We came from Brazil to Derby for Tomb Raider Day

"I was walking around the city and I spoke to two elderly ladies - they were so surprised we came all the way from Brazil for Lara Croft."

Henrique Coppola and his husband Diego are among hundreds of people who have travelled from all over the world to Derby for the city's sixth Tomb Raider Day.

Created in 2021 by Derby-born Tomb Raider fan Luke Earle, the event brings together fans of the franchise to celebrate all things Lara Croft-related in the city where the character was created 30 years ago.

Gabi Chalakova, who travelled from Sofia, Bulgaria, for the gathering on Saturday described it as "like Christmas for Tomb Raider fans".

The event is due to feature a number of events across the city.

These include guest appearances and talks at arts venue Quad, a memorabilia exhibition at Pickford's House Museum, and retro gaming experiences followed by an evening dance party at Derby Market Hall.

"The fact people are traveling all the way from the likes of Brazil and the United States just shows how much Derby means to Tomb Raider fans," said Earle.

Chalakova has won awards for portraying Lara Croft through cosplay, a hobby in which people dress up as fictional characters, often from video games, fantasy worlds or science fiction.

She said her love for the archaeologist-adventurer started in 2004 when she first played Tomb Raider 3 on her friend's Playstation console.

"I wasn't really into video games, but I thought it was incredible when I played for the the first time. It just grew on me," she said.

Having attended every Tomb Raider Day in Derby since its inception, she said her favourite thing about the event was meeting friends she has made over the years through their shared passion for the character.

"We have formed this community, we support each other and it's a true friendship," she said.

"It's like Christmas for Tomb Raider fans. It's going to be chaos."

Coppola, who has travelled to the UK for the first time from Brazil's capital, Brasilia, said his love Lara Croft began at a young age.

"I was three years old playing Tomb Raider with my dad and its the best game I ever played," he said.

"I love the songs, the places Lara Croft visits and the Angelina Jolie movies too."

As well as visiting the East Midlands, Coppola and his husband have travelled the world to check out Tomb Raider filming locations, including Venice, Rome and, most recently, London.

"Derby is prettier than London, I love it. The buildings, the streets, the colours and the lights are amazing. The people are so polite and kind," he said.

He added he was "excited" to visit Lara Croft-related landmarks across the city over the weekend and meet fellow fans he had previously only spoken to online.

After being developed at a studio in Ashbourne Road in the 1990s, the game's popularity turned Lara Croft into a global icon.

The character holds several Guinness World Records, including best-selling video game heroine and most magazine covers for a video game character, and was voted the most iconic video game character of all-time to mark the 20th BAFTA Games Awards in 2024.

Lara Croft has already left a physical mark in Derby, with part of the city's inner ring road from Osmaston Road to Burton Road named Lara Croft Way in 2010, and a star in her name set into the pavement in Iron Gate as part of the city's Walk of Fame installed in 2018.

A 9ft (2.7m) statue of Lara Croft also arrived at the city's Museum of Making on Tuesday and it will later be shifted to its permanent home inside Derby Market Hall.

More than 200 people from around the world pledged £33,314 to bring the statue to Derby and create a permanent landmark celebrating the city's role in video game history.

Derby City Council said a date for the statue's installation had not been confirmed, but it was expected to take place in the "coming weeks".

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