JoshC.

-The key thing here though is you still rode Swarm in its opening season. If you were to have only visited Thorpe once last season, and Swarm had a 90 minute queue, would you be prepared to queue that for what could be your only chance in a year? For me, I would. The same goes with SW7. I'm planning to visit early on in the season on a weekday so hopefully should visit when SW7's queue isn't too busy (basically as Fred says - it will be busy when it's busy, and quiet when it's quiet). However, if those plans fall through, my only visit is likely to be the first weekend of Scarefest - sure, SW7 will have a long queue, but for a new ride, you have to expect that. If people aren't prepared to queue for so long, that's understandable, as everyone has their limit. However, with an opening season of a huge new ride, busyness has to be expected. I reckon that with Oblivion on ERT again and it's high throughput, there will no doubt be times when Oblivion has a short queue, especially near the beginning of the day - even though it's close to SW7, most will still head there first.. But hey, why worry about Oblivion - the likes of Nemesis will be walk on for a good period of the day!

http://www.chessington.com/zufari/behind-the-scenes/ Don't know how long this has been around, but there's now a sort of Developer's Diary for Zufari on the main page. Notice how they also refer to Zufari as a 'themed land', and the attraction as 'Zufari: Ride into Africa'. Probably reading into that too much, but possibly this could mean that this African theme could expand, possibly seeing a retheme of Forbidden Kingdom into a more Zufari-style African theme? Also, this was posted on Chessie's Facebook page a couple of days ago: Gyasi and Kanty. Seriously, Chessington are hitting all the right notes with this project!

The X:\NWO spruce up was mentioned before closed season even started this time around - sorry! If this whole retheme / spruce up happens, I'm really hoping we don't see another dark / scary / rundown theme. I know it's popular with guests, and for upkeeping reasons for Merlin, but X isn't a 'scary' ride in respect really, whether you face forwards or backwards. As it is, one reason I love X is because I don't take it seriously and, in a way, I'd say this is what the park want it to be perceived. The ride has no consistencies whatsoever, and is just a mash of things, which is one of the reasons why it needs sorting out. But if the park wanted the ride to be taken seriously, they'd have done something about that long ago, rather than tweaking bits of the experience to mash things up. So, if it gets a retheme, give it a consistent theme, but make it so it's clear the ride isn't serious - have something like a club or rave, florescent lights and such. Or make it a little jokey, tongue-in-cheek and such. I don't know really, but just don't have anything serious or scary, otherwise it will make the actual ride a total let down.

So, here's my view on the next Big Thing for Thorpe. In the past 10 years, Thorpe's big additions were Colossus, Inferno, Stealth, Saw and Swarm. Each of them added something unique to them - inversions, inverted-ness, speed and height, (beyond-)vertical and winged coaster. In a park of Thorpe's size, with the number of attractions it has, it would be pretty silly really to have something which mimics these experiences. Immediately, in my mind, this rules out any coaster which would focus on any of these things, so any sort of multi-looper (by which I mean, the key focus is the number of inversions, not any form of coaster which has a large number of inversions), any inverted coaster, any launched coaster, anything with vertical drops as a focus (Euro Fighters, Dive Machines, etc.), or another winged coaster, or a flying coaster (as I believe it is thought that flying and winged coasters are 'similar experiences'). That knocks out quite a lot of options - the two stand out remaining options being a (steel) airtime monster or a woodie. There are of course other options, such as mega coasters, spinning coasters and such, but I don't think these would fit the bill. A mega coaster is something which I think could possibly be the 'big thing after the next big thing', as I think at this stage, it wouldn't suit the park appropriately - they have a maximum height barrier of 50m, and can only exceed 30m once or twice I believe, and their coasters must not exceed 850m (all due to the MTDP). Due to those restrictions, a mega coaster just won't fit the bill at this stage in my mind. Spinning coasters are likely to have too low a throughput, and other ideas probably aren't popular enough. Now then, a steel airtime monster. It is something that Thorpe lacks - airtime. It could realistically be done in the constraints they have, and given the opportunity, it would work perfectly as a step up coaster to the bigger coasters - another thing that Thorpe lacks. It seems like the perfect way to fit everything which the park is missing, as plenty of others have said. This also goes back to Benin's point earlier - a ride with no gimmicks, which is just great quality. Such a ride would no doubt be a cheap ride system as well, meaning that Thorpe have the option of installing a somewhat cheaper major attraction than normal, if they need to save on money, or have extra budget for theming or sprucing up the rest of the park. You can just imagine it on the island next to Swarm and working perfectly really. The only thing I can think of against it would be - is this what the public wants? Will a ride with no gimmicks, no inversions and such draw in the crowds, especially since the UK has been 'spoilt' by gimmicky coasters for so long now (even Swarm comes here, what with the wingrider concept). I guess that's something which only market research can tell... Then, there's a woodie. Again, this fits the bill of giving opportunities for airtime and a step-up coaster to the bigger ones. The fact that one was seriously considered just a few years ago shows that there would definitely be interest in - after all, despite what Merlin's research tells them, the park wouldn't have gotten as far as they did with the plans under Tussauds if the ride wouldn't have been popular. With the whole thrillseeker / experience thing Thorpe have going, surely a woodie is a great idea - there's not too many around the UK right now (there's only been two installed in the past 50...), and it can be marketed to be very appealing. I've heard rumours of RMC being considered, with even a 3 coaster deal for Merlin being possible(!), and that would suit Thorpe well - has the appealing gimmick, can fit in what they'd want in the length required and such. No doubt RMC can develop their hybrids / woodie (whatever people want to call them) further, and if they prove to be a success, the type will naturally develop. Then, there's the tried and tested woodies, any of which could provide something to suit Thorpe. The problems I could think of here are marketability - if Merlin's findings really do reflect the general consensus of the public, is it worth the risk? Then there could be practicality issues - the whole new engineering team required (at least I think that's true, or is that whole thing just a load of rubbish?) and other possible issues. But why does the next big thing have to be a coaster? Alton have apparently said that the Secret Weapon project code isn't necessarily restricted to just coasters now, meaning one of their next big things could be something like a dark ride, so why can't it be the same for Thorpe? Thorpe lacks a dark ride which isn't a coaster, so would be a welcome move in the park. Invest in one instead of a coaster, so spend at least £10 million in today's money, and then there's loads of possibilities to create an amazing dark ride which creates a brilliant atmosphere, and have a great ride system to go with it. I can't think exactly what could come from it, but with the correct ride system and the though put into it, it could be phenomenal. A couple of issues I can think of though - would the next big thing not being a coaster work in the long run? Even if it is a huge hit, I'd say the general link to theme parks is roller coasters - would 6-7 years be too long between coasters to keep the public continually going? Personally, I think this wouldn't be a problem, but it is still something to consider. Another problem is the location. If X is kept as it is, the park would need a large building would need to be created to house the ride. With Thorpe, it would be hard to create such a building in a suitable location (ie, one where it naturally fits in), as I personally think plonking a random building would ruin the skyline and look an eyesore in general. If X were to be removed, then this probably wouldn't be as much of an issue, as it could be housed in the pyramid / have a new building replace it, but otherwise, the location could prove to tricky. So, really, I have no idea what the next big thing could be, or what I even would like it to be. Every idea I can think of has its own flaws / problem, so I seem to think that it just wouldn't happen. So, whenever the next big thing is planned for, I await the surprise of finding out what it is!

You did mention my name in that post though? I was just agreeing with you! And yeah, that was taken from Runnymede's site, from the Snoozebox application I believe.

I think it might have been me who pointed that out, or at least something similar. At the moment, it's unclear whether the next major investment will be 2015 or 2016 in my opinion, as I seem to remember reading different things in the Snoozebox application which conflicted each other (I'll have a look later), though I've heard things which more suggest 2016 than 2015. <br /> <br /> As for what I'd like to see, I'll post that later, after I've thought about it some more.

That's the "Thames at Staines", so only relates to there. Thorpe is surrounded by lakes, so it is different. I can also safely say that the Thames at Staines IS flooded now. Oh, and for whoever cares, the grassy part of the car park is currently waterlogged.

Thought I'd bring this back up - especially as a few people seemed to not be aware of all this in Chat last night1 There are currently New Year sales for the Thorpe Annual Pass and the Merlin Annual Pass! -You can get a Thorpe AP for £58 online at the moment; the offer ends January 2nd. -You can get a Standard Merlin AP for £99. You can visit any Merlin attraction to collect this (even Thorpe - the AP office is open for a few hours each day during January for some reason), or if you have a current MAP, you can still buy one, and use it as a 'renewal' when your pass runs out in affect. This offer runs out at the end of January. So, LG95, if you can afford one now, definitely get an Annual Pass! Depending on how you feel about visiting other attractions and how much money you've got, I'd say go for the Merlin one; it will pay for itself and gives you more flexibility. Hope this has helped. To all who are thinking about taking advantage of this, make sure you've 'Liked' the MAP Facebook page - the most recent sale (ie, the one in Jan 2012), they announced via Facebook that the offer would end a week earlier than planned. They then announced, again through FB, that if you sent an email to customer services, you could still take advantage of the offer till the end of the month. So yeah, keep your eyes peeled if you don't want to miss out. Goodness, I feel like a Merlin advert now..

The sooner people stop expecting a brand new ride, the better. Otherwise, it could well lead to disappoint and such. The only time I can think Thorpe have EVER opened a new ride mid-way through the season is Rush in 2005, and the planning application for that was submitted around early Autumn in 2004 (the same time as Slammer). Personally, I'm against the idea of opening rides mid way through seasons any way; always seems a bit messy, especially as it feels like closed season should be the time to build things and the like. I would still expect Thorpe to be working on the 3 year plan, so 2013 to be a medium-investment year. However, do any of us really know the actual costs of the Snoozeboxes? For all we know, despite what they are, Snoozebox could have a large cost to them, which in turn means we're perhaps seeing more invested this year than a normal medium year. Another thing to note is that, since 2007, the medium and small investments have been cheap. Flying Fish cost about £1 million, and I've heard the X:\NWO refurb thing cost about £600k (not sure on that though..). 2008 was pretty much free I'd assume, bar getting voice actors for Time Voyagers. I can imagine Alive cost in the region of £1-2 million to create (could be wrong here, more a guestimate), though the running costs are a lot more than other attraction. 2011 was pretty much another freebie with Storm Surge. So, in the 4 'non-large investment' years, the park probably didn't spend more than £5-6 million? It just doesn't seem likely to me that we'll get a new ride. Most new rides would require planning permission, of which we haven't seen yet. So, any new ride would have to require little to no permission - for example, be indoors. The rumour of Vengeance moving to the 4D theatre had been around for a while now, but the big question would be 'Why?'. It just seems to be little more than a low throughput filler ride; something which Thorpe shouldn't really consider if they're expanding. A retheme of Saw Alive to a Swarm maze has also been suggested, but again, what's the need? It's expensive to run and the novelty wears off quickly - just doesn't seem worth the effort really. So, what do I think will happen in 2013? Well, I can see X getting attention if the strong rumours are the case, and perhaps being marketed as new (depending on how much work is done). It's likely a cheaper option than getting a new ride, rejuvenates an old ride and helps give attention. I hope we see general touch ups around the park, but then again, that's always said every year Thorpe doesn't open a coaster, so is that wishful thinking? We'll have to wait and see...

The Thames in Staines is flooded at the moment (for those who know it, I think that The Swan Hotel by Staines Bridge is pretty much inaccessible at the moment!). Penton Park (the place opposite Thorpe) is currently on red alert too. I don't think Thorpe is in any trouble though. I passed it today, and the lake didn't seem much higher than normal. When anything is planned and applications are sent to the council, a Flood Assessment form is shown as well (probably a standard thing for anywhere near lakes / rivers). This shows any affect possible floods may have and such, and I'm pretty sure there's always lee-way for the main park when it comes to flooding. If anything was to flood, it would likely be the site of Thorpe Farm, as that's what is flooded when land is infilled. The only place I've seen affected by high waters on the actual park are the bridges onto Saw Alive. In other words, this is something the park have thought about and are prepared for, and I doubt it will be a problem.

Yesterday was really great for me - it just felt so fantastic. Nothing special really happened - no 'major' presents (sweets, clothes, a couple of games), and just the standard Christmas lunch which was as amazing as ever. But, I dunno, it just felt great. Maybe it's because I'm valuing my time at home more now I'm at uni, but everything about yesterday just felt so special. Happy holidays everyone!

I think one thing which has surprised people is that the prices were MUCH higher than expected. When TPM had a Q&A session with Thorpe around the end of August / beginning of September (link - http://forum.maniahub.com/topic/9758-thorpe-park-snoozebox-details/), this was said: Of course, this was by no means final ("we hope", "yet to be fully confirmed"), but people would be expecting a similar price. Personally, I was expecting to see a maximum of £150 per room (not including tickets). When the park started marketing the Crash Pads at the beginning of October, it came to light that it would be from £56pp, and people were hopeful that would include breakfast and park tickets for all. Now, we're looking at a minimum of nearly £69pp (based on 4 sharing). This comes with breakfast and 2 park tickets. So, say the 2 other people don't have AP and need tickets, and get a BOGOF. That's still over £20 extra for those two people. Unless I've misunderstood something with that; haven't really read the T&Cs to be honest... So, I definitely think one reason for people complaining about the prices is that the possible prices have just gone up and up. It's no doubt taken people by surprise, annoyed some and such. The fact that you can stay in a "proper" hotel or get more included in other park packages for a similar price, or less, has also confused people and certainly made them question the need for the expense.

I totally agree with this! Inevitably, the question with this is - how do you decide which members are able to go? Personally, I think the best way to do this would be to have the topics for such exclusive meets (ERTs, etc.) to be accessible only to members until after the spaces are filled / after the meet (I assume this is in some way possible), and not advertise them on Facebook / Twitter, like Ellie says. Or, in times of need, make it viewable to the public when it seems as if there are going to be plenty of free spaces. This way, it ensures that at least semi-regular members who contribute to the forum in some way see the topic, and such meets are full of such members, and then the public see that we have such meets, and that if they become a member of the community (note the word community here, and not forum or site), then they can join in such things as well. Just something to throw out there.

Alton Towers have confirmed over Twitter that this video and the accompanying Twitter account are fan made. Well done to the person who created it - very professional and well thought out - better than a fair bit of fan made stuff you see! EDIT: Beaten to it! Seems a lot like Th13teen - fans marketing the ride as much as the marketing team! Would love a Phalanx style marketing campaign soon (maybe when the name is released) as that was amazing!

1) The usual really. Thorpe trips, perhaps a Chessie and Alton one thrown in if they're popular enough, as well as the normal Closed Season meets. ERT trips are great as well if possible! 2) Regularly. I know that will mean different things to different people, but hey-ho. I don't see why one can't be done every 6-8 weeks say, as long as enough people are turning up. It's trickier around certain times (Closed Season, exam times in May/June for example), but 6-8 weeks seems achievable. 3) For me personally, I don't normally need too much warning, but that depends on the time of year. As a general thing, I think a minimum of 3 weeks during open season / for 'smaller meets', and anything up to 6 weeks for 'larger meets' / closed season. One random thing I'll throw in here - is it possible to try and keep a mixture of days? As in, not have all meets on a Saturday, say - have some on Saturdays, some on Sundays, etc., with the occasional midweek one? Even with advanced warning, people may not be able to make certain days outright (for example, Sundays for me are particularly difficult to do), so to have a mixture of different days will help more people come along. 4) All day meets perhaps (maybe say, meeting an hour after opening to allow people time to get there)? As it's stood in the past, official meet up times have been about 1 or 2 in the afternoon? If a park closes at 5 or 6, that isn't too long, especially if people need to leave early. As Benin says, a quick meet for say an hour doesn't make a proper 'meet' really. (This was something which knocked my confidence on my first meet - it didn't stick together as a group for long. Not saying that it created a bad reflection on anyone, but for someone who was shy and nervous, it didn't help. Fortunately, that didn't stop me from attending a future meet, which was much better, but did knock my confidence for a bit to be honest.) Also, make sure a group photo happens and is always posted in the appropriate topic after the meet? Helps keep those fond memories and may encourage more people to join in, seeing a happy group together each time. 5) TPM meets should be about meeting people from the boards, primarily. You can to a theme park with anyone, and ride the rides any time (this would presumably be the case for most of us, considering we're on here! ). So really, just get to know people, make friends, see people you've met on previous meets, spoken to in the Chat Room and so forth, and then ride some rides and such. And the most important thing that should happen on a meet - everyone has fun! I've only been on 2 meets in the 4 years I've been on here, but now I'm a more confident person, I will no doubt be going to more in the future. I look forward to seeing what exciting things are planned!

Well, I've rummaged through my ORPs, old and new, and scanned a few up. Here's a few of my highlights: Quite possibly my first go on Depth Charge. I look so unimpressed.. A lot happier on this one! Me looking very innocent on Vampire. This is from 2003! My first go on Rattlesnake in 2004. My only go on Corkscrew in 2006. My face... :') Despite my bored, vacant expression, this was my first go on Stealth over opening weekend (front row too!) First go on Oblivion, also in 2006. To be honest, I was scared. First go on Saw, thanks to the Ride it First competition! During FN last year, 3 of us 'played dead'. The fourth guy joined in - much love to him! :') That's it from me!

With regards to Swarm facing backwards, something pulled from the Developer Diary in February: Basically from the park's mouth - Swarm will never run backwards.

Whilst I agree the experience of Oblivion is great, the 'track and train' element just doesn't do it for me. As such, that reflects on my overall judgement of the attraction. Probably haven't explained any of this that well, but can't think how to word it. Oblivion as a whole attraction is okay, as the experience is great, but the 'track and train' element lets it down. I guess it boils down to how we separate rides from experiences, and how we're judging attractions.

Personally, I'm not a big fan of Oblivion. The theme is brilliant, and the build up to the ride is simply superb (one of the few rides in my life I have been 'scared' before going on...), but I dunno, the ride itself is a bit meh. On my ride in October, the lift hill felt quite rattly and uncomfortable. The drop is good, but that's all there is to the ride - even though I enjoy the drop, I feel a bit shorted changed by the whole ride. To me, Oblivion as a whole experience is great, but the ride itself is just 'okay'.

Sunken Gardens and Nature Another thing I quite like is nature. Unfortunately, as we know, there's not a lot of quiet, green spaces around the park, yet it always interests me just how much wildlife survives around the park (probably scrounging from food which is just chucked on the floor and such, but meh, still interesting). So, here's a nice little section dedicated to the park's only real green space, Sunken Gardens, whose days could well be numbered, and random wildlife I've seen... Pwetty flowers (think these were by Vortex actually). The tranquillity of Sunken Gardens. Even with the loud launches of Stealth, and the roars of Swarm in the distance, it always feels really peaceful. Sunken Gardens II Sunken Gardens III DUCKS! Nature-y, I guess. I believe under the bridge in the distance is where there's a arm with a sword poking out, relating to something from the 80s? One of the older members who visited the park back then may know more information if they have a clue what I'm referring to.. A Look Ahead 2013 sees the introduction of The Crash Pad. I am in the minority in thinking the look of them won't be that bad, especially as once you're inside the park, you really just won't see them / pay attention if you do catch a glimpse of them. I also remain hopeful that, like most Merlin shipping containers, that they'll be well-styled. Despite the high prices (at least, I think they are), I believe that they'll be a success - especially for the club nights. It will be interesting to see just how popular they are however, and if this testing of the water shows that Thorpe do need a proper hotel. It seems highly likely that there won't be a new attraction (as in, something brand new installed) next season, with the only rumour circulating around being Vengeance moving into the old 4D theatre. Personally, I hope it doesn't happen - the ride doesn't have the throughput to cope with the park, and just wouldn't be a worthwhile investment in my eyes; I'd much rather a 4D film put in place. There's also the rumour of X being refurbished hugely, with new, forward-facing trains. Whilst I hope that there is a fair bit of money injected into the ride, I'd personally prefer it to stay facing backwards - why take away the thing that is most special about the ride? Apart from that, I'd like to see some spruce ups here and there; just generally improve the park's appearance a bit more. And so, that is more or less it - another season down. The 2012 season for me has been a bit quieter Thorpe-wise for me, due to illness over the summer and moving to university in October, which has been a shame, as with the introduction of the world-class Swarm, the park is really improving. Hopefully the 2013 season at Thorpe for me should see me on park a little more, and show everyone how the park doesn't need to add big, new attractions left, right and centre to draw guests in. To round this all off, like this last season's review, I'll post my 2012 Thorpe Ride Count: The Swarm x15 Colossus x14 Vortex x8 Nemesis Inferno x6 X:\No Way Out x6 Saw - The Ride x5 Flying Fish x5 (16 laps in total) Rumba Rapids x4 Rush x4 Samurai x3 Loggers Leap x3 Zodiac x3 Detonator x2 Stealth x2 Storm Surge x2 Depth Charge x1 Quantum x1 Slammer x1 The Passing x1 Experiment 10 x1 Thank you for reading; any comments / criticisms would be greatly appreciated! Look out for my PTRs and reviews next season!

The Swarm's Premiere Screaming The first major event of the season took place in the first four days. To celebrate Swarm's opening, a temporary stage was set up on Swarm's island, where bands played live music and there were some Lionsgate / Hunger Games related competitions. There were also copious actors around the park / Swarm's island, along with some theming at the entrance, and audio changes around park to have Swarm-interjections (which also saw the park's original entrance music make a brief return!). Hopefully this is a sign of good things to come from Merlin with opening new major rides; just a little bit of effort goes a long way. The event itself worked well for me, and being the only time during the season actors were on the island was great. Lez Cougan and his followers were telling people how he was right all along... The Swarm's invasion sparked a military response. A selection of the bands that played. Mash Up This season's Easter weekend event changed from the past couple of events, which focused more on the freaky and bizarre, and was instead sponsored by Ministry of Sound. DJs, silent discos and karaoke were orders of the long weekend, and it seemed to go down a hit with the public. I did pop along, but in honesty, it's not really my cup of tea, though I did enjoy it. If a similar event happens next season, not too sure how likely I'd be to visit the event, but heyho, you never know. As I said, the event seemed to work a treat and suits the park well - they should definitely stick with it, and maybe look into a MoS event for next May/June half term as well. Some of the things going on each day. SWARM ZERO-G ROLL! Oh, and some Mash Up related stuff. Colossus had a silent disco for the event; unfortunately I arrived a little too early for it. Slacklining was going on in the arena, along with the standard stunt show. Club Nights Speaking of the Ministry of Sound, 2012 saw the introduction of 18+ club nights at the park, along with the tweaking of Reload to Trax, a 15-18 club night. I did not attend any of these, as they're just not my thing. However, just a few words - again, I think it suits the direction the park are currently heading, and that's not a bad thing. They've been marketed well, and as far as I'm aware, they haven't had many issues. Then there was also Ride and Rave, the summer party / club night thing the park had, which sounded okay too. Advertising sign!! Sun Scream For the second season running, I didn't go to Sun Scream (which more revolved around being ill at the time, as opposed to not wanting to go). In its fifth(?) season now, it must still be popular and worthwhile, so not much else to say on that. There have been other Dr Pepper related things throughout the season as well, such the second open weekend in March seeing a pants world record attempted to be broken (most people in a pair of underwear) as well as the giving out free Dr Pepper cans over summer. Obviously a good relationship between the park and Dr Pepper, and no complaints from me with it. Pants world record thing-a-ma-bob. SWARM! Dr Pepper stuff... FREE STUFF! Fright Nights What with moving to university this year, it looked doubtful that I'd make it to Fright Nights this season, or any season for the next few years. However, with 'The Passing' tempting me and an earlier-than-planned visit home, I went. Due to this, it gave me much less freedom than previous seasons, which is a shame, especially as I visited on one of the worst days (crowd-wise, at least). I only managed two mazes, Experiment 10 and The Passing, of which the former was a disappointing, hollow shell of its former self. The Passing was good, but needs a lot of work on it to bring it to the standard most expected of it. Roaming actors and audio were highlights of Fright Nights for me; as usual, they were great. However, the park SERIOUSLY needs some additional theming - what's the point in having this spectacle event if you don't focus on creating a brilliant atmosphere everywhere? Following some bad experiences during my trip, I have left myself wondering if it's worth a visit to Fright Nights next season - no doubt I will end up visiting there, but if there's not sufficient improvements, I may give it a miss unfortunately. The only additional theming of the event? Oh, and some crosses that lit up at night (which were nice, admittedly).. There were muck ups with Passing's queue system in my eyes, resulting in much longer than expected queues - needs sorting out. Me with death and an inmate after surviving The Passing... Food and Drink When it comes to food outlets, I think the park almost always hit the nail on the head. Granted, the food outlets aren't always related well to the themes of nearby attraction (Mexican place nearly a tropical volcano for example), that's no big issue - it's the quality of these places which is important. This season's new outlet was Roast and Relish, just off Swarm's island. The place serves meat baguettes, at a reasonable price of £3.75 or 4 for £15. I quite like it; good quality food at reasonable prices, along with free extras such as sauces, stuffing and crackling. However, I can't help but think there should be more choice - there's only ever two different fillings to choose from. So, if you don't like an option, you have a choice of one; if you don't like either, you're stuffed. Give some more variety and the place would be better. When it comes to the quality of the food, though, it's fab. My favourite place to eat, though, has to be Desperado's Mexican Cantina. Cheap, good quality and always quick service. Always good for a day out as well I find, as the meals can fill you up, but not to a point where it can make you feel too full to ruin the rest of your day. If you vaguely like some form of Mexican food, it's really worth a try! Also a big fan of the kebab place - for the amount and quality of food you get and the price you pay, I'd say it's the best value of park. Always get quick service as well. Seriously cannot complain with it. Oh, and that Inferno Hot Hot Hot Sauce! Also like Bar 360, but only when feeling rich / have a lot of time on my hands - the biggest downside to it is the slow service. Unfortunately, was disappointed with Wild Wong's noodle bar this season. Used to love the place, but quite early on in the season, they changed the noodles they use, and I really just don't like them. Certainly seemed to be of lesser quality too. Shame really. :/ Roast and Relish. Personally, I think this position is better than the planned one of where the Games Stall is. In that location, it would probably be a lot busier, and create a lot more congestion. Nice little nod at the LC12 codename for the benches of R&R. Merchandise Just a quick word on merchandise really. It's no secret I'm a sucker for merchandise, and with the high quality Swarm merchandise that came out this season, it has pretty much left me telling Thorpe... Swarm bears (small and large), statues, models, hoodies, bags, lanyards, hats, mugs and whatever else there is. All of it is absolutely brilliant - genuinely cannot fault it. The introduction of more shirts. pens, models (Stealth resin statue for example), as well as novel items like Rubix cubes have no doubt helped Thorpe's and Merlin's profits increase, and left my wallet feeling incredibly light... Swarm model thing. Merchandise I haven't added to my collection - condoms. Colossus - The Ultimate Screw. Stealth - Hard, Fast and Up in Seconds. The Swarm - The End is Coming. (Sorry for the quality by the way!)

In what I hope I can make a seasonal thing now, here's the 2012 edition of my Review of the Thorpe Park season! First of all, a couple of little points - again, I won't be doing any for other parks, simply due to the fact I haven't visited them enough to do a 'season review' like this one. Hopefully next season will see me expand out to other parks a bit more regularly, so it is a case of watch this. Also, apologises about some of the bad photos; I've included as few shockingly bad quality photos as possible, though some do help aid what I'm talking about I think. Over the festive period, I'll be treating myself to a new camera, so hopefully 2012 will see the end of my bad photos (hears loud cheers across TPM ). I also have split this up into three posts for two reasons - there's an restriction on the number of images in one post and it helps lay out the review in a natural way. To anyone who wants a quick link to last year's review, CLICK HERE (one of a couple cheeky plugs thrown in...). With those little points out of the way, "hold on tight folks, 'cause this is the wildest ride in the wilderness..." The Swarm Let's get straight down to it then - the big and shiny new 127ft monster that's invaded Thorpe Park this year. With the build up to the ride being practically perfect in every way, I was left really looking forward to the ride and the experience, ending last year's review by saying it looks like an "amazing coaster". And that's exactly what it is. I really can't sing the praises of this coaster enough; I absolutely adore it. Thorpe have hit the nail on the head in almost every aspect; a fantastic coaster (though maybe a little short) with an interesting layout, a good, clear story, great, large-scale theming, brilliant audio, everything. The Swarm is a ride you just have to fall in love with instantly. My first ride came on Media Night (second and final cheeky plug right there ), and being fortunate enough to experience my first ride in the dark is amazing. The ride's first four public days with the 'Premiere Screaming' event went down an absolute hit in my eyes as well - brilliant actors playing the role perfectly and so forth. It's unfortunate that the LED eyes and the fire weren't working earlier, and even more unfortunate that I haven't been able to experience the ride with fire, but their inclusions really do add to the overall experience. The additions of extra theming, in the ambulance and telephone box are very welcome as well, and show just how much thought and attention the park have put into the attraction, not just the ride. The fact that not all the theming from the plans wasn't including in the ride and yet that hasn't caused a grumble is a testament to the quality of the ride. Then there's been other little touches, such as the fence which once covered the front of the over-turned lorry (used for the game stall) being removed, and the entrance sign to the island being tweaked / spruced up; little things like that which have gone unnoticed by many, yet do add that little bit extra to the overall experience. Hopefully the ride may continue to grow, especially when the adjacent island opens, and that the ride cements itself as a top Thorpe ride in years to come. My first go on Swarm. Love my face. Me with Lez Cougan and his followers during the Premiere Screaming. It's a shame that actors weren't present on the Swarm island after this, especially during Fright Nights. The area it so photogenic, including general track sexiness. The helicopter. It's a shame that the 'Rickety Jetty' that was on the first plans was axed early on; would've made for some great shots of the helicopter and the turnaround there. Love the little cryptic facts on the shop. Even though this photo is terrible quality, it remains one of my favourite Swarm shots for some reason... Me holding up the ambulance.. ...and the phone box.. My 'Then and Now' of Swarm - the first photo being taken on 14th April 2011, the second on 24th March 2012 and the final on the 1st September 2012 (sorry about the completely wrong time stamp on the first photo!). Rating: 9.5/10. Not necessarily the 'best ride ever' that I said after my first go ('new ride fever' I guess), but it's certainly my favourite, and I see it as incredibly hard to beat. Saw - The Ride I've always made it clear that I like Saw, placing me in the minority of enthusiasts who do. However, this season has seen me realise just how much I like it - it now ranks as my second favourite coaster on park (no guesses behind which one). I don't know why it's happened now, but I dunno, it just has. I'm not going to rabbit on about why I like Saw so much, as I've done that in my blog and in various other places, but it was great to see the ride have all the effects working pretty much every go I've been on it. As expected, the worn-down theme has grown well with age; especially with the outdoor queue and the overgrown plants creating the abandoned warehouse feel all the more. After Swarm's additional theming was added mid-season, many questioned why other major coasters haven't received additional theming. Personally, I think this criticism is only justifiable with regards to Saw; the area is lacking something a bit more interactive and having some form of interactive 'trap' / 'game' in the queue line / plaza is just what I think is needed to liven the area up a bit more. Saw looking nice in the sunshine. Generic abandoned look - achieved. This season's newest addition to Saw - a 'Wait here' sign! The ride also feels a bit more exposed now the trees near Samurai have gone (though I seem to remember some trees being cut down near the end of the 2011 season anyway?). As a side note, now seems weird not having the chance to see the ride from CCR any more - always gave nice interactive opportunities with the ride, which aren't really present now, except if you get lucky on Loggers. Nemesis Inferno This season, Inferno remained a reliable and well-received coaster. The ride offers and experience which is needed in the park - a smooth, intense ride which doesn't seem daunting. In a way, Inferno is the park's least-intimidating main coaster - Colossus had the TEN INVERSIONS, Stealth is high and fast, Saw has the beyond-vertical drop (and is themed to a horror franchise..) and Swarm has it's unique first drop - all of which are intimidating to the public. Inferno has not such 'intimidating factor' - the inverted coaster is nothing special these days, and it has no 'gimmick', if you will. Yet this is exactly the purpose, and it fills these shoes perfectly. For some reason, Inferno has dropped in my rankings a bit this season - though I really have no idea why. I still enjoy the ride and theme, but hey, that's that I guess. For those who remember my lucky shot of the 'Missing Row 6' from last season, here's my best attempt at recreating it this season... To me, Inferno remains one of the most photogenic rides on park, only behind Swarm and Tidal Wave (and possibly Colossus). Love this statue you see as you exit for some reason. Hard to believe it's 30 years old next season, yet looks in pretty darn good condition! Colossus So, being 10 years of the 'Power of 10', Colossus deserves its own little section this time around. I'm not a huge fan of the ride; personally I think it is the most uncomfortable ride on park. The ride seems to have aged badly, with the paint work looking a lot older than 10 years old. It surprises me just how much of a queue this ride still gets though - always seems to attract a full queue almost all the time, even when running on full capacity? Out of the 14 rides I had on it this season, only two rides on it was during actual open hours on park - and that was a fluky 15 minute queue. Certainly strange. Not going to lie, was a bit disappointed there wasn't a little more push on the 10th birthday to the general public - other than a mention on the map, I don't think the park really put the 10th birthday of the first 10 inversion coaster out there (NOTE - talking about the general public, so the TPM event doesn't technically count...more on that in a sec). Really do feel as though it was a missed opportunity by the park there. I was also fortunate enough to be able attend the TPM Colossus 10 meet - despite my dislike towards to the ride, I did 'enjoy' (can't think of the best word to describe it, so that will have to do) the experience. Many thanks to Thorpe and TPM for organising that - despite missing an opportunity to push the 10th birthday to the public, they hit the nail on the head for us in my eyes. Also a thanks to all the members on that meet - being my first meet in over 2 years, I was a little nervous, but felt really welcomed and comfortable around everyone. Hopefully I can attend more meets next year! Colossus is a classic Tussauds addition - being interactive with non-riders and photogenic. Corkscrew? And a couple of my favourites from the Colossus meet... Me looking very upset for some reason; think the head-banging must have been getting a bit much... (I'm 5th row in, blue top ) All the Colossus riding went to my head it seems (second photo credit to our very own Sidders!) X;\No Way Out and Rush "Hmm, that's a strange combination of rides you've got there..." some people are no doubt thinking here. Well, to save this getting ridiculously tedious and boring, I'm just grouping rides together which I like / deserve some notable mention for the past season. X has continued to grow on me for a few seasons now, and this season has been no different. However, I must confess that compared to the past couple of seasons, I've found it a bit disappointing - the audio has been quiet / temperamental, and the lights which previously added a lot to the ride seem to have just gone away / lost effect. In a way, I hope the rumours of a major refurb next season are true, and in a way, I hope they're not. I really want the ride to receive some attention, but it would be a shame for it to face forwards / lose its original appeal in any way. Following the major work which happened over closed season, Rush has been great. As far as I've seen, it's been reliable most of the season and worked on both swings too. Quite possibly the best flat on park, and something which everyone raves about - a great ride which has had a great season. When it comes to Thorpe's flat rides, Rush always steals the limelight for me. Slammer and Samurai Unlike the previous pairing, these two rides shouldn't come across as a strange pairing to most. Both of these rides suffered quite bad periods of downtime this season, Slammer's spanning many months (yet again...), and Samurai conking just after summer, but reopening just after Fright Nights begun (somehow). Whilst it is disappointing that this has happened, kudos to the park for getting them up and running again. For Slammer, it does show their dedication to the ride, and even though I personally think it's a waste of space and should be scrapped ASAP, it is good to see the park are trying so hard. Considering there was a sign stating Samurai would not reopen until 2013, the fact it opened again this season is impressive. You do have to wonder, however, how long these rides have left - Slammer is plagued with downtime and, despite its uniqueness, you do wonder how much longer it will be before the park say "enough is enough". Being a funfair ride which has operated for about 14 years (I believe it is exactly the same parts as the one at Chessington?), how long does it really have left? The surprising site of a working Slammer... Lack of signage. Back working in time for Fright Nights (as the large queue for The Passing suggests the time of year...). Did the signage actually every get put up before the season ended? Samurai's 2013 opening sign. In pieces. And all the Others Of course, I'm not going to do a section for every ride / every couple of rides, so just a few words here and there about all the other rides. Storm Surge appears to have gotten worse and worse since its opening last season, and I'd say some of the fears and concerns that were expressed have come to fruition. Last season, Vortex found itself on a list of 'disappointing rides' for me, but this season, I seem to have rekindled my joy for it, even though the movement of the swinging feels a lot more 'jagged' lately. It also seems to be a case that it isn't really too busy as well, presumably because it's a bit away from everywhere else and doesn't bring too much attention to itself. Loggers and Rumba Rapids remain favourites of mine, but unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to ride them that much this season. I do hope the rumours of the outright removal of the Loggers tunnel do not come true, and that Rumba receives a bit more love over the closed season. Storm Surge doing what it does best - look rubbish. I really don't care about Stealth, but may as well throw in a mediocre-quality photo of it for whatever reason. Depth Charge celebrated its 21st season in 2012. Will be interesting to see how long it's got left...

Here goes... 4 resin statues (Swarm, Saw, Vampire, Stealth) 4 glass-lasered paperweights (3 different ones of Thorpe, 1 of Warwick Castle is that counts) Couple of Stealth clocks. Multiple mugs / cups (exact number unknown..) Multiple wallets, pin badges, pens and keyrings (tons of the things) Thorpe Park snow globe. Thorpe Park Rubix Cube Pirates 4D torch and cup, Old Rangers Merch (money boxes, bookends, statues, etc.) At least 12 teddies. Parks maps (Thorpe ones dating back to 1997, with others no doubt lurking around the house, Chessie ones since 2002, and other ones from other parks). A fair few shirts, hoodies, caps and whatever other theme-park branded clothing Merlin sales... The Swarm Survival Kit (specific highlighting being a grenade-shaped stress ball with 'The Swarm' written on it!) Saw and Swarm on ride videos. LOADS of ORPs since I was little. Vampire mobile.(thing you hang from the ceiling, not to call people ). Couple of ride medals. Other random bits and bobs, like the Th13teen necklace, shot glasses, random statues, Vampire ice cube trays, stuff from Swarm's Premier Screaming... In case you hadn't guess by now, I'm a bit of a sucker for merchandise... I'll try and uploads some pictures and scan some ORPs (for the ORP thread) in the next few days

Very recently posted on Chessie's FB: Looks fab, just like the concept art! Really can't wait for this...