Invasion Colchester's Special Guests
In the past we have featured Alan Flyng, Andrew Lawden, Bern Collaço, Chris Bunn, Clem So, Derek Lyons, Des Taylor, Harry 'Aitch' Fielder, John Simpkin, Jon Campling, Martin Ballantyne, Mick Fryer-Kelsey, Mike Edmonds, Nick Joseph, Pam Rose, Paul Warren, Ralph Morse, Ross Mullan, Ross Sambridge, Sandeep Mohan, Ted Western, and Victor Botha as Special Guests at previous Invasion Colchester events. Altogether, they have appeared in movies and TV shows such as the Star Wars saga, the Harry Potter series, Doctor Who, the Marvel Studios series, and more.
For 2024, we were delighted to introduce TV and film actor Ty Hurley, and actor who has appeared on the big screen in films such as Solo: A Star Wars Story, Wonka, Peter Rabbit, and No Time To Die, as well as on the small screen in popular shows like Humans, Grantchester, Black Mirror, Eastenders, and Call the Midwife.
We also welcome back actors Clem So, Bern Collaço, Chris Bunn, and Martin Ballantyne.
Ty Hurley
Ty Hurley works full time in the TV and Film Industry. Often cast as police officers and investigators, Ty has played many other roles, from doctors and doormen to getting blown up in an episode of Humans, speaking with Robson Green in Grantchester, and saving actress Denise Gough from her burning cell in Too Close.
Other notable roles include an Imperial Fleet Trooper in Solo: A Star Wars Story, a Prison Riot Guard in Marvel's Black Widow, a therapist in the James Bond film No Time To Die, a Knight's Templar in Assassin's Creed, a Prison Guard on Eastenders, and the Milkman on Call the Midwife!
Clem So
Clem initially began working as a background actor on the Japanese historic fantasy film 47 Ronin in 2011 and has gone on to build invaluable experience in the film industry. Clem has become a featured and in demand face, having worked on major feature films and numerous TV shows including Sherlock, Being Human, and episodes of Doctor Who, notably as the Mandarin Clockwork Droid in Peter Capaldi's first episode as the Doctor, "Deep Breath", as a Space Corpse (affectionately known as the 'Kill Bill' Zombie by his colleagues) in the series 10 episode "Oxygen", and as a Ji-Hun Pirate in 2022's "Legend of the Sea Devils".
Other appearances include a Kyln prisoner in Marvel Studios' popular hit Guardians Of The Galaxy, a Spectre crime boss in the James Bond films Spectre and No Time to Die, and a Resistance Trooper in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Clem has also featured in many other films including Doctor Strange, Black Widow, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, Morbius, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Ready Player One, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, and Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Bern Collaço
Bern Collaço is a film and TV actor based in London. He has appeared in many movies and shows including The Batman, Morbius, Poledark, Wonder Woman, Star Wars: The Force Awakens (as a General), Rogue One, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Skyfall, Spectre, and Doctor Who, to name a few.
Bern is popular with his fans, who he loves to meet and talk to about the various films he has appeared in.
Chris Bunn
Chris Bunn has worked in TV and film since 1974, featuring in some of the most popular TV shows and movies of all time. Following his first film work on The Slipper and the Rose in 1971, Chris has worked on three James Bond films (The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker and The Living Daylights) and two Superman movies ('I' and 'II' - Chris played a policeman in the first film) as well as apperaing in Force 10 from Navarone, The Eagle Has Landed, and many of the Carry On films. Chris was a body double for Kirk Douglas and a hand double for Harvey Keitel in the science fiction film Saturn 3.
Chris has worked on all three of the original Star Wars films, appearing multiple times as a Stormtrooper, as well as portraying Cantina patron Danz Borin in the famous scene from 'A New Hope'.
In addition to all of this, Chris has worked on some very popular TV shows over the years including The Sweeney, Minder, and The Avengers. He was a body double for Lewis Collins in The Professionals and has performed stand-in work also for Timothy Dalton in Agatha.
Martin Ballantyne
Martin was born in Norwich, England in 1972, where he grew up and still lives. He has always had a great interest in film and television.
After leaving Norwich City College and a succession of dead end jobs, he attended a film making course in 1997. He wrote and directed a short black and white film, using friends as actors.
A keen collector of film memorabilia, in 2000 he was approached by the BBC to take part in a documentary called The Price of Fame.
At the beginning of 2005 a work colleague asked Martin if he would be interested in appearing in a local theatre stage production. Martin agreed, and went on to play seven different parts in a production of Vanity Fair.
In 2005, Martin was given a small role in the British film Cashback, written and directed by Sean Ellis, which starred, among others, Sean Biggerstaff from the Harry Potter films. This appearance led to further small roles in films, including Heroes and Villains, Gasoline Blood, The Golden Compass and The Bourne Ultimatum.
In 2008, Martin worked on Christopher Nolan's second Batman film, The Dark Knight, in which he plays one of the Joker's Henchman, alongside the late Heath Ledger. After having worked with Warner Brother on the The Dark Knight, they requested Martin for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, in which he plays 'Scary Face'. He later played Mundungus Fletcher's friend in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part 1).
Other films and shows Martin has appeared in include Kingdom, Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
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