About Us

FoF: A History of Fun and Friendship

The Beginning: 2019

Our first event was back in March 2019 in Southampton, organized by Hampshire Bronies. Nothing fancy – just a charity auction, pub quiz, some games, and karaoke where people definitely murdered a few songs (in the best way possible). It was small but everyone had a blast.

We were all set to do it again the next year, but then… well, you know what happened. The world got a bit crazy for a while there. So we decided to wait it out and come back stronger.

Moving from a meet-up to a convention!

2021 – 2022

By mid-2021, things were opening back up and we could finally hit conventions again. Man, did that feel good! A few of us got together and started reminiscing about that 2019 event.

“It would be nice to do another one,” someone said.

“Yeah… it would!”

So we started planning another small meetup. But then someone had what you might call a moment of madness: “You know, there aren’t any pony cons down our way anymore. What if we stepped up to the plate?”

That’s when Fishie Wishes stepped up to take the reins. With Hampshire Bronies’ blessing, they transformed our little meetup idea into a full convention. The cool thing is, nearly everyone who helped organize that first event got involved again – we just had Fishie leading the charge now.

A few months of slightly panicked planning later, and boom – FoF 2022 happened. Our first official Festival of Friendship Convention!

2022 Convention

March 19th, 2022. Tadley, Hampshire – our first official convention was about to happen!

Nobody really knew what to expect when the first attendees showed up in their rainbow gear. Even we didn’t know if we’d pulled it off until people started arriving. But the day turned out amazing – full of exactly the kind of love, friendship, and fun we’d hoped for.

We had karaoke (with varying degrees of musical talent on display), our own little café with homemade cakes and treats, and an after-party that went way later than planned. The real highlight was getting Elley Ray, the voice of Mistmane, on a Zoom call. She was absolutely delightful and had everyone cracking up with her stories.

Our charity auction for Rainbow Trust was incredible – people donated some fantastic stuff and we raised £2180.50. Plus we screened Rainbow Roadtrip, which was a perfect way to end the day. Not bad for our first proper convention!

2023 – At The Gala

March 18th, 2023 rolled around and we were back in Tadley – but this time we actually knew what we were doing! Our theme was “At The Gala” and we even made an animated opening video (because apparently we’re fancy now).

We’d learned a lot from year one, so we went big on the improvements. The late-night party got a major upgrade with live performances from Blackened Blue and Prince Whateverer. Let’s just say the energy was off the charts.

Our charity for 2023 was TAP Assistance Dogs, and we raised £2405 for them. As a thank you, they let us name their newest training puppy – a tricolour springer spaniel who we named “Reggie” after our mascot, Regina!

2023 was amazing, but we could see we were ready for the next step. We’d grown beyond what Tadley could offer, and it was time to chase those bigger dreams. Southampton was calling, and our first ever two-day event was about to become reality!

2024 – Pirates!

March 16-17th, 2024. Southampton. Pirates theme. Two whole days. No leaking roofs.

We’d made it to the big leagues! Oasis Academy Mayfield gave us the space we’d been dreaming of – finally, a venue that could actually handle our growing crowd. And boy, did people show up. The jump to two days brought in way more attendees than we’d ever seen before.

Our opening animation was back (because traditions matter), and this time it had a proper pirate flair. The whole weekend had that swashbuckling energy, and honestly, seeing everyone embrace the theme was incredible.

The charity auction for Sophie’s Legacy absolutely smashed it – we raised £2805, which blew our previous total out of the water. Sometimes going bigger really does mean going better.

2025 – To The Moon!

March 22-23rd, 2025. Same venue, same city, completely different energy.

“To The Moon!” wasn’t just our theme – it pretty much described how we felt about everything. The opening animation this year was something special: a multi-animator collaboration where several artists submitted different skits that we combined into one epic movie. Watching it premiere was honestly magical.

And the numbers? Holy moly. Over 200 attendees showed up! We knew we were onto something good, but seeing that many people fill the space was incredible.

The charity auction for Sophie’s Legacy absolutely destroyed our expectations – £3855! That’s over £1000 more than last year! When we announced the total, the whole room erupted. Moments like that remind us why we do this stuff.

The best part? Sophie’s Legacy invited us to their HQ to see exactly where our money was going. Getting to witness first-hand the incredible support they bring to local families was absolutely amazing. It really drove home that all this convention madness actually makes a real difference.

2026…. Musical Magic!

We’re heading back to Oasis Academy for year five with our “Musical Magic!” theme. Can you believe it’s been five years already? Time flies when you’re having this much fun.

We’re working hard behind the scenes to make it our best event yet, but here’s the thing – we can’t do it alone. We need YOU to help make the magic happen!

Whether you want to volunteer (trust us, it’s way more fun than it sounds) or you’ve got an idea for a panel or event you’d love to run, we want to hear from you. This convention only works because amazing people step up and get involved. So why not join in and help us make some magic!

Want to see more? We have Galleries for most of our previous events linked in our About Us dropdown section!