Let me start by saying that the cast members don’t expect gifts at Sasnak City events. During The Gathering 2024, the autographs were the time to give your gifts if you did take them.
Of course, the autographs are also a time to get the signature of the cast members. At The Gathering 2024, attendees were given a beautiful print that had the headshots of all cast members in attendance. This was in place of the autograph cards that have been provided in the past, and people certainly loved this print.
If you had your own items, you could take them. Each tier had some autographs included, and others had to be purchased.
Set times for autographs at The Gathering 2024
Autographs were set up throughout the event. On the first day, there were two locations for the autographs to make sure as many could happen as possible. Leoch and Fraser’s Ridge tier members were invited to get those initial autographs, and then others could jump in as they had a chance to.
Throughout the weekend, there were more times set up. Of course, Sunday is catch-up day. Those who didn’t get a chance to get their autographs throughout the week were able to get them on the last day.
Funnily, it was mainly Tim Downie and Lauren Lyle autographs that most people hadn’t managed to get by the last day. There were fewer slots for them throughout the weekend due to their meet and greets and other requirements, so it made sense. It shows that the set-up for the autographs ran smoothly this year since only those were mostly needed.
The autograph line isn’t a chance to talk forever. This is just a quick chat while they sign things. Of course, some of the cast members—Paul Gorman was a little guilty of this at first—do end up chatting a little too much. They are intrigued by what you have to say and what you love about the show, but some people have four items to get signed so it already takes a while. The lines need to keep moving.
The time for gift giving at Sasnak City events
Some people like to have a gift for various cast members. This could be a small pin from a country or a specific item that makes you think of the individual cast member.
Of course, there are rules on the items that can be given. Anything that is given needs to be allowed on a flight. The cast members tend to fly from the UK, although there were some flying from parts of North America due to where they live or other vacation plans they had.
Another important rule is no home-baked goods. This avoids allergens and any potential health risks to the individual. If you want to give a baked good, it needs to be store bought.
Nothing can be wrapped. It needs to be put in a gift bag if you want to make it special, and the handler will always open the bag. This is a safety issue. We know that the majority of people aren’t going to do anything harmful, but there’s always an outlier in the world, right?
This year also had the rule of no nuts. There was a member of the cast with a severe peanut allergy. This school-safe snacks!
Overall, the autographs did seem to run a lot more smoothly at The Gathering 2024 than in previous years I’ve been at Sasnak City events. Changing the way the tiers go up certainly helped, I think!