Before the IAS gala returns to England, here are photos secretly taken at the 2012 event
After a three-year drought, Scientology’s big tent party for celebrating its wealthy donors — the annual IAS gala — is returning to Saint Hill, Scientology’s UK headquarters in East Grinstead, England. According to a flier, the three-day shindig is returning for the weekend of November 3-5, and the excitement is palpable.
Finally, church leader David Miscavige will be emerging from his hidey hole in Clearwater, Florida, flying across the Atlantic (and possibly in Tom Cruise’s personal plane, as he has in the past), and then retaking his proper place in front of a giant expensive display evoking the Nuremberg rallies for his three-hour stemwinder.
It will be just like old times. And speaking of old times, we thought we’d help amp up the anticipation with some really interesting photographs that were sent to us this week from a Scientologist who, during the 2012 IAS event, decided to memorialize the moment by snapping some photos, even though they suspected that they were not supposed to be doing that.
Oh well!
The nice thing is, we get a fun sense of what it was like to join the cattle call when Dave was able to corral a couple of thousand people in his big tent (which then became a crowd three or four times bigger when the church put out a press release extolling Dave’s speech as the best thing ever).
Will Dave be able to fill up the tent this time, with Scientology in such tatters after the pandemic? And will Cruise be on hand this time, along with the big donors who will be there to pick up their new trophies, and the Freedom Medal winners there to be feted as the best Scientologists ever?
We can hardly wait to find out.
For now, however, enjoy this trip back to October 2012. And what a time that was. Just a few months after Katie had ditched Tom. And after the Haifa mission had broken away. And while Marty Rathbun’s blog was still essential reading. And, come to think of it, only a few weeks into the existence of this website. Oh, the nostalgia!
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Sad Eeyore says it all.
So photo one roughly translates to "have a wank, if you dare"...?
My favourite is photograph 8 I think it was, dorky kid on the left foreground and then the old dude in the centre. I am 100% that I wouldn't ever want to be in a club with those two dudes.
It's so absurdly absurd to look at from an outsiders pov. It will never not bewilder me how it is still going or how it gained traction in the first place. It's gotta be his hypnosis shit I reckon at the start. Because how a man with a head like a bag full of rusty, old, ball-peen hammers whose teeth looked like his breath must have stunk and whose way of speaking is...just no. I definitely don't want to join your weird club thanks, old man.