About the Convention (FAQ)

Well, it’s a gathering of people who like Terry Pratchett’s Discworld book series, organised for fans, by fans. We get together in a hotel for four days every two years (2019 will be the 6th Irish DWCon), go to talks, play games and quizzes, watch a talent show, chat to people who share our sense of humour and generally have a great time. Whether you have followed the story of the Discworld from its inception or have just finished reading your first story, IDWCon welcomes you to meet with those involved in the creation of the Discworld, pick up souvenirs, books or memories, and share your enjoyment with other Discworld fans through chatting, going to events, and playing games. Attending a gathering of Discworld fans has been described as “meeting friends you didn’t know you had”.

Each convention has a theme chosen from the books. This time we’re going to leave the familiarity of the Ramtops and Ankh-Morpork behind, and journey to the dark depths of Überwald. We think MMBU (Miles and Miles of Bloody Überwald) gives plenty of space for our imaginations, so we’re heading to the delightful village of Schnapp for their Sektoberfest celebrations. Schnapp’s a cheerful, peaceful place, keen to promote their tourist industry. But visitors to this idyllic place shouldn’t forget that this is Überwald, so humans are a minority among the local denizens: Nosferatus Sanguineus (vampires), Lupus Sapiens (werewolves), Igors, and in the vast mines and caverns below ground, the Hortus Decorus (dwarfs). Of course if you do fancy dressing up, tourists will be joining us from all over the Dysk, so wizards, witches, watchpeople, and all others are welcome. The theme is a fun addition, but you can get as involved in it (or not) as you like, as with all aspects of the convention.

IDWCon 2019 will take place from the 29th March to the 1st April 2019. Due to the popularity of our choice the previous two times, IDWCon 2019 will again be held at the Cork International Hotel in the Cork Airport Business Park, just outside of Cork City, Ireland. For more information on the Cork International Hotel, see here.

For further details on how to get to its location, see here.
Regular buses run between the airport itself or Cork Airport Business Park (just outside the front door of the Cork International Hotel) and Cork’s train and bus stations in the city centre.
The hotel is very close to Cork Airport, so it’s easy to fly in and hop on the free shuttle bus to and from the hotel (or take a 5 minute walk).

Sir Terry himself is unfortunately no longer with us. However, we are very lucky that some of his co-conspirators – people who’ve worked with Terry, who’ve peeked behind the creative curtain – will be coming to entertain us. Head on over to the Guest Page to see the lovely people who have agreed to be our guests so far. You can also see who’s joined us in the past on our Previous Conventions page.

Even more important than the guests are our attendees, the host of Irish and international Discworld fans who’ll come together for the Convention. People travel from all over the world, and from down the road. A lot of people come for the first time, alone and confused, not really sure what it’s all about, and they leave with firm friends and a promise to return for the next one. We hope you’ll come and satisfy your curiosity if this is all new to you. And we hope to welcome many of last time’s members back again.

The Convention is run by a group of fans, who volunteer their spare time to organise every last detail. It’s a not-for-profit event, so all the profit beyond what we need to run the convention goes to our chosen charities. We raise money for them in a variety of ways, including a Charity Auction and selling an eclectic mix of IDWCon-exclusive Discworld merchandise and memorabilia.

The Convention is packed with fun events, such as interviews and talks with esteemed guests, competitions, quizzes, games galore and, of course, our Banquet Dinner. But the main reason to come is not just our programme, but our members. Discworld fans are, on the whole, a warm and welcoming bunch and if you’ve ever sniggered to yourself over a Discworld book you’ll feel right at home amongst them.
If that's not recommendation enough, we were also fortunate enough to win best Irish Convention of 2015 at The Arcade awards.

Then you should definitely come along! Conventions are all about inclusion and sharing your love of something with others. The committee and attendees of IDWCon are very welcoming and always glad to see new faces, be they human, dwarf, troll or even Nobby Nobbs.

Of course! Plenty of people have turned up at a Discworld Convention alone, but they don’t stay that way for long. We're a friendly crowd. If you’re coming alone but want to keep costs down, you could look for roommates on our Facebook group.

You can find out more about memberships on our About Membership page. Alas, we have already sold out of memberships – but all is not lost, however, as some of our members will inevitably find out that they can't make it, and will want to pass their memberships on. You can get in the queue for them by joining our waiting list – just fill in our Waiting List form. Please note that the last date that we can allow membership transfers is 1st March 2019.

We understand that Real Life™ can sometimes get in the way of going to conventions. If you're in the unfortunate position where you can't make it any more, it'd be great if you passed your membership on to someone else. While we can't offer refunds, we can put you in touch with the person at the top of our waiting list so that you can sort out membership transfer and any remuneration. Just fill in our Membership Selling List form, and we'll get back to you as soon as possible. Remember, the last date for membership transfers is 1st March 2019.

The convention is run by the committee and their helpers, all of whom are volunteers and fans like yourself. They’ll be easily recognisable by their logo’d green shirts. They should be able to help with anything from lost items, to last minute changes to the programme, to any other issue you might have. If they can't help you, they'll help you find someone who can.

The committee and convention staff are all volunteers, but we also need volunteers to help us out over the course of the Convention (and in the lead-up). If you’d like to help out in any way, please let us know when buying membership or by contacting us. General volunteers (traditionally known as Gophers, but in honour of our Überwaldy theme we’ll be calling them Igors) are always appreciated. You don’t need to spend the whole weekend helping out behind the scenes – many of our volunteers only help us for a couple of hours over the course of the weekend. We’ll also need a crew of stewards, first aiders, and tech heads, so do let us know if your skills lie in those areas. Most importantly, make sure you spread the word to friends and family about the Convention!
If you’d like any further information, please email info@idwcon.org, or turn up to a Gopher briefing on the Friday or Saturday of the Convention. Please note that volunteers still need to have purchased a full membership for the convention.

If you have any other questions, the best way to get in touch with us is to email info@idwcon.org. You can also message us on our Facebook Page and our Twitter. To get in touch with other fans who’ll be attending, check our convention’s Facebook Group. And if you've a brilliant idea for a programme item you’d like to run, or see if we can run, please email programme@idwcon.org.