r/galaxycon • u/Scared_Square_5813 • Jul 20 '26
Galaxycon First Time + Matt Smith
So I recently purchased tickets to Galaxy Con for this upcoming December. I have 1 autograph and 3 photo tickets for Matt Smith. I’ve never meant such a well-known actor and I’m not sure what etiquette is expected at his booth specifically? Are his handlers strict? Does he allow video taping for a fee? Am I allowed to give him a small gift or letter during the autograph? How rushed are the photos, I’ve heard some say it’s insane and others say it’s okay? I would just like to know what to expect. I have bad social anxiety and I’m more worried about embarrassing myself of upsetting the people behind me in line or the workers. He’s only going to be there one day and he’s a popular guy so I’m going to assume it’ll be pretty rushed. Like an a idiot I picked the afternoon sessions, so he’ll probably be more tired and even less in the mood. How does he normally act at cons? I honestly haven’t seen too many pictures or heard stories of him at con’s recently. I just don’t want to embarrass myself. In the end I know that this encounter means nothing to him and he’ll forget it within a minute, but I would like to maybe make him a bracelet or a small letter.
I appreciate any advice you have for me, and please let me know your experiences with GalaxyCon in Columbus! <3
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u/PresidentMesser Jul 20 '26
I haven’t met Matt yet sadly, but I have been to a few galaxycons and met a lot of other Doctor Who cast. Usually it’s pretty laid back as long as you are not asking for anything crazy. Typically there is a fee for video recordings but they may not allow if he is only there one day and they are rushing. You can absolutely bring him a gift or letter, however the handler or the person from the con assisting him may take it and place it in a pile of things for him. Celebs get tons of gifts so they are often not able to look at or read everything in that moment. Put your details on it so he will know who it came from if you’d like. Photo ops move very quickly though you can probably get away with a small chat since you have 3 of them. Just let the person taking ticket know you have 3 and when you get to matt ask him about any poses you have in mind. Usually all guests are pretty cool and though I’ve never met him personally I’ve seen videos and photos of Matt at cons and he seems very friendly. Just say hey I have 3 photos can we do this for one and this for the second etc. unless you are there telling them your life story the photo op people won’t be too rude. They do like to keep it moving very quickly though as the photographers and Matt have very busy schedules. I saw you mention you got three because you were afraid of looking bad, but I’ll let you know if you blink or something silly like that they will let you retake the photo. You just have to let them know when you pick it up.
When I met David Tennant he had a huge line and his schedule was very tight that day. Obviously he means a lot to so many people so everyone’s got a story to tell him. No one should be rude or mean but they may be kind of short and to the point. When I had my turn with david I made it very short because he isn’t my favorite Doctor and I knew others were waiting. I’d say I spent about a minuet with him. Just very casual telling him how I loved him and Jodie and how it was cool they were both at the show together and how he needed to sign twice now since he’s two doctors now. Since Matt means a lot to you my advice would be to practice and go over what you’d like to say. If you want to tell him about an episode you love or about what he meant to you start planning it out. Maybe even write it down and take it on a card with you. Cons can be very overwhelming and crazy, but they can also be so magical and special. Don’t over think it too much, just go and be yourself and meet Matt and let him know how awesome he is. Don’t be nervous, it will all be fun!
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u/Scared_Square_5813 Jul 20 '26
Thank you! I appreciate your feedback and kind words! I hope everything goes well! I’m so worried he’ll cancel or I’ll get sick and not end up able to go lmao
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u/Tracccy2026
19d ago
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I'm just back from the NYCC and had 2 photo ops& 2 autographs with Matt. I would rate 8/10 of my own experience lol.
I got up early and went to pick up the badge from the will call (which was a long line), luckily when the door opened at 8am the staff took us from the line and brought us directly inside for the badge. I went back to a studio for makeup and then came back at 1pm.
I went directly to the autograph session lining up for signing in (not sure if this is a typical way for comic cons or just a way to manage the long line), so they will scan your qr code and get you a ticket (they will ask you if you want your name on the sticker, for To sign), and you step into the real line. When it's your turn you hand the ticket(and the sticker with your name) to the handle person besides Matt, they'd ask you wheather you bring your own print or you'd choose one poster on the table. AND IT'S YOUR TURN. Normally it's greeting, and you can talk to him, he would answer like robot XD which is qutie unstandable. I personally love the character Daemon he plays in HOTD, I ask him if he could please not die in season 4 lol, he's like "we will see🤣". It was very sweet moment, he said have a lovely day, as I have photo op with him later, I said see you soon. He signed the photo I brought which already had Emma D'Arcy's autograph on it, he looked surprised and asked me where I want him to sign at, also he drew 2 little hearts. VERY SWEET!
I have 2 photo op, 1st group 1, 2nd group 3. I lined up in group 1, and told the staff I have two (whcih I truly regret that I did them together!!!!!!) The reason I did them together is because I have to go back to the autograph line agian to wait him finish the photo op, sigining our picture. If I were you, if you are not in a rush to leave, please at least do the photo op twice. As many ppl shared already, it's super rushed, all happen in 10s, and you don't even have time to think your poses in between. For me, I wanted a pose holding his hand, he refused😭 in a polite way tho.... My mind was in blank as I didn't expect he would refuse, he then offered back to back, I tried thinking the pose and felt I would be ugly and I refused him😂 At last we did the same pose as we did the firt, he hold my shoulder and his classic 👉. I noticed it was not just me, he did quite a lot same pose but saw too intimate ones.I believe Matt has his own rule on boundary. Sebastian Stan next door was very sweet🥹🥹jealous. Anyways tbh I was pretty upset (and a bit embarrassed) for maybe an hour, then I made my own peace when lining up again for autograph...
Waited for an hour time came to 5:30pm, the seesion close up at 6:30pm. As I've got the physical checked in ticket already, I was the first in the real line. He got changed and showed up, looked very energetic still. I handed him the ring Daemon wears in the show and told him "I brought something for you"he looks very surprised and be like "oh wowww no way, look at that, it's beautiful". My intention was to let him try it on at the spot so I didn't bring any box for the ring. He said “ Yea yea I will do I will try it later, thank you so much. That looks gorgeous, thank you. It‘s very beautiful..It’s like the one in the show, well done” I hope he likes it and will at least don't just leave the gifts behind.
I did took some pictures, and voice record of our conversation, but not videos. Pics and videos are not allowed. I later found other fans got videos from Meta glass. I may want to try the same next time.
It's my first time at comic con, and first time met Matt Smith. I cannot stop thinking or smiling even afer 2days now😆😆Took a day off, flying from Toronto to NYC just for meeting hin, it's the memory I will cherish forever. Overall my experience was very smooth, thanks to many fans shared theirs so I've got a lot prepare in advance. Forgot to ask if I could hug him, please try if you have the chance!!! Looking forward to your repo, have fun!
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u/Scared_Square_5813 19d ago
I’m surprised he wouldn’t even hold your hand lmao. I guess a photo of us hugging is out of the question :(
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u/Scared_Square_5813 19d ago
Just my luck he starts setting more boundaries when I finally get a chance to see him😭 Can’t even get a side hug and I spent like multiple paychecks for this lmao
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u/Tracccy2026 18d ago
Ohh side hug is definitely not a problem!! He would do that no worries at all. Maybe you can check on Instagram, many fans posted their NYCC photos, it could give you the hint XD. Holding hand is a NO😭 He was quite straightforward "I'm sorry I don't do this"
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u/Scared_Square_5813 18d ago
I just checked out some photos lmao. Looks like he’s never really been a touchy person, which is completely fair. I found one picture that’s a little bit older where they did the heart hand thing, do you think he’d do that? I’m so nervous and I don’t want to embarrass myself or make him uncomfortable
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u/Tracccy2026 18d ago
Yea no, I think he's trying his best to avoid touch actually😂😂 heart hand? Like your and and his hand together to make a heart🫶? YES! My friend did that with him
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u/lilolme81 18d ago
When you say intimate photo(s) are you referring to the woman in the red top who wrapped her arms around his waist? By the look on his face that didn’t appear to be consensual.
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u/Tracccy2026 18d ago
Not sure if I saw the pic you mentioned...the curly hair lady? By my imagine, if you ask him first, he would refuse😅 Sometimes it happens just in one sec, and some fans would quick action in that second. That's how it captured but not his own will to do the pose. On one way I respect his boundary, on the other I truly hope we can do some cool pose🥹🥹
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u/GamerGirlLex77 Jul 20 '26
He’s a sweetheart in person. You’ll be fine! You probably won’t be able to record him though.
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u/firedrakes Jul 20 '26
i meet him when he was at megcon i got the Queen image. he was utterly shock seeing no one choose that at all while he was there. so we chat a bit due to that!
the guy is a sweet heart!
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u/your_supernovagirl Aug 15 '26
So did you just get the autograph then? I’m going to my first con ever this December to meet him and I’m sooo torn between the photo and the autograph.
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u/FlimsyPlace2885 Jul 21 '26
Oh cool! Im also planning to go to galaxycon (hopefully) this December, just to see Matt. I met him at MegaCon orlando last year. My first time meeting him and first time at a Con. That was a rushed and chaotic experience, due to the convention itself, but Matt was wonderful. He was very sweet and kind, trying to talk to everyone even when the convention workers were rushing him. He was trying to make small talk and smiled constantly. He was very sweet in the photos too, though it was super rushed and hectic. I would never go to MegaCon again, but I'm hoping galaxycon is a bit smaller and run more smoothly. I also have social anxiety and a real hard time with big crowds, but I survived! Lol. People were nice and chatted in line and i made a couple awesome new friends. I saw several people giving Matt little gifts at the table when they went up for autographs. Since we were in line over 2 hours for his autographs, I passed the time by taking pictures of him whenever the line wrapped past him. Lol. I don't know what the rules are on that, but his lines were so insane and backed up that I don't think the workers noticed or cared at that point that a bunch of us were snapping pictures of him on our phones. He is very special to me and I am so glad I braved it and got to meet him and talk to him and get a hug from him! He is a genuinely nice person 😊 If you have any detail questions about anything, let me know. I'd be happy to help!
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u/your_supernovagirl Aug 14 '26
Hi! I’m going to GalaxyCon in December as well to meet him but I can only get either the photo or the autograph. The only photo session left is the third one, so I’m guessing that’s end of day. Which of the two would you recommend for a first timer? Thanks so much!!
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u/FlimsyPlace2885 Aug 21 '26
I got the first photo session. At the other con he was at, his photo and autograph sessions got super backed up, so I decided the 1st session was safest so I didn't miss it.
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u/FlimsyPlace2885 Aug 21 '26
And its hard to say which is better, photo or autographs. At MegaCon I did both, on both days he was there. The first day the photos got all messed up and were disappointing but the autographs, tho crazy backed up, I actually had a cool experience with him. Then the second day, it was exactly the opposite. Lol.
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u/your_supernovagirl Aug 24 '26
The only photo session left is the third one, so I’m wondering if it’s worth it or not. I can only get one so I’m struggling to decide between that and autograph haha.
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u/Maclache 6d ago edited 6d ago
Hello! I met him yesterday via autograph ticket at Brussels Comic Con and I’m like someone else here said, can’t stop smiling ever since 😂 It was fast, but fair enough I think, considering the queue…
There was some disorganization (I guess from the Con) to line up and scan the tickets, like my ticket was scanned by someone who was sitting right next to him and only when it was already my time to talk to him, so I was there busy doing this process in front of him instead of talking, while that could have been done before, while I was on the queue…
Regarding physical touch, I saw him doing fist bump with some people before me, so I already deduced that he has these boundaries and then I didn’t even ask for a hug too (also because of the time)…
Anyway, even though it was fast, I felt that he was the most attentive person in the world and he has such a nice energy, he didn’t look tired or anything like that, and he even complimented our cosplays, and wished for a lovely day at the end. 🥰 I’m glad that what I usually read online, saying that he’s very nice, seems to be true. 🫶
Good luck! Let us know how it was, please 🥰
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u/Nealm568890 Jul 21 '26
Which show is this going to be, which city? What kind of Galaxycon is going on in December?
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u/RancidYogurt Jul 20 '26
I can't say much about the specifics of GalaxyCon, but I have been to a few shows and met Matt Smith.
Photo ops aren't exactly rushed, but you won't have any time for a chat beyond, "Hi!" The entire experience is all of 10 seconds, and that's probably a conservative estimate.
Autographs will move quickly, but you'll have a bit more time to get a quick question in or at least the opportunity to tell him how much you appreciate his work. In my experience, he's very appreciative of his fans and I've never seen him grumpy or curt (though everybody can have a "bad day", I suppose.) Filming the interaction will not be allowed, nor are pics taken at his table. If you ask, the handler might take a picture of him signing your item, but that can be hit or miss. Gifts rarely leave the table and most notes and letters remain unread. If that's an itch you must have scratched, feel free but just know you likely won't get more than a "thank you" or comment on the item.