Unicon (British convention)
| Convention | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Unicon |
| Dates: | 1980s |
| Frequency: | |
| Location: | the UK |
| Type: | fan-run |
| Focus: | Written fantasy & SF |
| Organization: | |
| Founder: | |
| Founding Date: | |
| URL: | Unicon on Wikipedia |
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Unicons are, or were, a series of small fan-organised British science fiction conventions held on university sites during the Summer vacation.
They are often combined with other small related conventions, such as filk or games cons.
They were held annually through the 1980s-90s, then more sporadically, with the last held in 2009 at New Hall (now Murray Edwards College) in Cambridge.
The 1993 con was chaired and organised by Bernie Walsh.
The End of the Line
Their decline has been blamed on many factors, most notably jumps in room pricing which make them only slightly less expensive than hotel-based cons while the accommodation and facilities are usually perceived to be poorer, and an increased number of competing summer events such as the Nine Worlds Geekfest convention. An argument against this interpretation is the continued existence of other similarly-sized conventions held on university sites, such as the bi-annual Continuum RPG convention at Leicester university. Whatever the cause, while the Unicon series of conventions has never officially ended, there appear to be no current plans to hold another, and no organization in place to run one.