Fandom is a wonderful thing. It fuels passion and interests and gives people a belief in themselves.

This is what happened in 1997 when Sonja Van Den Ende called me to tell me that she intended running a Highlander convention in Brisbane and that she was going to invite Peter Wingfield and Stan Kirsch! I offered to give whatever help I could - politely pointing out that whilst I had run corporate events I had never been involved in fandom.  Sonja was an old trooper and had been involved in fandom in Brisbane for over 20 years.

We put an enormous amount of time and effort into the event - a small, boutique affair of around 80.  Unfortunately neither Peter nor Stan ended up being able to attend however that didn't stop us going ahead with the event. It was a true 'fan' event, with many panels discussing/arguing various aspects of immortality, Duncan MacLeod's astrological sign and the effects of the stars and planetary alignments on his subsequent life; viewings on the large screen of our favourite episodes.  Remember, back in 1997 we didn't have large screen TVs so it is not hard to realise how exciting it was to see our heroes 20' tall...

Take a look at the Programme and you will see what I mean about the breadth of the topics.  In particular, what stands out is the early recognition of the many complex layers that made up the Highlander universe and in particular, a recognition of the importance of the writing and David Abramowitz's seminal contribution via the panel on Spirituality in Highlander.

Peter Wingfield was gracious and incredibly accommodating and took part in what turned out to be a hilarious Q&A on a phone call from the UK.  I remember all of us racing from one part of the room to another as the signal ebbed and flowed in all manner of directions.

It was a very special event and forged the foundations of what would, some years later, become Highlander WorldWide.

PRESIDENT HIGHLANDER WORLDWIDE