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I went on the BTS tour of the park today. Great tour it should be said; it was headed up by Russ, who is a fantastic speaker. I did mean to ask about the screen, but honestly forgot. It does seem like it won't be fixed for start of season (I believe the park said this in the passholder group a few weeks back too). A real shame. Hopefully they can hide the dead pixels with whatever they put on the screen. Okay, now time for some updates. Everything is still a Work in Progress it should be stressed Toilets Loo enthusiasts rejoice. All the toilets have received some love. Swarm toilets. The walls have been painted green (originally white), and no more foot pedal sinks Megastore toilets are nicely themed Tidal Wave The rebuilt bridge, with the original Pier 13 style. The fire effect is proving very tricky to implement, but is being planned still Big Easy Boulevard Stealth Colossus The park have released that the entrance is a bit flat, and so are looking to add more colour/depth to it, although this will happen mid-season. The shop front looks nice. In terms of the rest of the repaint, and indeed a Sparkle Project continuation, the park hope to do that either next closed season, or the closed season after. The park want to do it regardless, and recognise they need to keep up appearances - literally - now that they've started to do this. Personally, I hope it happens next closed season, as it does look a little jarring in places. The park is looking lovely though, with the Hyperia area coming along and looking smart. There's other small updates too, such as KFC getting refitted and other new food places. Some parts of the park are still a bit tired looking / haven't really been touched. Rumba/Inferno is the big example I would say. And the Sparkling up does highlight how tatty some parts of that area, and the likes of Swarm and Saw, look. I do wonder if this means that, come opening, some enthusiasts will focus too much on those and not the fab stuff that we've seen heavily documented and shouted out about. But yes, it's clear to see the park have put time, effort and money into things this winter, and they're taking strides in the right direction. I'm excited to see what will happen and hope their plans pay off!5 points
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Don't worry, I'm not back, just briefly returning to the forum to highlight what I feel is a very important talking point. In a recent government report, Merlin Entertainments have been listed as a company who have not paid minimum wage. The company failed to pay minimum to 1,100 employees, equating to £43,000. Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-500-companies-named-for-not-paying-minimum-wage Ride Rater have published a further breakdown of all the available info: https://riderater.co.uk/11561/merlin-entertainments-failed-to-pay-minimum-wage/ Flamingo Land are also named here for failing to pay 4 workers the minimum, following a previous report from Blackpool Pleasure Beach who had failed to pay 12 workers the minimum. In 2018, the CEO of Merlin Entertainments took home a salary of £1,493,000. In contrast, the £43,000 owed to 1,100 employees would have still left £1,450,000 for the CEO. Staff rely on being paid at least the legal minimum to live off, to pay their bills. It's shameful that this has been allowed to happen. Source: https://www.erieri.com/executive/salary/nick-varney-8ydw I feel that as enthusiasts/people with an interest in theme parks, we have to pay attention to this and demand better for the staff who make our hobby possible.4 points
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4 points
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Nemesis
Cornflakes and one other reacted to Mark9 for a topic
That's pretty much all the eye does. It's given life by the claws around the eye moving up and down like its in anger. There was already some dead pixels so hopefully its an easyish fix. I was very excited for the return of Nemesis and I'm very happy that it's already running incredibly well, pretty much picking up where the old OG left off. I was concerned it might run slow but it isn't. I think it's a success and the energy around Nemesis was electrifying. Managed 6 rides including a front row and a back row and I'm happy.2 points -
Nemesis
Inferno and one other reacted to Cornflakes for a topic
Have some in-depth thoughts about Nemesis Reborn and the new Forbidden Valley, entirely about the new theming, as you all know the ride itself is excellent - It’s Nemesis! Been looking forward to this a lot, but had some reservations regarding Forbidden Valley and its theming, I do think it’s a real shame that Forbidden Valley has lost its Post Apocalyptic, Mad Max-y vibe, but what’s been done with the new theme is - regardless of personal taste - very impressive. Almost every major set piece moves, every set piece has sound, the station and shop have their own small show sequences, the theming is dynamic in a way that Merlin hasn’t really attempted before. The area makes you feel like you’re in a bombastic monster movie, if old Forbidden Valley was about exploring where an event had happened, New is about seeing it, hearing it, and feeling it happen. This whole project feels like Merlin’s first step into the modern era of theme parks, if this is the new quality bar for Merlin there’s a lot to be excited about. Towers' continual commitment to street theatre helps the area shine as well. I’m not under the illusion there will be this many characters out all the time, but knowing you’ll see at least one of them is a lot of fun and helps the area feel alive. I’m particularly fond of the Mushroom Cloud Tour Guide, hope you find your bus king! This isn’t to say everything’s perfect of course, the “school perimeter” fencing is ugly and the gun in the queue line screams “We tried to move the old one but it fell apart, so we threw this together” But what’s wrong is pretty minor and fixable, after seeing the tweaks Alton Manor got last year I wouldn’t be surprised if we *actually* saw this stuff worked on. But yeah, really impressed with it all, Forbidden Valley truly feels like it belongs to Nemesis again. I’m looking forward to spending more time in the area throughout the year and seeing how it evolves over the coming years, they cooked!2 points -
You'll have to forgive a bit of a link dump, but during a BTS tour I got to see a bit more of Hyperia and some fun facts... https://twitter.com/ThorpeParkMania/status/1766791884666544449?t=c96RATcXM8UrrzRA8-7ObA&s=19 Some views of the site. SRQ is confirmed. The ride will be complete in the next day or two, weather dependent, with trains arriving on site this week. The exterior of the station building is complete. It was heavily suggested there will be some cool dispatch sequence in the station. https://twitter.com/ThorpeParkMania/status/1766797980240109858?t=0xMAcaISYwT5khd0YDG80Q&s=19 No on board audio https://twitter.com/ThorpeParkMania/status/1766874159068455258?t=PDHRqEdLGuNipTVLBcEG_w&s=19 Hyperia is easily seen across the whole resort. There will be a backstory to the ride. Not clear whether it's just a short piece they've written to appease geeks, or whether it will be conveyed in the area / queue line. It's fairly basic. I can't share what it is sadly, but yeah, it's a simple story. The ride doesn't need it anyways. In terms of the viewing area. This was planned but has been cut because it was later realised that it would require a lot of fencing which would ultimately distract from the whole area and the view. The ride's camera point will either be at the bottom of the first drop or prior to the splash effect. One final thing. The early thoughts for Hyperia were coming together in April 2020. The ride was approved by the old Merlin exec (ie Nick Varney, etc). This means that Hyperia is a sort of hybrid of Merlin philosophies, old and new. Had it been a 'new Merlin' project, it's possible that things might have been a bit different, with more theming / styling present.2 points
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Rocky Express
coasterverse and one other reacted to JoshC. for a topic
Where's the stupid post guy when you need him? Nowhere to be seen? I'll fill in... Ding dong, the Express is dead Which Express? The Rocky Express.2 points -
Rocky Express
Exodus Matt and one other reacted to Mattgwise for a topic
They have kept the sign so i'd say it seems very possible 😂. You can see it down Monks Walk by Rumba Rapids.2 points -
My biggest gripe is they haven't pointlessly renamed Vibes bar again, what on earth are they thinking? Interesting that Detty says about a "finale" - some sort of fireworks related effect perhaps or reading too much into it?2 points
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Hyperia - New for 2024
ImLucifer and one other reacted to JohnnyRocket for a topic
The memorial was moved to Sunken Garden before works started!2 points -
Watching peoples videos from the tour, the updates made do look nice! However, the flooring across the park needs to be replaced urgently. It actually brings down their work and by now should have all Covid markers pressure washed by now1 point
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No way they're staying with that screen for the start of the season. Just doesn't make sense to pay all that money to refresh the rest of the enterance and most of the park but leave the dodgy screen. Hopefully the new video/graphic is playing on it just to test how it will look when the new screen arrives....1 point
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Sparkle Project
coasterverse reacted to MattyMoo for a topic
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1 point
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Hyperia - New for 2024
coasterverse reacted to JoshC. for a topic
Damn I'd forgotten about this. Swarm was also meant to have a viewing area of sorts that took you up to the helicopter. There's a reoccurring theme here....1 point -
Hyperia - New for 2024
coasterverse reacted to Inferno for a topic
I wonder if you’ll still be able to see the splashdown? if not, it makes you wonder what’s the point of that, since splashdowns really are better for onlookers than for riders.1 point -
Hyperia - New for 2024
coasterverse reacted to JoshC. for a topic
The lack of viewing area is a real shame. At the same time, it was always in a silly location, since it could only be located after going on the ride, or by going through the exit shop. So logistically it was a bit weird. Still, that's not enough to have put a damper on it. Just wish it could have happened; overlooking the lake and getting the view of the ride would have been awesome.1 point -
Big Easy Boulevard - New for 2024
Inferno reacted to JohnnyRocket for a topic
I think Detonator looks alright to be honest, it's always just been a tarted up temporary funfair ride at the end of the day. Once the whole area's done, it'll be the most cohesive that part of the park has ever been, it spent a lot of its time being a mashup of pirates and 1950s America, then the dodgy Angry Birds IP plastered over it slap bang in the middle of Amity Cove.1 point -
Big Easy Boulevard - New for 2024
coasterverse reacted to JoshC. for a topic
Yes it is and if you think otherwise you're delusional.1 point -
The park have recently announced that this year's Mardi Gras event will be taking place from 29th March to 14th April, as opposed to in May. They also currently have an early bird ticket offer, where if you book for a visit before 25th April by the start of March, your entrance ticket costs £29. I'd say both of those show that it won't open in April (as it's the park's way of getting people to visit). May still feels possible. I'd say track will completed by mid-March. Given there's already been a lot of electrical work, 2 months for testing, landscaping, styling (which has also already started) feels plausible. So yeah, I'm saying mid-to-late May is likely the aim at the moment.1 point
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Black Mirror Labyrinth
coasterverse reacted to JoshC. for a topic
Whilst the park have been pretty good at tarting up the park in recent years, I will hold my breath on Slammer's removal. They've said it before (internally, admittedly) and they've publicly said stuff that hasn't happened or been delayed (Tidal fire, Stealth SRQ, etc). Obviously it makes sense to remove it and put a ride in its place, given the proximity to Hyperia, but we shall see. As for Labyrinth, obviously it's been a prime spot for Fright Nights mazes. And of course, it's good to have a permanently set up maze, rather than having to re-build a maze each year. At the same time, it's not the largest space, and with mazes being upcharge, I'm not sure they can create a standard maze which is worth the £10 charge.. So it might be a prime spot for a different type of experience. Whether it's an alone experience, a non-maze experience or something else, I think that's the direction the park should go with that space, if they choose to use it for FN. I'm also not sure 4 upcharge indoor mazes is the way the park needs to go.1 point -
I'd say reporting posts you don't like should see a result such as that members spam but...1 point
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As much as it'll be nice to have Nemesis back, Hyperia for me. It took me a while to get exited for Hyperia and although I still have my doubts I do believe we could have something quite special here!1 point
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Hyperia. Nemesis is great. And will be great. But Hyperia.1 point
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Which 2024 UK coaster project are you most looking forward to?
Matt N reacted to Livinthecoasterlife for a topic
I'm looking forward to Hyperia but just as excited to see Nemesis up and running again!1 point -
Interesting one that. It's on the load side, but away from the entrance to the station, and too far in to be part of a front row queue, or where staff would stand during dispatch. My best guest at the moment would be a storage room, either for computers which might control AV in the station or for staff uniform, if they decide to have themed/styled uniforms for the ride. Could also be used to store evac equipment, etc. Or they're forward thinking, and they'll put the computers that run the VR in there when they chuck compulsory headsets on in Year 3 😉0 points
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The Shark Cabins were only on a temporary planning permission until the end of this month. They are now set to stay longer. Whether the park are still, long-term, considering a "permanent" hotel is unclear. I guess we'll wait and see. But I guess for now, there's more important things to focus on.0 points