Posted in: Comics, Current News | Tagged: harrogate, majestic, thought bubble

The Majestic Toilets of Thought Bubble Get Their Own Comic Book

The toilets of the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate, part of Thought Bubble for the last few years, now have their own comic with Kieron Gillen.

Yesterday, I arrived in Harrogate for Thought Bubble, which has just kicked off an hour ago. Last night, we all hung out in the bar of the Majestic Hotel. Originally a Freemason club, it is famed at Thought Bubble for having the most majestic and sizeable men's toilets downstairs. And a tiny cubicle for the ladies – originally, back in the day, for the cleaner. It was a different time. These days, people hang out in there regardless of gender, there are mini-conventions started there, I made a TikTok there last night, and now we are getting a comic book all about it. And it all started one year ago.

Chris Mole, who is at Thought Bubble right now, in the DSTLRY Hall at table B28-A writes, "It began, as so many things do, with a drunken thought and a tweet. The scene: the Thought Bubble Festival Mid-Con Party 2022. The setting: The Majestic Hotel, Harrogate. After a day of talking about comics, buying comics, reading comics and generally absorbing comics into their very being, the creators and punters of the festival descended on the Majestic for a wild night of drinking and dancing. A stream of inebriated partygoers had spent all evening wandering in and out of the appropriately majestic men's toilets; marvelling at their grandeur, taking photos at the urinals, posing with/on/alongside the bench. The thought was a simple one: to tap into the creativity and anarchic joy of the comic-making minds that shared this experience, to try and find an answer to the question of what it is about these specific toilets that has such an allure."

And that is how we are getting The Secrets Of The Majestic, a comic book anthology with some stellar names. Yes, that's right, the X-Men's Kieon Gillen leads the fray – he once had a The Wicked + The Divine display photoshoot in there. And the subject of my photo, Tula Lotay, who founded Thought Bubble, also has her memories to share…

• "Welcome to the Majestic" by Kieron Gillen and Benjamin A.E Filby
• "Majestic" by Laura Jones & Tula Lotay
• "The Interstice" by Dave Cook, Laura Helsby & JP Jordan
• "The Tour" by Rik Worth, Jordan Collver & Owen Watts
• "Hael'toon" by Rob Jones & Sam Chase
• "The Floor Plan" by Aaron Thompson & Dan Bell
• "The Harrowing Gates" by Ria Grix
• "The Royal Flush" by Aaron Eamer & David Cousens
• "Stalled" by Rob Burton, Sarah Peploe & George Joy
• "A Desperate Attempt" by Asa Wheatley & Sammy Ward
• "The Order of Majestic Awe" by Paul Carroll & Lane Lloyd
• "Needing the Toilet" by Fraser Campbell & Craig Munro
• "The Smiling Man" by Adlai McCook & Gavin Mitchell
• "Portal Loo" by Mark Granger & Liam 'Pais' Hill
• "The Fool's Mate" by Gary Moloney & Colin Craker
• "Inky Scribuls" by Umar Ditta & Paul Tonner
• "Wee Fellas" by Rob Luckett & James Lawrence
• "Future Mock" by Matthew Hardy, Jonathan Scott & Rob Jones
• "Please Wash Your Hands" by Chris Mole & Chris Wildgoose
• With pin-ups from Erika Price and Matt Simmons
• Editors: Chris Mole & Gary Moloney

" Truly, the wonders of the toilets are a sight to behold – the checkerboard marble floors! The gilded washbasins! The bench(?!)  But why is this room so unnecessarily opulent and palatial? Why does the women's toilet pale in comparison? Was it the meeting place of a secretive Masonic lodge? A liminal space marked by past demonic sacrifices? The brainchild of a Victorian architect and his internalised misogyny?  We can only guess at the answer to these questions. Presented here, for your enjoyment, are some theories: some The Secrets Of The Majestic. A 76-page anthology of comic stories, in full-colour and presented in an A5 format; 19 stories, 3 pin-ups and more, enclosed in a wraparound cover by the phenomenal team of Laura Helsby and Dearbhla Kelly."

Oh look, I've just gone and backed it on Kickstarter. Why not join me? It's half way there…

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