JoshC.

I did it for Saw Alive! It really is an amazing experience, and it's great to hear other people are liking it!

Gawd, really not with it this morning! Basically what I was trying to say was I guess there's a chance they could try and link it with Swarm's story, but to do to that depth to link two rides together would require a story which requires knowledge of a back story. Swarm and Smiler have back stories, but you can understand them fine and dandy without knowing their back stories. I was thinking that there would probably be a need to have a bit of knowledge of the back story to 'get' it fully. So, err yeah, probably just better to ignore me now; not even sure what I'm trying to say now... XD

Oops, did mean to say it probably won't. Vague idea is some monster attacking a town and locals sacrificing people or something? Probably could have a slight link to Swarm in a back story if they wanted, surely? Mutated aliens and what-not. Though Merlin don't do back stories, so that's why I doubt it. Just something I thought I'd throw out there really

Don't get me wrong, I totally appreciate it's only going to be noticed by the minority, but still, it would be nice to see a whole new train design, right? We want the Merlin parks to be the best, but I think pretty much duplicating theming elements of other rides they've used feels like they've cut a couple of corners (though probably saying it's lazy is a bit of a step too far...) It does feel almost perverse to be complaining about something like this. Not even a few years ago, any theming detail of this calibre on a coaster train would be instantly loved. For all we know, this wing coaster may even have a slight link with Swarm story-wise (which would be amazing). This is, in my view, the best design of a wing coaster yet as well, so it's not even a bad choice But if this coaster ends up with a separate identity to Swarm (which it probably will won't, I guess?), then of course I'd like to have seen a completely new design; would just be great to see. Okay, it's not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things, but every little detail counts.

For comparison, here's Swarm: Literally the same bar a different colour on the fangs, and fangs replacing LEDs. How lazy. Unless they're going for a continuation of Swarm, building on the story of how this alien race is spreading (which I would actually LOVE, but no doubt), it will be disappointing to see Merlin reusing things like this - even though I feel really bad about complaining; after all, it is a fab design <3

Where did you find that?! Nice to see Merlin being nice and creative if this is the case. Don't get me wrong, it's a great design, but basically copying Swarm's train is just silly...

So, I had a lecture timetabled for 6-7pm at uni today. It was meant to be a one-off, information lecture about the 'Second Year Essay' all Maths students have to do; giving us ideas for topics and a chance to ask questions and such. Yet, no member of staff turned up. No email saying it has been cancelled or anything, just a complete blank of information. It's quite frustrating really, as even though I've chosen my topic, I have conflicting information from my Tutor and the updated Module Webpage, meaning I can't actually start doing any work on it (after planning to start it a couple of weeks ago). There are people who are in worse off situations, as they still are unsure about what they even want to do their essay on... Now normally my Department are excellent with organising things and they usually are really friendly, informative and everything you'd ever want from a university department, but it's just been a complete muck up with this which is just really annoying...

And favourite FB comment of the year goes to this... It's a shame that, once again this season, the weather is adversely affecting the park, especially at such a busy time of the year. Hopefully the park will be able to open up later!

I was hoping to get a little Trip Report done for my FN trip last Friday, but don't think I'll be getting round to it any time soon, so may as well just chuck in a few words about the operations-side of things from then... -The park did seem quite busy when I arrived just before 6ish, but everyone was evenly spread around the park. All mazes seemed to have 60+ minute queues from what I could gather. -BWP seems to open at 7? Website still says 6, so they probably should update that. -Speaking of BWP, I noticed Rocky was still open long after I got there, so it looks like the various closing times for rides aren't set in stone. -People may shoot me for admitting this, but I cashed in my Priority Passes I got from last Fright Nights (which, somewhat ironically, I got for complaining about Fastrack...). When it comes down to it, with only one visit to FN a year, and really wanting to do all attractions this time, I felt it as a necessity. Now, the park actually seemed to handle Fastrack quite well; there were very minimal queues for Fastrack queues (as it should be), and usually it was just one Fastrack group let in at a time. Naturally, this led to only a few minutes wait. This IS how Fastrack should run; a premium service whereby some people are able to skip queues, whilst the masses use what should still be a quick-moving queue, with no noticeable affect to their queue experience. It's a shame as, based on what I heard from people who went, this was not how Fastrack was running yesterday. -Most of the ride queues seemed to die down after 8/half 8ish, with only the mazes having substantial queues (ie 30+ mins). Despite this, the coasters still seemed to have trains flying out pretty quick. -When I did Swarm at about half 8 (I think), there was no queue outside the station. Speaking to a couple of people in the station area, they said they had bought Fastrack for it, and the staff member "refused" to accept it, as there was no queue. They said they were going to GS after their ride to see if they could get a refund. Good on the staff member for refusing it, as it does leave them with a chance to keep something back from it (I dunno if the staff member recommended they got a refund though!) -After half 9, the park seemed quite quiet, no queues looked above 10 or so minutes. Hopefully this isn't a regular occurrence; it's a shame to see the park reopen till 10, and yet many guests not take full advantage of it. So all in all, park operations for this FN were A LOT better than last year's event!

Posted yesterday on TST's Facebook. Hopefully the 'the higher the price, the less people will buy it' logic applies it, and works well in keeping the main queue as quick moving as possible, especially when Smiler was getting a full queue, and full overflowing queue, yesterday!

Certainly a daring move, and one I applaud Chessie for doing as well. What we do have to remember is the park are now literally losing out on 'free money' because of this. It is definitely good to see something positive from the park which has had so many failures this past year. I doubt it will spread to other rides or other parks though, I bet it'll return next year, though probably after a bit more thought about the system to ensure guests are kept happy.

Still 100x better than last year's Experiment 10 logic: "Let's let 30 people from the Fastrack queue in before even looking at the 2 and a half hour main queue"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xniR1GN69U&feature=youtu.be&a Love these; so good!

I'd have thought it would have classed as a special event, especially where standard AP holders have to pay extra for it. It's probably very vague on purpose to cover special, one off events they may decide to do (like when they did Ride n Rave last year for example). Probably the safest way to check is to ask Thorpe on FB / drop an email to guest services and they'd be able to confirm

When it comes to records, I think with some like the steepest, fastest, tallest, most inversions, etc., we're pretty much at the limit now. The thing is, with records like that, you need to strike up a balance between getting the record and making a ride comfortable and enjoyable. Would anyone really want to go on a 20 inversion roller coaster if you're stuck in a seat for 4 minutes, go up 3 lift hills and get put on a couple of breaks? Maybe, but it certainly isn't going to be as enjoyable as it sounds to people. Ditto with tallest and fastest - no one will want to go up a 500ft lift hill, and being rocketed to 160mph, say, to climb up 500ft vertically isn't efficient, and probably isn't worthwhile enough. Cost will always be an issue, but there are big companies out there who can afford to spend large amounts of money on new advances. We won't see an end to to progress or anything, I'm sure. I would say we've currently see progress slow down a lot (when was the last truly innovative roller coaster built? I'd argue X in 2002(?)), and progress will stay low for a while, especially with current economic climates. However, things will pick up again, as technology advances. I'm sure that 40 years ago, types of coasters we have now would have been classed as pipe dreams... For the time being, I expect we'll see current things developed and perfected. For example, B&M developed their own wingrider, and thus wildly improved on Intamin's version. If rumours are true, they are also looking at developing their own 4D type, and then will focus on perfecting that. There's probably loads of technical stuff going on behind the scenes too, making ride systems more efficient, cheaper and such. Perfection is the way forward at this time. No doubt, we'll also see more developments to other aspects of coasters, like adding on gimmicks (LET'S MAKE RIDES GO BACKWARDS), special effects, theming and so forth. What better way to make something 'new' then adding on a cheap gimmick to something old? It's a short term solution, yes, but arguably that is what we'll be seeing for the near future.

What I don't quite get is the park are going for all out scares, and recommending that FN is not for under 13s, and they then create a purposefully less-scary attraction? Maybe the park knew they couldn't go for the all-out scares for BWP, so tried to create a tame one. But, because the way FN is marketed, people still expect more?

I don't see why it wouldn't work; depends how badly faded it is though. I think that as long as the date and barcode it readable, you could show it to a member of staff and they could let you through. Just explain it's faded slightly for whatever, and they'd be able to check it's fine and let you through.

It's not technically the fifth film, more like a film relating to the overall universe of Paranormal Activity. I think it was described as a 'cousin' to the franchise, as opposed to a sequel or spin off? Either way, this isn't looking great. It'll probably create a nice few plot holes, and milk the cow even more. I just hope PA5 ends the franchise with a bit of substance...

I think I saw her on Friday; I wasn't sure if it was her arm cleverly disguised and with lots of make up or if it was actually amputated!

As promised, maze reviews. I'll review them as I did them during the night. Cabin in the Woods Incredible. An amazing concept, with excellent theming and execution. Being faced with 4 doors and not knowing where to go was amazing. The free flow idea is really clever. We went through the first door, and were led down and round a wooded area, with an actor making good use of the surroundings. After coming back out, we went through the third door, and things about the route got blurry very quickly. Two of us were in a room with an actor, and she separated us and cornered each of us individually; really invaded our personal space. We then quickly found the control room. This was disappointing for two reasons - I felt like this should have been nearer the end of the maze (almost like an alternative end), and none of the buttons worked. I felt like a facility worker would've been well placed there two, but oh well. We continued through many doors, and found the dead-end basement. It was a shame that many of the fire exits were so obvious, at it helped me realise where we needed to go, and ruined the effect slightly. The second half of the maze was very busy, but the actors did a superb job in keeping the flow well. I liked the tight-fit corridor and revolving tunnel a lot as well. The end was...well, I don't remember the end very well. I remember seeing the blood stone sacrifices, but after that, nothing was very memorable, which is a shame. Overall, a very strong maze, which just needs a better ending and a bit more control to make the second half less congested. 7.75/10 The Asylum Yawn. Once again, a distinctively average maze. Fortunately, the strobes didn't give me a headache, but the effect wears off quickly. It's nice to see the actors be able to be very energetic and climb and such, but they didn't really take advantage of trying to scare people. It was a shame. Many scares felt very obvious and it was just a bit tiring doing the maze in honesty. No stand out actors for me either, I'm afraid. All were very typical 'jump scares' and run for the next one. The ending was fun; the toilet cubicles were interesting to look at. Chainsaw guy left people running as always; it does always get me a bit as well, I cannot lie, but it has worn off after a few goes. 5.5/10 Blair Witch Project There was a fantastic actor in the queue line for this. (Though, a queue line for a scare ZONE is stupid...). Very creepy, yet funny. He was a really good laugh to listen to. The zone itself was disappointing. It lacked atmosphere, which is what this needed. It was too dark and too quiet, which sounds like a strange criticism in a way. You couldn't see things like the stick figures hanging from the trees unless you really looked for them. Sounds of people screaming would have been amazing, as well as gusts of winds and stuff. Hearing Inferno's roar isn't scary. Our group quickly separated into two halves, meaning we saw all the scares, and the actors then didn't scare us. A couple gave us 'scary looks' and followed us, but nothing special. The fundamental flaw with this scare zone is it tries to be a maze. Yet, as it's perfectly linear, you see everything happen in front of you before it happens to you. The shed is a nice idea, but it poorly executed, and looks cheap. A real disappointment. I guess, however, having a 2 star rating, the park weren't aiming for a particularly scary experience - but even then, it lacked atmosphere. One more thing - what's the point in encouraging people to upload photos of the scare zone if they can't use flash, so would naturally end up with rubbish photos? The amazing queue line actor. 4/10 Saw Alive No real differences to any other year, except loads more actors than normal. The maze was good fun and I really enjoyed; quite a few stand out actors, and they targeted everyone in our group. 7/10 My Bloody Valentine This was a huge shame, as it had so much potential. The maze's introduction is nice, and is actually really good. Having not watched the film, I don't know if he relates to the film itself or not, but he was the best character in the maze. The walk through the hospital is interesting, but being at the front of the group, the actor in there left it too late for us to be scared by her. We were then sent to the right hand side. We were walking past mine shafts. I guess this is where I was most surprised about the maze - no more separation rooms. Presumably, this is due to throughput issues? A real shame, but I think this is where having done Experiment 10 before rally ruins this maze, as you almost expect to be separated. The actor that lead us down was very blasé and uninterested. I really feel like the park could have made more effort here - having you twisting through very tight corridors, looking like a mine. Anyone remember what the second half of 'The Twilight Zone' at Chessington (for Vampire's 21st birthday) was like? Imagine having that, after having your large group split in two. It would only take up a small amount of one container, and then you could have actors getting in your face. I think that would have been SO much better. Anyways, we made it to the tunnel, and went through. After this, it felt like we weren't in a mine any more; I had no idea where I was. I then had a big rubber bed pushed up against - why? What? I then ended up in a nicely themed forest, which I guess would have made sense if I watched the film. I then reached a locked door and couldn't go anywhere. After most of the 20 person group arrived, it randomly opened and then Harry Warden appeared with a pick axe, and then we were out. Wow. It was a pretty weak maze in my opinion, and I just didn't know how to react. There was no audio in the maze, and a lack of actors - no more than 8 that I encountered? I encountered more in the Blair Witch Project! After a brilliant first year with the shipping containers, the route continues to slip and park aren't using the idea effectively. Next year needs improvements here! For the only 5 star rated maze, this was hugely disappointing. 4/10 You're Next May as well say a couple of words - these guys were good fun, even if I only saw them once. They did the job and were quite fun to be around at the same time; can't ask for more? You're Next character 1 You're Next character 2 I also came across the director and his assistant. They were great. The director didn't like me, so refused to touch me and treated me a bit like dirt in a way. Showbiz is a cruel world; all I wanted was to star in his films. The assistant said she should have done my make up, but I thought I did a good job on my own. Apparently she was still more beautiful than me though, which is a shame... The director, refusing to touch me. That's about it. Despite not having the best mazes to me, the overall event was great. Would once again highly recommend Face it Alone! The more I think about it, the more struggle to put into words the event. Simply put, it's extreme and exactly what the park needed to offer if they want to advance their scare event. I hope we continue to see the film idea continue, with new IPs added every year or two. Hopefully Lionsgate and Thorpe will continue with a strong working relationship and build on this event all the more. And, I also hope we see more out of hours things in following seasons, like Face it Alone and the overnight camping.

Hope everyone is having fun! And to those Facing it Alone later - good luck; you'll need it

I had a very different experience to you yesterday! All actors were energetic and plentiful (especially in Cabin), and I had no complaints about the actors. MBV had the least number of actors; it must have been about 10 in my run. BWP had a good number of actors too! Almost like noseyelephant and I went to different events last night...

A full review of the mazes will come tomorrow. However, just a quick couple of words - the event was very good; favourite maze was Cabin in the Woods, least favourite would be My Bloody Valentine. Blair Witch Project was disappointing. You're Next characters were fun. I did Face it Alone. I can't - and won't - say anything about the experience itself (so PLEASE don't ask me). I imagine every experience is different anyways. But I would really recommend it to anyone who likes scare attractions - it is very full on. One quick thing - we didn't sign anything, but it was recommending for over 18s. Personally, I think anyone under 18 would struggle with it...

A review of the Blair Witch camping experience is on ScareTOUR: *Potential Spoilers* http://www.scaretouruk.com/review---blair-witch-overnight-experience---thorpe-park.html Disappointing to hear to that it wasn't successful on its first night, but glad to hear it's being improved. I'm never a fan of actors pretending to be guests, as in my experience they've always over-acted things...

If a new coaster is planned for 2015, it's likely we'd see plans on Runnymede Council's website between November and February. However, it is unclear if there even will be a new roller coaster in 2015. I personally doubt there will be!