I bought WallaceAndGromit.net back in 2002. The site replaced a section on princessleia.com about Wallace and Gromit, I just got the domain because I thought it was a great one and was surprised that it hadn’t been taken.
Really, I’m just a girl who made a fansite and happened to get a good domain, I wouldn’t have called myself an expert.
For a long time, I ran the only active Wallace and Gromit fansite on the web (I looked for others often). I guess that’s why people came to me when they had questions about Wallace and Gromit, and I did get some very amusing ones.
“On the DVD, during the opening of The Wrong Trousers, the commentary references something in the scene that is related to an older project. Were they referring to the pickle on the wall? Was the older project an Aardman project or just something Nick Park did?”
…the pickle?
Whenever I got emails like this I would laugh, but honestly try to answer the question. I saw it as “faking” being an expert. Certainly these people emailing knew more about Wallace and Gromit than I did, if they paid such close attention to pickles!
I also began to feel a sort of obligation to keep up with Wallace and Gromit news once my site started picking up more traffic. It was fun, and interesting, but certainly driven by a feeling of civic duty. I was constantly surprised when I was contacted by editors of real magazines and big websites who would tell me about recent Wallace and Gromit related stories in their publications.
Then, last week, I was contacted by a college student writing a paper for his school newspaper. He asked for a 100-200 word response to why I thought Wallace and Gromit had such popularity and staying power. With very little effort I threw together a 200 word reply.
That’s when I realized it, I really have become an expert!