On the 15th September I joined my sister and her family for a jaunt across the universe to Contraxia to take part in the Gathering of the Clans. Also known as a secret venue in Wembley, London, for the latest Secret Cinema experience. For those not in the know, (seems to be most people I’ve talked to), Secret Cinema put on live interactive experiences based around movies, or tv shows in the case of Stranger Things. You play a character in the movies universe, in this case you become a member of a Ravager clan attending the Gathering of the Clans on the planet Contraxia (think space pirates of various factions meeting up to see which in the best clan). Of course Peter Quill (Star-Lord), Gamora, Drax, Baby Groot, along with Yondu and The Collector make appearances through the evening. Even Rocket Racoon shows up, albeit in digital form. The first part of the evening is the interactive part, which lasts around 3 hours, and once that is done you then go and watch the movie. Or not, as some people just do the interactive part.

Photos from the official Secret Cinema page.

*** Possible spoilers ahead***

As I said, we were going to the event on the 17th September. I made a joke in my last post about Secret Cinema that there always seems to be a rail strike before I went, and this was meant to be true for my journey to London this time, which caused me some stress. However the week before I was due to travel, Queen Elizabeth II died. This meant the strikes were called off. I was a little worried that people travelling down to London to pay their respects would make travel difficult, but this was the case. I did avoid the centre of London as much as possible though.

When we got Wembley, we found the meeting point and were directed to the venue. It was a short walk from Wembley Stadium, and easy enough to find as you just followed the various outlandishly dressed people heading there. That included us.

I’m second from the left, with the most migraine inducing pair of goggles on my head. The rest of the gang are my sister, brother in law and nephew (who’s hair I am supremely jealous of). This is the official photo spot before you go in, as before being allowed in your mobile phone is sealed away in a special pouch so you can’t take photos during the interactive show. And if dressing up isn’t your thing then you are free to just wear a clan badge, or something with the colour representing your chosen clan. In fact in the whole experience you are free to immerse yourself as much or as little as you like.

Once you get inside you are shown into a darkened area where a short intro video is played, and you are ’transported’ to the planet Contraxia. The first area we went into immediately took our breath away. It was bright, it was gaudy, it even (fake) snowed! From there you could go into the Neon Lotus bar, complete your look at the Store, or head into The Boot of Jermiah, meet you Clan representative and join in the search for The Collectors lost items, join in various games and challenges and trade items to gain points for your clan. I went with a few plastic figures, and somehow ended up with a Brian Ferry CD at the end of the night.

Anyway, we had drinks in the Neon Lotus, got a police/Nova Corps warning for helping a wanted criminal and watched a very impressive game of Limbo that made my back hurt just watching it. I highly recommend the alcoholic jelly shots by the way. Then we went to the Boot, did some trading, watched Drax try street food and Star-Lord and Gamora argue, tried (and failed) to blag our way into The Collectors secret stash, saw some very weird challenges take place in the arena and discovered a whole stall devoted to my favourite drink, Kraken Spiced Rum.
And if you have never seen people line dance to Footloose by Kenny Logins then you haven’t lived! Yondu shot a few rivals, with clever use of lighting to simulate his sound controlled killing arrows.

The Interactive section of the show ended with The Guardians of the Galaxy facing off against The Collector to stop his nefarious plans to use one of the items he had you tracking down. There was excitement. There was fighting. There was a flying Star-Lord. All whilst we cheered them on. It. Was. Epic. The cast did a brilliant job hyping the audience up, it was awesome.

Then it was movie time! We were shown to the cinema area, given our phones back and settled in to watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

The movie experience was amazingly enhanced by special lighting effects that complimented the movie, giving it even more depth. Unlike normal cinema experiences, the audience reacted with cheers, gasps and other emotional outbursts, preserving the interactive feel. At least this time i didn’t cry my eyes out at the ending. Really. Ok, Ok, I can’t hear Father and Son by Cat Stevens without tearing up anymore. So what…

Accessability

As my ticket had originally been booked for my niece, no assistance had been booked, but it is available. People with Blue Badges, Freedom Passes or receive PIP/DLA can get a free carer ticket, which is great if you need it. Like I say, we hadn’t booked assistance, however on arrival staff were very quick to ask if I needed it, and all through the event they were available and very attentive.

So what about the event itself. From the get go, there was flashing and strobe lighting, which some people will want to be aware of. And the interactive part of the event is very crowded and busy/noisy. Most of the experience is all on one level, with just one area up a flight of stairs. There are a few places to sit, which saved my bacon a few times, but for people with mobility issues who don’t use a wheelchair there is a fair bit of standing and walking around. It’s especially crowded during the finale, so you may want to make sure you are in a spot nearer the outside of the crowd; as the action happens on high stages you won’t miss anything. I’d also advise waiting for the area to clear out somewhat before heading to the movie area, because we all know what crowds can be like. There is plenty of seating, and there are easily accessible seats if needed.

Most showing aren’t subtitled, but both showings on Sundays are.

So the you have it. Yet another amazing event by Secret Cinema. I’d highly recommend it, even to people who aren’t huge Marvel film fans.

And on the way back I got this beautiful photo I thought I’d share.