JoshC.

Tbf John B won't have had anything to do with the installation of some signs. That'll all be because of Thorpe's internal creative / marketing.

For a non-AI answer, there's no explicit reference. When the ride opened, it did have the "JBS.wrks" sign painted on the building. It was purposefully made to look faded, fitting in with the abandoned warehouse motif of the station and the general Saw storyline. Image from 2009. Back then, there was much less emphasis on Easter Eggs, hidden meanings, etc. It was likely thrown on there just to add an extra layer of 'this is an abandoned warehouse' and 'JBS.wrks' sounds like a plausible thing for a warehouse. The addition of the new signage is a bit unnecessary and doesn't add anything meaningful or worthwhile in my opinion. But equally, for some signs that were probably a couple of hundred quid, it adds another layer for repeat visitors to make things feel fresh. You could even argue that the "JBS.wrks Est 2009" signage goes against the original planned story, as the whole point is that the warehouse was abandoned and taken over by Jigsaw in 2009. But it's not that deep and doesn't matter. So yeah, no real relevance. Almost certainly doesn't actually mean anything. And very much done for the sake of it.

Really nice to see. Likely pre-planned and then announced today to make people feel like they got bonus time. After having visited for a couple of preview days, it does feel like Thorpe is still on form operationally. It's a shame that Tidal and Zodiac aren't ready for the start of season. Depth Charge is also currently closed, which might be because of work on The Launchpad. It's equally a shame Launchpad isn't ready, but I imagine that's because of planning delays. There's been a few bits of work here and there across the park. New paving to replace tired paving. It's basic but does the job. New signs and paintwork in Saw's plaza. New effects in Walking Dead. Detonator repainted. But equally, the park feels effectively the same as when Hyperia opened (minus, of course, Rumba now). Last year, there was only one new food outlet (the Dessert place between Tidal and Ghost Train, replacing the Apple Fries unit). This year, no new food units, and only a couple of menu changes (though the Boulevard Bites menu is good and reasonably priced). Now when Hyperia first opened, and in general all the TLC that happened for 2024 with Project Sparkle, Thorpe felt fresh and alive again. And they could afford to ride that wave for a bit and milk it. But I think that that wave is petering out and they do need some bigger refreshes or something new of note now to sustain visitation. So yeah, much the same as before, but should be a good season ahead. Hopefully things like weather and such play ball for the park.

About time to move this to The Past now... Who loves blue boards? Interestingly there is a gate amongst those boards. A big gate; the type that would traditionally exist for vehicular access. Whilst I don't think there's immediate plans for work to happen, it at least seems like they're planning for that to happen

We'll turn this thread into a Minecraft World thread, which has been officially announced for 2027: Minecraft World | Opening 2027 at ChessingtonA world-first, fully immersive Minecraft‑inspired theme park land, inspired by the game’s most iconic biomes, mobs and items. Sign up to find out more! The announcement says it will feature a "world first roller coaster". Given that it'll likely be an Intamin multi-dimension coaster (given the plans and art shown), I expect this will be some not yet seen trick track element

There's a whisper of someone saying a new show should go in the Arena too...

Boarding is going up: It was a rehearsal day today. I fully expect the whole ride to be covered, the sign to be removed and the boarding to have something on by opening.

No sign of that I'm afraid!

Looks like the fire effect might not be dead in the water (pun intended) quite yet... Here's what it looked like before:

It's disappointing to see it go. It's been a shadow of its self for years now, but there's no denying it was a useful ride to have. And tbh, I did end up riding it most visits it was open. I get the point of how it would be nice if the park announced its closure in advance. But equally, I find the "one last ride" thing a bit silly. It's an old ride. It's got a place in the park's history, an important one within context, but it's by no means iconic. Very few, if anyone, will think of the rapids ride when they think of Thorpe Park. That's not to poo-poo anyone here saying that. But I've seen comments on social media saying they should allow people that opportunity because it's important, gives closure, stuff like that. It's simply a silly argument. I don't believe that this will have been a last-minute, or closed season, decision. I reckon this will have been considered for a while. I know there's been conversations at points over the last few years about its worthwhileness to stay open, and sooner or later it was going to hit that point. This isn't a Loggers Leap situation, where there wasn't maintenance budget to fix it up and then costs spiralled. This is a conscious, clear closure. As for the future. I guess if Parm Pap says nothing, then nothing is happening. But it's a real shame as Thorpe was once the best park in the country for water rides. Now they've got an over-soaker, a water slide and a verruca pool disguised as a dingy boat ride (of which the latter two barely get you wet). Obviously in general water rides are struggling in this country and closing down. But it's a glaring gap in Thorpe's line up now. I'd love to see something like Amazonia at Bellewaerde, but fear that might be seen as too similar to Storm Surge. And I've long said a modern Intamin flume ride (which has individual restraints) would be amazing. Equally, I'm kind of of the opinion that if Thorpe "Six Flags ified" and went down a coaster-park route, it wouldn't be the worst thing ever. Could be quite good actually. I also wonder if they could utilise the space in any way for Fright Nights? That gives options to them when space for that is becoming more premium.

Cost-wise, they're probably pretty similar these days. And with the regular buying Merlin has done from B&M it wouldn't surprise me if they could do some level of haggling in price. I'd agree that the Vekoma equivalent would be better in almost every way too.

A recent Passholder behind the scenes event confirmed that a new coaster will replace Viking River Splash, which has been closed since 2023(!), and a recent application was put in for its removal. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid02vYtw4A5HP6n5Bi5wNPT2776TsJx5SDUVr4kPWk2dmVT54ZXu46EjNwitqToXZdWWl&id=61567089908870 It's also said this will extend a nearby land, of which Ninjago would probably make the most sense (and it is a popular Lego IP). Legoland Japan are getting a Ninjago-themed Mack Spinner next year, so don't discount that as an option. Legolands California and Florida recent got indoor coasters from ART Engineering, space-themed, and I think the idea would be great for Windsor. The Chinese Legolands have been getting B&M Junior Inverts too, so a farfetched possibility. Could also be something completely different, especially given the challenging landscape of that area. Also worth noting that all areas will be refurbed in the next 5 years.

Great to see many things happening at the park. The Blitz Bahn thing seems more like an upgrade rather than a complete replacement, but I might be misunderstanding that. Toverland are in such a weird place. 10 years ago, with the plans for the new entrance / Port Laguna and Avalon coming together, it felt like the park was going to rise rapidly. Unfortunately they didn't quite bring in the numbers wanted, and then Covid hit, and it's led to the park stagnating a bit. Not that they're in a bad place, they've added new rides and they've enhanced things like their Halloween event, but it's certainly taken them longer to get to this point than I expect they'll have initially wanted. A dark ride has been a much-needed addition to their line up, and I'm excited to see what they conjure up.

Yeah yeah it's only February, but whatever. 2026 will be marketed, in some way, as 25 Years of Fright Nights. Thorpe have done a few things for 'big' / 'notable' anniversaries for FN: -10 years, 2011: Experiment 10 -15 years, 2016: Platform 15, roaming actors inspired by old mazes -20 years, 2021: Trailers, Legacy, Birthday Bash -21 years, 2022: Legacy, Birthday Bash So what will 25 years bring us? The end of Fright Nights 2025 did nod to 25 Years of Fear with a short video: https://www.facebook.com/reel/843542461548792 Lucifer, the headline character for 2025, is speaking with 'someone / something' and telling them to "give them hell", whilst handing over a "top secret" document about Fright Nights. That at the very least suggests there will be some new headline character / Disciple of Fear for the 2026 addition (which is something the park have done for a few years now). Personally, I think it would be a mistake to take the focus away from Lucifer. That was a near-perfect headline character for the event: clear Halloween association, simple and effective and a character guests could actually meet. Keep that character there yearly and continue to have it as a focal point / marketing piece, and it will go from strength to strength. The only thing I'd look at changing is developing the character away from "Lucifer" to an original demon, which the park could trademark, etc. But heyho, the park will have already had thoughts about 2026 and it seems like they're going in a different direction. Another interesting thing to note is that 2026 will be the first year that Thorpe's Entertainments team / actors have been outsourced (in a similar way to the rest of the UK Merlin parks). So it will be interesting what effect that has on the event. As for what I'd like to see in terms of a line up... I have two parallel pieces of thinking. What I think will happen and what I want to happen. What I think will happen is that we'll see an existing maze replaced. I think 4 upcharge mazes is a natural peak for how busy the park is and what people will realistically pay. I don't know what one. Survival Games I think could be the one on the chopping block, despite its changes last year. The large space it occupies gives Thorpe a lot of room to work with. I'm a bit split on whether they'll use The Launchpad as a Fright Nights space. Before the announcement I thought it'd be nailed on that they'd move Lucifer's Lair, on some upgrade of it, there. But with the announcement that it'll be treated primarily as a rest spot, they might keep it like that and have it as a Fright Nights free zone. If they do put a scare zone / show there, they need to go all out with it, as it won't have as much natural footfall as the other locations. As for what I want to happen. Thorpe, as I've said before on here, are very safe with their current mazes. They've got a variety of themes, some of which are quite different, but the style of the mazes is the same - pre show, walk around highly themed sets in a linear fashion and get jump scares. There's many other ways in which a scare maze can be created. In fact, Thorpe used to be one of the most pioneering for doing things differently, but that did sometimes come at the cost of quality. They've got a strong enough core and reputation of quality that they can afford to take a risk and do something different. My big want is an alone experience - doesn't have to be Face it Alone extreme. But looking at what Walibi Holland offer with their alone experiences, something like that fits perfectly for Thorpe. I doubt that'll ever happen though. So something different to the 'free flow linear jump scare route'. Anything. It will take some work and some tweaking. But do it right, and it'll be the best thing they can do for the event.

Just for a bit of simplicity and clarity: https://www.thorpeparkmania.co.uk/index.php/2026/02/18/the-launchpad-details/ Some newer plans (looking for minor changes to the ground) came out last month. They still reference a stage and only using the large side of the beach. I'm working under the assumption that, for now, the stage will appear when they need it.