| It's 2009... |
[Jan. 29th, 2009|03:46 pm] |
In case you haven't noticed, it's 2009. Which is 40 years since 1969, the year Apollo 11 landed on the Moon. How's a fan to celebrate an event like that? Why, by going to a con, of course! Over the weekend of July 25-26th, Satellite 2 will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow. It will offer the same mix of fun and serious programming as Satellite 1 did, the GoH is Iain M. Banks... so what are you waiting for? Memberships available now! |
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| Sad news from Richard Van Der Voort |
[Dec. 29th, 2007|02:56 pm] |
Those who were at Satellite 1 will recall that At The Sign Of The Dragon, who had been planning do join us on the day to sell books, were unable to do so because Marion van der Voort had been taken to hospital in Dumfries in the night preceding the con. At the time, this was all the information we had. Later we heard that she had had double pneumonia.
Richard Van Der Voort says that after being very ill, and spending some time in intensive care, her condition improved and she was transferred to a community hospital in Newton Stewart. She wanted to be at home for Christmas, and with the help of her GP (to arrange oxygen, etc.) this was sorted out, and she got home on Christmas Eve. She was enjoying sitting in front of a log fire and chatting to several friends who phoned up.
Unfortunately, Marion had a relapse on Christmas Day. The GP attended, but her breathing became steadily poorer, and she drifted into sleep and then coma. She died on the evening of December 26th. Richard, Jamie and two nurses were with her. She had told her doctor that she wanted to stay home, come what may.
Regarding the funeral arrangements, Richard says:
Marion is being cremated at her request on Monday the 7th of January at
1pm in Dumfries. It will be a small, private ceremony for family and
close friends. Regarding flowers, apart from those closest to us could
you give a little money to charity instead? Marion's own favorite
charities were the Lifeboat Institute or a charity which helps disabled
service men and their families. If you live outside the British Isles, a
local equivalent or your own preference would be just as good.
The business will be closed until after the funeral. Thereafter I will
carry on as well as I can.
On behalf of everyone who was involved with Satellite 1, I would like to express our deepest condolences to Richard at this time. |
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| Sad News from At the Sign of the Dragon |
[Dec. 29th, 2007|02:42 pm] |
I have just come home to an email from Richard Van Der Voort in which he said:
As many of you will already know Marion was taken ill in early October
and taken by ambulance to Dumfries hospital with what turned out to be
pnuemonia in both lungs. She was very ill at first, then in intensive
care at one point but seemed to be getting gradually better, going first
to an ordinary ward then three weeks ago to a local community hospital
at Newton Stewart. She wanted to come home for Christmas and our GP
agreed, arranging for oxygen, special chair, etc. Marion came home on
Christmas Eve and was enjoying sitting in front of a log fire and
chatting to several friends who phoned up.
Unfortunately she had a relapse in breathing on Christmas Day morning. I
phoned our GP, who had given me his home number, and he came at once and
gave her something to help with her breathing. Unfortunately, Marion's
breathing became steadily poorer, with her slipping into sleep and coma
and she died on the evening of the 26th of December with me, Jamie and
two nurses present. She had told the Doctor she wanted to stay home,
come what may and he supported her completely. The nurses, Doctor, local
friends and people have been very supportive doing everything they could
to help.
Marion is being cremated at her request on Monday the 7th of January at
1pm in Dumfries. It will be a small, private ceremony for family and
close friends. Regarding flowers, apart from those closest to us could
you give a little money to charity instead? Marion's own favorite
charities were the Lifeboat Institute or a charity which helps disabled
service men and their families. If you live outside the British Isles, a
local equivalent or your own preference would be just as good.
The business will be closed until after the funeral. Thereafter I will
carry on as well as I can.
Sad news. Marion will be very much missed. |
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| The afternoon after the morning after... |
[Oct. 1st, 2007|02:44 pm] |
That was Satellite 1, that was.
As far as I could see, people were having a good time, enjoying the panels, talks and games. (Anyone who was not hid it well.) They were certainly enjoying the real ale, which was drunk by the closing ceremony. Thanks to everyone who came, to everyone who took part in the programme, helped out with gophering and stewarding, and in particular to Ken MacLeod, who was a superb Guest of Honour.
No plan survives contact with the enemy, of course, and there were things which did not go to plan. The most serious of these was that at 07:30 we received the news that At The Sign Of The Dragon would not be with us since Marion van der Voort had been taken to hospital. We still have no more information about how serious this is, but we send our best wishes to her and Richard at this time.
Initial indications are that the con did better than break even. That's not, for us, the major indicator of whether or not it was a success, but it is A Good Thing. What really matters was whether or not it was a good day with interesting and enjoyable programme items. We hope it was.
Thanks again to everyone who made the day what it was.
DC |
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| Con report |
[Oct. 7th, 2007|07:51 am] |
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Short con report up on my lj now. |
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| PR1 and only! |
[Sep. 30th, 2007|04:55 pm] |
T-minus 6 days and counting! Satellite 1 is moving towards the launch pad and we hope to see all of you on the day. Careful examination of this spy-satellite photograph referenced will reveal the location of the venue.
Unfortunately Sydney Jordan will not now be able to join us owing to personal circumstances. The Politburo would like to express their regret that he cannot join us and extend our best wishes to him at this time.
However, the rest of the programme, including our Guest of Honour Ken MacLeod, has been given a green light from launch control.
Registration desk opens at 09:30 hours, and the launch is provisionally set for 10:30 hours (pending a weather report). We will be vacating the function space at midnight.
There will be a full day of programme items, including talks, panels, and fun and games. During the day there will be refreshments available, including ale from the Kelburn Brewery. From 11:00 hours, At The Sign Of The Dragon will be selling books, and there will be a small display of fan memorabilia and artwork. (Old Trout members please bring some memorabilia!) There will be an opportunity to have books signed by Ken MacLeod later in the day. After the formal end of the convention, shortly after 19:00, there will be an evening of relaxed entertainment and fun.
And a singing dog.
On the day we will be needing volunteers to help out with gophering and stewarding. We would appreciate it if those members who have already volunteered for at-con tasks and are prepared to move heavy equipment would arrive as early as possible (07:30 hours onwards) to help with the initial set-up.
Programme participants will be contacted by email shortly to confirm their commitments. (Those who do not have email access will get a nice surprise on the day.)
Satellite 1 is happy to welcome hall costumes, as long as any weapons are replicas.
If anyone would like a Satellite 1 T-shirt, these are available in sizes up to XXXL, and cost £17 plus postage and packing where applicable. Orders will be taken on the day.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at info@satellite1.org.uk.
OTHER EVENTS IN GLASGOWThose convention members who are in Glasgow on Thursday 4th of October are invited to celebrate the actual launch date of Sputnik 1 with the Space Settlers' Society in the Bon Accord Bar, North Street, from 20:00 hours onward (18:00 hours if you wish to order a pre-party meal).
And don't forget that Trout (the local Glasgow fan group) will be meeting on the Thursday following the convention in the Ingram bar in the city centre from 19:00 hours. |
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| Two weeks to go! |
[Sep. 21st, 2007|11:34 am] |
It is only two weeks until Satellite 1 takes off! One piece of sad news is that Sydney Jordan will not now be able to join us owing to personal circumstances. There remains, though, a full programme which promises to be interesting and fun, with panels, talks and light-hearted items. And then, of course, there is the Dead Laika Party, complete with (honest) a singing dog...
It is still possible for anyone who has not joined the con to sign up at the current rate (£20). Remember that the rate goes up to £25 on the day. |
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| Old Trout corner at Satellite 1! |
[Aug. 20th, 2007|07:58 pm] |
Have you been around Glasgow fandom longer than you care to admit? If so, do you have any old photos that you’d be willing to share with the members of the forthcoming Satellite 1? We plan to have a display board, Old Trout Corner, dedicated to Glasgow Fandom through the ages. Please bring along pictures you think might be suitable (scanned copies, if possible, please, rather than your valuable originals). A note of the year the photo was taken, and who is in it would be great too, if you have the info.
For more info visit: http://www.satellite1.org.uk/ |
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| Paisley Beer Festival |
[Apr. 24th, 2007|09:33 am] |
As discussed at the last Trout, next weekend is the Paisley Beer Festival. The plan is that on Friday, from about 6-ish, Trouts shall descend on the Beer Festival (in Paisley Town Hall) and sample the wares. We are assuming that fen do not need to be led to beer...
On the other hand, anyone who is not sure of their destination should probably join those of us who are meeting in Central Station at 5:30.
Any fan wanting to come along, Trout or not, is welcome. |
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| Happy Cosmonautics Day! |
[Apr. 12th, 2007|11:01 am] |
Today, 46 years ago, in April 12th 1961, Yuri Gagarin made first in human history space flight across the Earth on "Vostok" spaceship! I'm proud to be born the same day as him and hope to repeat his great deed one day!
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| Satellite 1 at Contemplation |
[Apr. 4th, 2007|10:20 am] |
Satellite 1 shall be taking memberships at Eastercon this weekend. This weekend is your last chance to join up at the low rate of £15. The price increases when Contemplation ends! Join now and save money!
If you are not going to Eastercon, you can still use the form at our web site. |
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| Announcement: Guest of Honour |
[Mar. 20th, 2007|10:10 pm] |
The Politburo is delighted to announce that Satellite 1 will have as Guest of Honour...
Ken MacLeod
Remember that membership rates increase after Eastercon; you can join at the current rates until then by downloading the membership form from the Satellite 1 website. |
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| Membership form error! |
[Mar. 7th, 2007|12:02 pm] |
A minor glitch led to the wrong version of the membership form being uploaded to the web site, containing the wrong address to send the form to. This has now been fixed. The correct address has a G4 postcode: if you have a form with a G3 postcode, you have the wrong one! Sorry about that...
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| Join Satellite 1 before Eastercon and save money! |
[Mar. 6th, 2007|12:32 pm] |
It has seemed a little quiet here, for various reasons, but that does not mean that we haven't been doing stuff all this time. The programme for Satellite 1 is taking shape, slowly but surely, and memberships are beginning to come in. Here is a reminder of the con rates at the moment:
| Attending: | £15 | | Supporting: | £5 | | Child (5-15): | £5 | | Infant (0-4): | £1 | | Non-sentient: | £1 |
These rates will increase after Eastercon, so save money and sign up early!
Also remember, this is a con run by fans for fans: we need volunteers, both to help things run smoothly on the day and to suggest/take part in programme items. We are getting a lot of ideas on the science side, which is great, but we need more ideas for fun items and SF-orientated items. Anyone who has an idea or wants to take part in the programme should email: Satellite1.programme@googlemail.com.
Our official web site is now mostly online, with a downloadable membership form, and you can visit it at:
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| We want YOUR contribution! |
[Jan. 27th, 2007|10:22 am] |
Satellite 1 (October 6th, 2007, at the Campanile Hotel, Glasgow, just in case it has slipped your mind) is being organised to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 1 (hence the by-line, “50 years of science, 50 years of science fiction”). The convention will have two major streams, one biased towards SF and the other more focussed on space science. In each, we hope to look back over the past half century (where were we then? where are we now — and is it where we expected?) and forward to the next.
Do you have an idea for a program item? Do you want to volunteer as a program participant? Don't be shy, your contributions are most welcome. Contact us at Satellite1.programme@googlemail.com.
What we are particularly looking for are:- topics for panel discussions
- volunteer speakers
- light-hearted items (quizzes, games, items suitable for younger members)
All suggestions will be considered. Even if we can't use it this time it might be used in a future event. |
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| What is SATELLITE 1? |
[Jan. 10th, 2007|06:18 pm] |
Satellite 1 is a one day convention being held in Glasgow to commemorate 50 years since the Space Age dawned with the launching of Sputnik 1. There will be panels on science (what has been achieved and where do we go from here?) and on science fiction (how did man actually making steps into space affect SF, and what does the future hold?), fun panels and serious panels. The day will be rounded off with a Dead Laika Party and quiz.
The date: Saturday 6th October, 2007
The place: The Campanile Hotel, Tunnel Street, Glasgow.
The cost:
- Attending: £15
- Supporting: £5
- Children: £5
- Infants (0-4): £1
- Non-sentients: £1
These rates will increase at the end of Eastercon.
Owing to a sudden and unexpected problem (namely our membership bod having to move at short notice), we cannot as yet give you a postal address to send off for membership. Initially, we shall take memberships in person at Trout (see ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) glasgow_fen ), and as soon as we have a workable address we shall get membership forms out there. Our official web site should be online soon. |
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| Meeting postponed |
[Dec. 29th, 2006|05:09 pm] |
Because of the severe weather warning for tonight, the meeting we had planned of the Poliburo is cancelled and will now most likely take place next Wednesday. |
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| Satellite 1: Saturday, October 6th 2007 |
[Dec. 16th, 2006|12:14 am] |
Satellite 1
Fifty Years of Science
Fifty Years of Science Fiction
Satellite 1 is a one day convention being held in Glasgow to commemorate 50 years since the Space Age dawned with the launching of Sputnik 1. There will be panels on science (what has been achieved and where do we go from here?) and on science fiction (how did man actually making steps into space affect SF, and what does the future hold?), fun panels and serious panels. The day will be rounded off with a Dead Laika Party and quiz.
Information on membership rates and how to pay coming soon. |
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