Meet the Hewletts - 28/06/08

[nny]

The problem, of course, with asking me to do a con report is that I’ll be ridiculously subjective about it. There will be Hewletts eventually, but since that’s not where my event started you’re going to have to wait for them like me.

I spent about four and a half hours travelling to the hotel, but we’ll mostly skip that because it’s incredibly dull and move on to the bit where I was incredibly proud at being able to pronounce deltacephei’s surname correctly in spite of the many many years since I’ve done any German and was therefore able to collect my key. I headed on up to the bar in the hotel, which was much as every other hotel bar I’ve been in but for the presence of deltacephei, naye and tacit_uk which suddenly made it infinitely cooler. We talked about all sorts of fandom things, which is the utterly delightful thing about meeting LJ-ers, and I managed not to shock the waiters too much by strategic use of silence. What is this ‘speaking circumspectly’?

Anyway – the food was dreadful but the beer was delicious. Expensive, ridiculously so, but delicious. And then we headed back up to our respective rooms so I could dump my bag before we all met up again. Possibly the most incredibly geeky of the weekend moments was the part where I discovered that we had citrus and grapefruit shower gel and shampoo and zesty lemon soap. It’s one of those moments where you can’t help but instantly start to write fanfic in your head. Anyway, deltacephei and I went to join the other two in their room, where we were going to watch 5x01 since there would most likely be spoilers the next day. Watching the episode – which I will not spoil, don’t worry – involved a ridiculous amount of squeaking and flailing and seizing of each others’ arms, and we had to watch the beginning of ‘A Dog’s Breakfast’ after to recover. We didn’t quite make it through to the end, though, due to early mornings and extensive travel all around, and bid farewells and snuck off to bed, where we still all managed to stay up another couple of hours in order to talk about fanfic and the like.

My ridiculous bodyclock woke me up at seven the next morning. I played with the internet on my phone for a bit and then watched some awful TV while deltacephei showered, and then we headed over to the other room to eat the picnic breakfast and watch the nudity in ADB, which we hadn’t got to the night before. There was a small flurry of panic when we returned to our room to get our tickets only to find that the door wouldn’t open, but it turns out that naye has the Ancient gene and was able to open it within seconds. We all headed down to registration.

Now the thing about these sorts of things is that they say 10am, but everyone who is not us takes that to mean – what, 8.30? 9? We ended up huddled near the bins at the end of the queue, although the sun was shining and there were fannish conversations all around, so there was really nothing to complain about. Once we had registered we grabbed some seats in the hall and the others very graciously asked me to be in a group photo with them and the Hewletts, so tacit_uk went to queue up for a photo op while the rest of us sat and watched some fan vids. They also showed 5x01 again, which was hilarious because it allowed us to locate – by squeaks alone – the McSheppers in the audience, and then they showed McKay & Mrs Miller. Somewhere in the middle there, torakowalski showed up, Bon Jovi wrecked and tiny and adorable, which was awesome.

They called people up for photoshoots by ticket number, 30 tickets at a time; Kate first, then David, then Kate and David both. We were ticket eighty something for the photo of Many Hewletts, so we didn’t get to queue up for a while, but it is just. Man. It is the strangest thing in the world to see someone you’re used to being two dimensional in glorious 3-D. Possibly it’s because you kind of… you watch these things so many times that you know the movements and the gestures and the words, you’re used to them, and then suddenly there’s a real person doing unexpected things, and looking incredibly HOT doing it. David was in a blue suit and striped shirt and Kate was wearing a lovely red dress, and they were both just delightful, chatting and smiling and being so friendly to everyone with the constant bickering and teasing in between, too. The photos that emerge from the photo sessions just can’t capture – happiness is so much more radiant in motion, I think, so even when you see all the photos that fans post with them and [insert celebrity here] it doesn’t even begin to show the ridiculous glee of it, and a room full of that makes for an awesome atmosphere.

Anyway, yes – our turn eventually came, and I was kind of ridiculously distracted by standing so very close to David Hewlett and therefore don’t have much of an idea what was said, although he was teasing Kate about her pose. I’ll link to the photo when someone else scans it in because those things are expensive so we went for one between the four of us. Then we hustled back into the hall again so that I could grab Tora and we could buy some merchandise to get signed. I went for the picture that’s in my icon because it’s frickin’ adorable and characteristically Hewletts, and we were flailing madly because there kept being small ripples of applause and we were dreadfully worried they’d start without us. Eventually though, we made it to the front of the line, selected our goodies and hurried back to our seats, where Wolf were frantically trying to remove all links between their website and the amount of people that got their money stolen – they reported that there were 8/9 people but I know there was at least one more because I never told anyone. XD

The stage was set up with two tall chairs, and we were sat right by the doors so I kept catching glimpses of David and Kate poking their heads in and waiting to be called up, and I genuinely can’t explain how much more gorgeous they both are in real life, it’s extraordinary. They came onto the stage together to thunderous applause and proceeded to entertain us ridiculously for what seemed both hours long and far, far too short a time.

They started off talking about the wedding. David started off talking about the wedding, actually, with Kate making small sarcastic interjections, and the delightful thing about their storytelling was that David made a small comment about Kate singing, started to go into detail about it, got completely sidetracked into something else, and ended up taking about ten minutes to get back to where he started so he could actually finish the story. It was also hugely amusing how much their sibling bickering interfered with their conversation, how many times they told each other that they’d be discussing this later, how it’s clear from their relationship that David’s always been the attention seeker in the family. Things like Kate scowling and saying “You just did it again! You repeated what I’d said but louder, and everyone laughed! Now it’s been recorded!”

They described the wedding, talking about the waxworks in the basement and the ridiculously heavy church door, food fights at the rehearsal dinner (Kate: “I was there too!” David: “You were?” Kate, holding out hand: “Hi, I’m Kate Hewlett. Nice to meet you.”) the fact that the wedding party was Jane and David and a hundred small children, the fact that their wedding cake was made up of loads of small cakes so everyone could have one – loads of adorable details. Also mentioned was the fact that David had trouble keeping a straight face because the priest had a voice like a muppet, and that Baz is apparently the antichrist because he started screaming in churches and at priests.

Kate also mentioned that she sang at the wedding because David asked her not to and Jane asked her to, and she likes Jane better. She told a really sweet story about how she completely lost her place in the middle of the song – she was playing guitar and she and her sister were singing – because she looked over at David to see tears streaming down his face, and she never sees him cry. It was a cue for David to start teasing her about how badly she covered her slip, but everyone in the audience was melting a little, I think.

Crying was a recurring theme throughout the teasing, along with David’s hair – or lack of it.

They also talked about SG:A episode The Shrine, which apparently they both got weepy over, and about how much they laugh when they’re working on SG:A… I can’t remember everything they spoke about, sadly, although I do remember how David called us a room full of criminals when it was mentioned that we’d watched 5x01 earlier – apparently he hasn’t seen it yet – and said that Joe Flanigan would come in with a P-90. When the audience just slightly erupted at that he made sure to mention that it wouldn’t be all he was wearing, and then made a comment along the lines of ‘Is that a P-90 in your pocket…?’ which delighted me enormously.

I’m trying to remember highlights here, because I swear I could keep typing forever.

David was asked, in the Q&A session, to do one of his lines from the show, and when he was hemming and hawing Kate grabbed a small fluffy creature – looked like a lion, but I’ve heard tell it was a squirrel – and told him to pretend it was Zelenka, at which he yelled “And I could have fixed it, if not for Dr FUMBLES MCFUZZYBUTT HERE.” Possibly the best name ever?

Someone else asked which roles they’d want to play – Kate went for a period piece, something like the Importance of Being Ernest, and also mentioned Jane Austen; when someone else asked who she’d like to be her Mr Darcy she said Jason Momoa. Or Alan Rickman, who David did a truly dreadful impression of. She then bristled and said that he was sexy, dammit, and David flailed and insisted he wasn’t disagreeing!

David, of course, went for Doctor Who – with prompting from the audience – and bitched a little about David Tennant not being right for the part because it shouldn’t be a fan, with digressions into bitching about his enormous amounts of hair. This also kind of became a running theme, with David getting lost in the middle of conversations and then saving it by declaiming “I’m Doctor Who!” and starting to sing the theme. Somewhere in there there was also talk of him clearly needing to be in the next muppet film and having to hang out with Gonzo, followed by a claim that eventually SG:A would be ‘McKay and the Muppets’.

*snickers*

Embarrassing stories about David were asked for, and Kate started to tell one with frequent interruptions from David. Eventually she said that he had to sit down and shut up, and there was huge applause from the audience. She told the tale of how he always used to pretend to fall over things and pretend to have things hit him, of how he would spend hours lying at the bottom of the stairs pretending to be dead. Apparently – from David – his father would just step over him and Kate would always kick him, “but I couldn’t react, ‘cos I was dead.” Anyway, one time he was bending to pick up a pencil at school when someone kicked a chair which hit him in the head. He was knocked out, but everyone thought he was faking it and stood around laughing. One of his friends picked him up and dropped him again, and he wound up with concussion. The other story that was told was when Kate’s friend came over and saw a family photo, with David with his long hair and make-up – like I said, apparently he used to paint birds on his face – and exclaimed that she hadn’t realised Kate had three sisters.

Loads more was talked about but I really can’t remember much more of it – some practical jokes were mentioned, and the fact that Jason Momoa is terrified of David because the first time they met David was hanging upside down and completely lost it at Rainbow because he kept messing up his lines. Oh, also Kate mentioned how when she came back on the set – before she’d even seen David – one of the ADs came over with breakfast for her. And on top of her breakfast, under the tin foil, was a note that said ‘You are a big loser – D’.

They are so still thirteen!

So anyway – eventually the time was up and they had to leave, but I swear I could have listened to them talk for absolutely hours. We all pottered off to get some food and suchlike (I swear, only for Hewlett proximity would I eat McDonalds) and then there was queuing for signage. Both the Hewletts were bemused by my name, and David naturally mentioned the Knights who say Ni; I told him what it was actually short for, and I swear hearing David Hewlett saying both permutations of your name is an experience that it’s difficult to top, sad child that I am. The queues were absolutely immense, and I really admire David and Kate for being so sweet and polite to everyone they spoke to.

I have a couple of crappy photos on my phone which I will update with as soon as the internet cooperates, and I’ll link to any others as and when I find them.

I also ran into chickyoops and looking4tarzan, randomly – the latter when we were talking about a fic called Intersections and she mentioned she’d read it and then recognised my LJ name – which always surprises me.

And that was pretty much the end of it, really. If you reckon I’ve left out anything or there’s anything you want to ask about, let me know.

For the record? I haven’t stopped smiling yet.

Comments

[torakowalski.livejournal.com]

Ooh, wow, your report is so much better than mine! How did you remember all that?

Kate: “I was there too!” David: “You were?” Kate, holding out hand: “Hi, I’m Kate Hewlett. Nice to meet you.”

Hee! I'd forgotten that bit and it was one of my favourites! I still have hearts in my eyes for them both.

[villainny.livejournal.com]

I totally forgot to add all the stuff about Teylababy and the rubber baby it was so fun to drop on the floor and the doctor helping him with his booties, and LOADS more...

[kimberlyfdr.livejournal.com]

I adore their sibling relationship more than words can say :D This was an awesome report and I thank you kindly for sharing it!! \o/

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank you so much for sharing this with us! It sounds like you had a fantastic time and Kate and David sound utterly adorable together. Yay!

[horridporrid.livejournal.com]

Awesome report! Thank you so much for taking the time to write it up. :D

[lamardeuse.livejournal.com]

YAY! Thanks so much for this! You rock! :)

[darkrosetiger.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for posting this, especially this part:

Kate went for a period piece, something like the Importance of Being Ernest, and also mentioned Jane Austen; when someone else asked who she’d like to be her Mr Darcy she said Jason Momoa.

...I think I need to lie down now.

[wraithfodder.livejournal.com]

Found your blog and THANK YOU from all of us who couldn't attend this event. Love the tidbits about the Hewletts and heck, I just like con reports in general :)

[winkingstar.livejournal.com]

Eeee, how did you not pass out from their awesomeness?

Thanks for the write-up! :D

[stillwaters11.livejournal.com]

Thanks for such a detailed report!
*is jealous* ;)

[naye]

I have the Ancient gene?? XD

AWESOME report! Linking to this in my first attempt at writing anything about the con - post going up right now, and there IS a picture! Whooooo!

(Still smiling myself. ♥)

[mangst.livejournal.com]

Great report! Thanks. :)

[friendshipper.livejournal.com]

Here from naye's LJ. Thank you for the wonderful write-up! It sounds like a fantastic time.

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Waah, thanks for the detailed report, it sounds awesome!

[tipsywitch.livejournal.com]

*waves* excellent report. I asked the question about the other roles and who Kate's Mr D'Arcy would be, I was expecting Dr Who from David but not the period piece thing from Kate, that's when I blurted out about who her Mr D'Arcy would be. I keep having visions of Jason Momoa in full regency gear!!!! It just won't go away.

I've also got David dressed as Snape in my head as well *G*, without the wig.

[ionaonie.livejournal.com]

(Kate: “I was there too!” David: “You were?” Kate, holding out hand: “Hi, I’m Kate Hewlett. Nice to meet you.”)
That was one of my favourite lines too *g*

The teasing that went on between them was a joy. Especially about hair and crying.

All the stuff about Jason was hilarious and threatening a bunch of fangirls with Joe F bursting in with a P90 is not much of a deterent *g*

I loved when David was explaining about The Shrine and there were all those 'eeeeee' noises from around the room and he stopped, looked slightly bemused, and was like, was that the squee?

My face hurt so much by the end and all the laughing I'd done. I think they must be some of the nicest people I've ever met.

I want to be able to do it all over again

[perardua.livejournal.com]

Dude, I was going to try a write-up, but I might just link to this. The most I can manage is ".............. HEWLETTS!!!! *noise that only dogs can hear*"

[tacittype.livejournal.com]

Awesome post! You have a great memory, reading this made me relive the whole very cool day.

I'm so glad we met, I had a blast hanging out with you. We should meet up again some time and be geeks together! @hearts

[chickyoops.livejournal.com]

90 pictures from the Q&A here (http://chickyoops.livejournal.com/105570.html) and here (http://chickyoops.livejournal.com/105799.html). :D

[deltacephei.livejournal.com]

Oooh! This is so detailed! I'd have needed a recording to write all this up. I'm laughing out loud again here. It was so much fun! Hewletts! The wedding! Children of Satan! The Hair! Zelenka, the small fluffy something! Search and Rescue!
And LJ people in the flesh! It was great meeting you there!

[mashimero.livejournal.com]

I just love reading con reports. It makes feel all happy and fannish and giddy. Probably 1/3 of what it's actually like, but it's the closest I'm likely to get. Even if I was somehow in Vancouver during a con, I don't think I could stomach paying $300 for a ticket.

But yes, this is an awesome con report. The Hewletts seem like so much fun.

♥