Stories

With Optimus Prime

Auto Assembly 2009 took place at the Holiday Inn on Queensway and brought together fans, traders, collectors, comic book artists and voice actors from around the globe.

Officially, 501 fans of all ages set a new attendance record as Auto Assembly reaffirmed its status as Europe's largest unofficial convention for fans of the robots in disguise.

Speaking after the event, organiser Simon Plumbe, 37 from Great Barr, said:

"I'm absolutely knackered but it was worth it. Everyone had a great time. It was a fantastic weekend, an incredible atmosphere.

Check out the tattoos

"Lots of people were saying that it was the best convention they'd ever been to. We're in the planning stages for next year's event and we've had 50 people already put deposits down to attend."

Fourteen traders from around Europe were in present selling collectible Transformers toys and memorabilia. Guest speakers and comic book artists entertained fans, signed autographs and sold samples of their work.

A special convention exclusive comic was also available and famed voice actors such as Gregg Berger - the voice of dinosaur Transformer Grimlock from the original cartoon - were there to meet and greet fans.

Ultra-rare figures

In addition, a unique collection of ultra-rare Transformers toys formed a special display, courtesy of brothers Steve and David Mapes.

Some of the gold pieces on show were made in only a handful of quantities and are valued at thousands of pounds. It was the first time such a collection had been made available for fans to see in person.

With this summer's movie blockbuster, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, having cracked the top 20 highest grossing films of all time at the world wide box office, Transformers fever shows no sign of slowing down, 25 years after its inception.

Fans applaud during the introduction

"I think for kids today the new range of Transformers are just cool toys to have," said Simon, reflecting on the franchise's popularity.

"For the older audience, we all remember the original toys. I think they love the comics that have good storylines and get a kick out of the toys too. A convention like this is a social event. You can buy a toy off e-bay but with Auto Assembly you can meet and socialise with other like-minded fans. At the end of the day, there's a big kid in all of us."