MCM Comic Con London returned to ExCeL this May for another packed weekend of TV, film, gaming, anime, comics, cosplay and pop culture, bringing thousands of fans together for three days of panels, interviews, merch, creators and gloriously geeky chaos.
If you’ve never experienced MCM Comic Con before, imagine a three-day carnival of fandom. It’s friendly, open, inclusive, and packed with something for everyone, whether you want to go all-out with cosplay, wander the show floor in casual gear, meet friends, make new ones, or bring the whole family along for a weekend of geeky goodness.
This year’s May event also came with an added challenge: heat. London hit around 32C over the weekend, which made for the slightly odd experience of stepping inside a convention centre packed with thousands of people in order to cool down. Thankfully, ExCeL’s air conditioning was doing some heroic work, so while the halls were busy, they were also considerably more comfortable than the oven-like outdoors.
As always, the cosplay was a huge part of the weekend. There were some amazing outfits across all three days, from screen-accurate armour to anime characters, gaming builds, superheroes, and wonderfully obscure deep-cut references. Quite how some people survived in full costume remains a mystery. One person in full plate armour on Friday deserves particular respect, or possibly a welfare check. By Sunday, Batman cosplayers seemed thin on the ground, presumably because wearing head-to-toe black rubber in 32C heat is less “I am vengeance” and more “I am about to pass out near the merch stalls.”
I also spotted someone in a full furry X-Men Beast costume on Sunday, which I can only assume was planned before anyone checked the weather forecast…
To get a sense of the scale and atmosphere, here’s a brilliant walkthrough from our friends at Comic-Con News:
Highlights From The Weekend
Across the stages, MCM Comic Con London May 2026 delivered a huge mix of television, film, gaming, voice acting and author panels, with guests from some massive geek culture franchises.
The cast of Resident Evil Requiem appeared on stage to discuss one of the biggest games of the year, with Angela Sant’Albano (Resident Evil Requiem), Emma Rose Creaner (Resident Evil Requiem) and Jane Perry (Hitman, Returnal) sharing behind-the-scenes stories from the upcoming title.
Sant’Albano, who voices Grace Ashcroft, spoke about the importance of the role, saying: “I remember thinking, you know what, all that I want to focus on and all I care about is that people like Grace – that haven’t been a heroine in a big thing or who haven’t had a chance – get to see themselves in these roles. I just wanted to do justice for them.”
She also discussed the character’s more traumatic scenes, adding: “I’m not a screamer in everyday life but screaming was very natural to me”.
Over on the Side Quest Stage, id Software co-founder and Doom creator John Romero offered a fascinating look back at game development, shooter design, and the legacy of classic 90s FPS games.
Romero praised Half-Life 2, saying: “Half-Life 2 is one of the greatest shooters ever made. Other people have not replicated what they did, it was hard to do.”
He also discussed one of his biggest regrets from his time at id Software, commenting: “If we knew the game was going to take 11 months, we would have made a new game with Doom’s tech or a piece of Quake’s tech whilst the rest of the team continues making the engine. The first game would have taken a few months. Tom Hall and I agreed we should have made two games.”
Romero also revealed: “When I left, I didn’t see any money from Quake.”
On modern shooter design, he added: “90s shooter design has a lot of elements modern games don’t have. Secrets are way too easy to find. There’s not nested secrets, like triple nested secrets. If you do find a secret it’s usually because you’re going down a path and choose to look left. You’re not breaking walls or shooting a target that’s super hard to see. People aren’t doing that, there’s been a focus on the simplification of shooters.”
The Star Wars: The Clone Wars cast also appeared across the weekend, with Matt Lanter (Timeless, 90210), James Arnold Taylor (Ratchet & Clank, Final Fantasy X), Nika Futterman (The Loud House, Star Wars: The Clone Wars), Catherine Taber (Knights of the Old Republic, Star Wars: The Clone Wars), Dee Bradley Baker (The Bad Batch, Avatar: The Last Airbender) and Ashley Eckstein (Star Wars: The Clone Wars, That’s So Raven) talking about the much-loved animated series and its wider Star Wars legacy.
Eckstein revealed a rather lovely run-in she once had with Finn Wolfhard at Tokyo Disneyland, saying: “I had a weird moment once at Tokyo Disneyland and I was in the ice cream shop, Finn Wolfhard from Stranger Things came in and sat at the table next to us and geeked out about Clone Wars the entire time – and I’m a fan of Stranger Things. My husband said I should say something, but I didn’t. I wish I could go back and say something like “Hey I’m a fan of yours and you like Clone Wars!”
She also reflected on how The Clone Wars helped keep Star Wars alive at a very different point in the franchise’s history, saying: “For us, it’s easy to forget but when Clone Wars was on the air, there was no other Star Wars. We thought Star Wars was done. This was before Disney bought it and we were the only thing on the air… Without the success of Clone Wars we might not be seeing Mandalorian, Boba Fett, etcetera”
Eckstein also shared that she had managed to change Ahsoka’s character design, adding: “I wanted Ahsoka to have one change and it happened – nobody is going to fight a war in a tube top! I was really excited when they changed her costume.”
Fair point, really.
Metal Gear Solid & Hitman
Saturday, over on the Side Quest Stage, Metal Gear Solid legends David Hayter (Metal Gear Solid, X-Men) and Cam Clarke (Metal Gear Solid, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) discussed their voice acting work on the iconic franchise.
Hayter revealed that he reduced his own offer for Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty in order to help bring back the original cast, explaining that “they wanted more money”, so he said: “take this much money off my offer, split it up, and bring back the original cast”.
Hayter and Clarke also praised Hideo Kojima’s writing, saying “the scripts were so cinematic” and “that’s Kojima’s writing”.
When discussing the impact of the games on fans, they said they “had no idea what was going on with you [their fans] and how you [fans] were truly impacted by us”. Hayter added: “what you have given us by sharing your most intimate stories is never lost on us”.
Hitman’s Jane Perry (Hitman, Returnal) and David Bateson (Hitman) also appeared on the Side Quest Stage to talk all things Agent 47 and Diana.
Bateson recalled how he landed the role of Agent 47, saying that “in the middle of a recording for a corporate voiceover, this guy came in and interrupted the session and was looking for a voice”. He added that what struck him about the game was “the graphics and look about it, that was very Blade Runner”.
Perry also discussed female fans’ connection to Hitman, saying: “Diana is that role model for people and I like hearing that connection to the character and try to champion that”. Bateson added that “we feel deeply humbled to meet such dedication and passion from the fans”.
Geektown’s MCM Comic Con London Videos
Geektown was at MCM across the weekend, covering panels, grabbing interviews, filming video clips, and attempting to be in as many places as possible without developing the ability to teleport.
Below, you’ll find our videos from MCM Comic Con London May 2026, including interviews and panel clips with stars from Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Firefly, Hellaverse, Beyond Paradise, and Brandon Sanderson’s author panel.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars Cast Interview
We headed into the press room with members of the legendary Star Wars: The Clone Wars cast, including Dee Bradley Baker (Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Avatar: The Last Airbender), Matt Lanter (Timeless, 90210), James Arnold Taylor (Ratchet & Clank, Final Fantasy X), Nika Futterman (The Loud House, Star Wars: The Clone Wars) and Catherine Taber (Knights of the Old Republic, Star Wars: The Clone Wars).
The cast discussed the legacy of the much-loved animated series, why it continues to mean so much to fans, how it helped introduce a new generation to Star Wars, and what it was like returning to these characters across different projects.
There was also chat about Ahsoka, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Asajj Ventress, recording together, LEGO projects, video games, Yoda, tauntauns, Hondo, Old Ben, automatic doors, Jedi mind tricks, and the eternal question: Jedi or Sith?
Nathan Fillion & Alan Tudyk Panel
Nathan Fillion (Firefly, The Rookie) and Alan Tudyk (Firefly, Resident Alien) took to the MCM stage for a wonderfully chaotic panel packed with stories, jokes, and the sort of effortless chemistry you only get from two people who have spent more than 20 years making each other laugh.
Across the panel, the pair discussed Firefly, Con Man, The Rookie, Resident Alien, Alan staying at Nathan’s house after the Firefly pilot, a bizarrely detailed instruction video, favourite cameos, home studio chaos, and the possibility of more Con Man.
There was also talk of Santa Clarita Diet, Community, zombie heads in jars, Disney characters, stolen dance moves, and the general sense that you could leave these two on stage for several hours and they would still find new ways to derail each other.
Hellaverse Panel
Fans of Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss packed in for the Hellaverse panel, hosted by CJ Allen, featuring Richard Steven Horvitz (Helluva Boss, Invader Zim), Vivian Nixon (Helluva Boss, Grey’s Anatomy) and Erika Henningsen (Hazbin Hotel, Girls5eva).
The panel covered renewal news, voice recording, the energy of the fandom, and the wonderfully chaotic effect Brandon Rogers can have on a session. Given the sheer enthusiasm in the room, it is safe to say the Hellaverse fanbase is not exactly lacking in passion.
Beyond Paradise Panel
The Beyond Paradise panel brought Kris Marshall (Death In Paradise, My Family), Zahra Ahmadi (Doctor Who, The Bay), Dylan Llewellyn (Derry Girls, Big Boys) and Felicity Montagu (Alan Partridge, Doc Martin) to MCM to discuss the hit Death In Paradise spin-off.
The cast chatted about life in Shipton Abbott, the charm of the series, working together, and what makes Beyond Paradise such a warm and popular extension of the wider Death In Paradise universe.
Brandon Sanderson Panel & Fan Q&A
Brandon Sanderson also appeared at MCM Comic Con London for a main stage author panel and fan Q&A, covering everything from Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive to adaptations, writing craft, worldbuilding, Cosmere lore, and the sort of very specific fantasy questions that make you realise Sanderson fans do not mess about.
The first part of the panel focuses more broadly on his work, career and adaptations, including discussion of Mistborn and how he approaches translating novels to screen.
Parts two and three move into the fan Q&A, which gets delightfully detailed, covering Cosmere connections, character growth, Hoid, Shards, Honorblades, Investiture, story structure, music, casting, and plenty more. If you are deep into Sanderson lore, there is a lot to dig into. If you are not, you may occasionally feel like you have wandered into the final lecture of a university course where everyone else has done the reading.
Comics, Creators & The Show Floor
No MCM trip is complete without a wander through the comic creators, artists, indie publishers, merch stalls and general show floor madness.
We caught up with Neil Gibson’s Twisted Comics, who now have a comic book adaptation of the Black Mirror episode USS Callister. Alongside that, they had their excellent Twisted Dark books and Acting Like Animals, a darkly funny dystopian comic series set in a world where animals are in charge and humans are the “animals.”
We also caught up with the team from Beyond The Bunker Comics, the people behind the wonderfully bonkers Moon. For the uninitiated, Moon follows the actual Moon, who, after a drunken Celtic ritual in 12AD, now crashes to Earth every night wearing a suit and carrying a gun to fight ridiculous crime.
It is exactly as mad as that sounds, and all the better for it.
They also have a new comic adaptation of the classic kids’ TV show The Trap Door, following Berk, Boni and Drutt in the basement dungeon of the Horrible-Thing upstairs, and the ever-present Trap Door into which, as the theme song wisely warned, you should not go.
Also worth a shout-out is Can Can Can a Man, who were showing off their game Gold Gold Adventure Gold, currently in Early Access on Steam. I had a fun 30 minutes playing it on the show floor, and it immediately appealed to the part of me that loses hours to building games. It has some building elements, a lovely hand-drawn art style, a little reminiscent of Oxygen Not Included, and a nicely oddball sense of charm. Definitely one to keep an eye on if you like your indie games with a bit of construction, a bit of chaos, and a lot of personality.
Listen To Our Geektown Radio MCM Comic Con London Special
We also recorded a special Geektown Radio episode from the weekend, featuring convention chat, clips from some of the panels, and the full Star Wars: The Clone Wars press room interview.
You can listen to the MCM Comic Con London May 2026 Special below.
Cosplay Gallery
As always, the cosplay scene at MCM Comic Con London was spectacular. From elaborate armour to anime builds, superhero costumes, gaming characters, horror icons, and wonderfully obscure references, the creativity on display was one of the best parts of the weekend.
Some of the photos below were taken by us, with others supplied by the official MCM photographers.
Final Thoughts
MCM Comic Con London once again proved why it remains one of the UK’s biggest and most joyfully chaotic pop culture events, even when London decided to cosplay as a pizza oven for three days.
Between the panels, guests, interviews, cosplay, creators, games, comics and general convention madness, May 2026 delivered another brilliantly geeky weekend at the ExCeL.
MCM returns to Birmingham in August 2026, then to ExCeL for MCM London in October 2026. Find out more at mcmcomiccon.com.
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