The United Kingdom Comic Art Convention (UKCAC) was a British comic book convention which was held between 1985 and 1998. As a complement to UKCAC, from 1990 to 1995 the organizers put on the Glasgow-based Glasgow Comic Art Convention (GlasCAC), generally held in the spring. The largest convention of its kind in the country during the period, the UKCAC and GlasCAC were the sites of annual comics award ceremonies from 1987 to 1998. The UKCAC was the site of the Eagle Awards presentation from 1987 to 1990; the

UK Comic Art Awards The UK Comic Art Award was a British awards for achievement in comic books. Winners were selected by an open vote among British comic book professionals (creators, editors, and retailers); the awards were given out on an annual basis from 1990 to 1 ...

were presented at one of the conventions — often GlasCAC — from 1991 to 1997; and the National Comics Awards were presented at the UKCAC in 1997–1998. Most editions of the UKCAC took place in September, over two days, usually on a Saturday and Sunday. The convention featured floorspace for exhibitors, including comic book dealers and

collectibles A collectable (collectible or collector's item) is any object regarded as being of value or interest to a collector. Collectable items are not necessarily monetarily valuable or uncommon. There are numerous types of collectables and terms t ...

merchants. Along with panels, seminars, and workshops with comic book professionals, one of the annual highlights (until 1989) was the Saturday all-night film show, as well as regular events like quizzes, a

fancy dress A costume party (American English) or fancy dress party (other varieties of English) is a type of party, common in contemporary Western culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or stock chara ...

contest, and a charity auction. The show included an autograph area, as well as a so-called "Artists' Alley" where comics artists signed autographs and sold or did free sketches.

History

UKCAC was a successor to the

British Comic Art Convention The British Comic Art Convention (usually known by the moniker Comicon) was an annual British comic book convention which was held between 1968 and 1981, usually in London. The earliest British fan convention devoted entirely to comics, it was als ...

(commonly known as "Comicon,") which ran, mostly in London, from 1968 to 1981. UKCAC was organised as a nonprofit convention "by the fans for the fans" starting in 1984. The original organizers were Frank Plowright, Hassan Yussuf, and Chris Savva (who actually organized the first convention). Many others contributed either for a few years or on the convention days themselves (most prominent was Richard Barker, between 1986 and 1990). The initial show, in September 1985, attracted more than 500 attendees.Sabin, Roger. "From to Bust," in ''Adult Comics: an Introduction'' (Taylor & Francis, 1993). The 1988 convention featured more than 30 comics professionals, and had panels on Harvey Kurtzman (in attendance), comic book printing, politics in comics, violence in comics, and technology. After four conventions, the annual UKCAC charity auction had raised over £15,000. In 1989 organizers Plowright, Yusuf, and Barker converted the UKCAC to an event generating a salary (mostly as a way to keep the show running and fairly compensate them for the work of organizing it) under the name Rusty Staples. The 1989 UKCAC was co-sponsored by Marvel Comics, Neptune Comic Distributors, and 2000 AD Comics Group. It featured an exhibit on the work of the late Frank Bellamy (an exhibit which had originated in The Basement Gallery in Brixton).Brooks, Brad! "International Spotlight: Frank Bellamy: ''Dan Dare'' Artist Exhibited at South London Gallery," ''The Comics Journal'' #131 (Sept. 1989), pp. 13–14. The first Glasgow Comic Art Convention was held in Spring 1990 at Glasgow City Chambers and featured the first presentation of the

, a comics award voted on by British creators, editors, and retailers. The award was created by Rusty Staples and sponsored by Penguin Books UK."British Awards Announced," ''The Comics Journal'' #142 (June 1991), p. 17. The 1990 London show was co-sponsored by DC Comics among others; attendance was around 5,000 people. As the years went by, Plowright and Yusuf became the main organizers.confirmed by Plowright April 2021 London became an increasingly expensive location to host the convention, and they had difficulty keeping costs down and attracting top-level guests. As a result, attendance declined. The UKCAC was held in London until 1997, and in Manchester in its final iteration in 1998.

Legacy

UKCAC was succeeded by

Comic Festival Comic Festival (also known as Comics Festival UK) was a British comic book convention which was held annually in Bristol between 1999 and 2004. It was devised and produced by Kev F Sutherland with the help of Mike Allwood of Area 51 Comics. Th ...

, run in Bristol from 1999 to 2004; and then by Comic Expo, also in Bristol, which ran from 2004 to 2014.

Locations and dates

Glasgow Comic Art Convention locations and dates

References

{{reflist

External links

British Convention Booklets
including covers from UKCAC programmes from 1985 to 1994

* Miller, Glenn
"The Rise and Fall of the UK Comic Art Convention,"
My Little Underground (May 26, 2013) British fan conventions Defunct comics conventions Recurring events established in 1985 Recurring events disestablished in 1998 1985 establishments in the United Kingdom