts Castle covered in a layer of snow.

Harry Potter Studio Tour — Hogwarts in Snow

On the day I took over 400 photographs! I have slowly been editing them over the last few months, and these are some of my favourites. As you can imagine this is a very post is very photo heavy. But as it’s Harry Potter I’m sure no one will mind.

As you can image from the moment you arrive at the Warner Bros Studio Tour, you are entering a magical place. As we drove up to the car park, you can see the giant chess pieces from The Philosopher’s Stone. Even the queuing area featured “the cupboard under the stairs.”

Inside you get to see all the sets from all eight movies, from the Great Hall to Dumbledore’s office. The costumes, covered everything from Hogwarts uniforms, Harry’s invisibility cloak and Heminione’s dress from the Yule Ball. The creature workshop contained Dobby, Buckbeak and Aragog. The props around the tour included a set of quidditch balls, wands and even Sirius prisoner number.

For me the highlight was definitely the Hogwarts Express. The train itself is impressive, with the carriage compartment each depicting a different journey to school. From Harry and Ron’s first meeting with a collection of chocolate frogs to the chilled windows when the dememtors attacked.

The entrance hall, also contained a magnificent Christmas treat and costumes from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them. I hope they eventually add more props and costumes from this movie. I’d love to see a niffler or “Pickett.”

Fangirls Guide to the Harry Potter Studio Tour

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