My favorite Loncon3 moment
Originally published at Scott Edelman. Please leave any comments there.
I’m home from Worldcon … technically. Both my brain and body are still on London time, which means I’m tired when I should be awake and unable to sleep when I should be tired. But in this brief moment of lucidity, before I launch into a full Loncon3 report-as well as recaps of my meals at The Fat Duck and Dinner by Heston Blumenthal-I thought I’d share my personal highlight of the convention.
It occurred an hour or two into a party being thrown by the publishing company Gollancz. I was in a back room of the Aloft Hotel bar with Robert Reed, Ellen Datlow and others when I spotted the great Brian Aldiss standing by a pool table watching the action. And since I don’t get to see Aldiss often-in fact, the last time was likely during the 2000 Nebula Awards ceremony at which I was Toastmaster and he was named a Grand Master-I immediately left my group, because such opportunities are not to be missed.
I introduced myself and reminded him of when we’d last met. Joined by Rani Graff and Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, we chatted for awhile, a discussion which eventually led to Aldiss reminiscing about the first London Worldcon, held in 1957. I pulled up a site filled with numerous photos from that event, which delighted him. Luckily, looking at all of those images of dead friends made him wistful rather than maudlin.
A wonderful moment … but not yet the most wonderful moment.
That came when the conversation transitioned, for a reason I can no longer pin down, to George Formby. Perhaps Aldiss had mentioned Blackpool, where I’d attended a George Formby Society convention early last year. Whatever the cause, this led to the two of us singing a medley of Formby songs, from “When I’m Cleaning Windows” to “Leaning on a Lampost” to “Mr . Wu” to what was his favorite number, “On the Wigan Boat Express,” which we returned to several times.
Since you’ll never get to hear the two of us making a mess of any of those classic Formby songs, here’s Formby himself singing that last one.
Click to viewWe spent a joyful half an hour singing, during which time I did my best to explain to the clueless Yanks around me who Formby was and why he’d been so important in the UK. It was a marvelous night, and my only regret was that I didn’t have my uke with me so I could provide accompaniment.
Not at all what I would have ever predicted going in would be my favorite Loncon3 moment. But then, serendipity has been a lifelong friend. And I suspect it always will be.