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Stargate armour debuts at Kelowna expo

The Kelowna Fan Experience will feature Jaffa armour from Stargate SG-1
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Restored Jaffa armour from the Stargate SG-1 will be displayed for the first time at the Kelowna Fan Experience, which runs from March 23 to 25. - Credit: Contributed

Stargate and Planet of the Apes fans will rejoice at the displays at this year’s Kelowna Fan Experience.

Now in its fifth year, and formally known as the Kelowna Fan Expo, the three-day event will feature a trove of goodies for comic book, music and international culture fans March 23 to 25 in Kelowna’s downtown.

Richard Johns, of Empire Movie Props, will present a fully restored Jaffa armour suit from the Stargate SG-1 TV series.

The armour took two-and-a-half years to restore and about 250 hours, a project that Johns and his girlfriend, Beverley Denman, completed. After purchasing a piece of the suit at an auction it became an obsession for Johns to complete the full set.

The Jaffa armour can be seen throughout the series starting in the first episode, on Jaffa guards, who are genetically altered humans.

“I ended up going all out,” said Johns. His love of Stargate came after seeing the first movie in 1994.

The special effects still hold up to today’s standards, said Johns.

His prop setup will also feature a 15-foot tall Stargate portal, amour pieces from an original Jaffa guard from the Stargate movie, a mini replica of a tent from the 2001 movie, Planet of the Apes and two civilian ape costumes which will be displayed on custom-made mannequins.

The tent is made of fabric from an original set of tents that were torched in Planet of the Apes. Around 50 to 60 tents burned during the scene, and Johns collected the fabric from the remaining tents.

Johns has been collecting props for 17 years, but it wasn’t until he attended the Kelowna expo with his daughter a few years ago that he decided it would be a good fit to showcase his collection, as there weren’t any movie props.

“The whole point of doing it is so people can enjoy it,” he said. “When we have the Stargate everyone wants to get pictures with it.”

He loves watching people come take pictures with the props and when families visit to share nostalgic stories to younger generations.

Empire Movie Props can be found in the front lobby of the Kelowna Community Theatre.

Actor Gary Jones, who played chief master sergeant Walter Harriman in Stargate SG-1, will also be attending the event.

For more information about the expo visit http://kelownafx.com/.

See a schedule of events below:

Kelowna Fan Experience Itinerary by Carli Berry on Scribd

To report a typo, email: edit@kelownacapnews.com.

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