Cosplay venues

Cosplay can be seen at public events such as video game shows, as well as at dedicated cosplay parties at nightclubs or amusement parks. It is not unusual for Japanese teenagers to gather with like-minded friends in places like Tokyo's Harajuku district to engage in cosplay. Since 1998, Tokyo's Akihabara district has contained a large number of cosplay cafés, catering to devoted anime and cosplay fans. The waitresses at such cafés dress as game or anime characters; maid (or meido) costumes are particularly popular.
Possibly the single largest and most famous event attended by cosplayers is the semiannual doujinshi market, Comiket. This event, held in summer and winter, attracts hundreds of thousands of manga otaku and many thousands of cosplayers who congregate on the roof of the exhibition center, often in unbearably hot or cold conditions.
Cosplayers in Japan refer to themselves as reiyâ (レイヤー?); pronounced "layer". Those who photograph players are called cameko, short for "Camera Kozo" or "Camera Boy". The cameko give prints of their photos to the players as gifts. Tensions between players and cameko have increased due to perceived stalker-like behavior among some obsessive males who push female cosplayers to exchange personal email addresses or do private photo sessions. One result of this has been a tightening of restrictions on photography at events such as Comiket.
While cosplay at fan events in Japan is thought to have originated in 1978,[2] one should not be confused with the idea that cosplay is considered typical behavior in Japan. While some do attend cosplay functions that are held in districts such as Akihabara, most Japanese people find cosplay to be rather silly.

Video of kidnapped BBC reporter posted online

Kidnapped BBC reporter Alan Johnston appeared in a video posted on an Islamic militant website today, saying he had been treated well.

He called for the lifting of international sanctions against the Palestinian government.


There was no way to tell when the video was recorded. Mr Johnston, 45, from Argyllshire, was kidnapped on March 12 by Palestinian gunmen in Gaza City, and before today, had not been seen or heard from since.


The tape appeared on the Al-Ekhlaas website, frequently used by Islamic militants. It bore the logo of the Army of Islam, a shadowy Palestinian group.


Mr Johnston, looking fit and calm, spoke of the suffering Gazans had endured and urged a lifting of sanctions imposed in an effort to pressure the Palestinian government to recognise Israel's right to exist and renounce violence.