SCI-FI fans flocked to the 17th annual SF Ball in Bournemouth at the weekend.

About 300 people attended the three-day convention at the Carrington House Hotel on Knyveton Road where they were joined by some of the genre’s best-known actors.

Torri Higginson from Stargate Atlantis, Nana Visitor from Battlestar Galatica, and Dr Who and Doc Martin star, Ian McNeice, were among those who spent the entire weekend mingling with attendees.

John Challis, who played Boycie in Only Fools and Horses, and Sally Thomsett, who starred alongside Jenny Agutter in The Railway Children, signed autographs for fans on Saturday.

When the Daily Echo visited the conference on Sunday morning the lobby was filled with talk of the previous night’s ball, themed for the French Revolution.

Cecily Casey, who has been attending SF conferences for more than 30 years, said the ball had been the highlight of a weekend in which she had also met Lolita Fatjo from Star Trek Deep Space Nine.

“It was an opportunity to go to a formal ball, wear silly outfits, talk to congenial people and have a great time. I don’t watch soaps because they are depressing. SF is all about the imagination. You can imagine boldly going elsewhere and seeking out new civilisations, as someone once said!” she joked.

Former Holby City star, David Bedella, reprised his role as Frank N Furter from the Rocky Horror Show, appearing at the ball in full costume to sing The Timewarp.

The Dorset Troopers kept visitors in the lobby entertained by strolling the corridors in the guise of Darth Vader and his Storm Troopers, while in the ballroom, the special guests took audience questions.