MikeyT

So, using my imagination, I'm not going to think about what I think will happen or whatever, just what I'd like to see happen at some point in the future...Make the Monorail stations a little more special. You're going to Alton Towers, it should feel like a big event. I'd keep the resort theme that currently plays but just add a few other tracks to it (obviously In The Hall....) so you've got a good loop going on, plus I'd update the footage that they show along with the TVs.The Queue for the Monorail to the Car Parks... I'd love for the whole queue and station to feel like a big celebration. I'd update the TV's again and have the stock footage playing, but also showing the Hotels and other resort offerings in more detail. A medley of park music, I think would be awesome along with some other tracks... including a very dramatic version of In The Hall... Get some basic lighting in there with some gels inIf money wasn't an option I'd have the walls covered in displays with information about the attractions; almost like a timeline of the park that can be added to and changed around as the park progress.If I'm being honest, I think Alton's entrance plaza is near perfect in terms of layout. The only things I'd change would be subtle cosmetic changes along with bulking out some of the facilities available to guests, such as guest services and the toilet facilities.Toilet facilities, I'd like to see brought into the 21st Century, parkwide. They don't have to be amazingly themed, but subtle decorations, music and a smart appearance would be fantastic.Attractions- wise, well, I agree the park need to increase their offerings on indoor attractions if they wish to open in the colder, winter months; a 4D cinema is a pretty good choice, I think. Though I'm still unsure on the use of an IP, hopefully next year I'll be pleasantly surprised. The park do lack a good selection of flat rides. However, what I wouldn't do is add a ton of them like Thorpe has done. I would think carefully about these additions as they play an important role in theme parks to support the more headline attractions. Unfortunately, at the moment the flat rides are so sub-standard in either their presentation or experience, they're not particularly supporting any of the bigger rides.I'd continue to re-furb existing areas. I don't think I'd consider changing any of the current themes, I'd just re-enforce them and bring them up to standards. I'd love to get rid of Rita sometime in the future; The Dark Forest won't feel right until Thirteen takes centre stage as its signature attraction- in terms of layout. I would definately add a flat ride to this area, add a feature to the area itself and also find some way to link everything together in a more obvious way, story wise. The area has such great potential. At the very least I'd re-direct some of Rita's queue.Black Hole Tent and X Sector re-generation. For me, a rollercoaster has to go into the tent. A solid family attraction that has more of a dark ride feel to it with rollercoaster elements. X Sector has always represented sinister human experiments with a hint of 1984, to me, I'd love to see this concept explode to make it more prominent throughout the area.I could go on, but I fear I will never stop!

London Winter Meet.Saturday 4th December and Sunday 5th December 2010.Saturday 4th December12pm London Waterloo Rail StationO2 fair and Winter Wonderland.Sunday 5th December10am London Waterloo Rail StationLondon Merlin Attractions & evening meal.Hey guys!Some of you will remember the awesome London meet-up we held last year, which was extremely successful and a fantastic day out for everyone. We're planning on doing exactly the same this year, abusing our Annual Passes around the London Merlin Attractions and visiting the London fairs during a two- day Annual Pass Bash! The plan is to meet at London Waterloo Station, underneath the big clock in the centre of the station; near the escalators to Waterloo East, at 12pm on Saturday 4th December and 10am on Sunday 5th December. On the Saturday we'll be visiting the O2 Fair and Winter Wonderland. On the Sunday we'll be having a Merlin Marathon! I've recommended that we meet at Waterloo as it's relativly central for everyone to get to; that way, we can all meet, catch up and then travel as a group.. For both days. I'd recommend buying a Travelcard as there will be some travel involved, although if you have a Pay As You Go Oyster, you can also use these. Offpeak Travelcards are £7.50 for Adults over 16, £2.50 for anyone under 16. If you have a Young Persons's Railcard, the price of a Travelcard drops to £5. If you're travelling from outside of zone 6 then Travelcard prices may be more. I'd suggest taking a quick look on National Rail to get an idea of how much a ticket is.What made the trip such a success last time was the laid back atmosphere and itinerary of the day. I would suggest we meet at around 12 on the Saturday and have a laid back approach to the two fairs. As more people can attend the Sunday, we've decided to do the majority of the activities then. On the Sunday a suggestion for the day would be to do the Dungeons and Sea Life first, before breaking for lunch. There are various food places around the Waterloo area, though bear in mind that it will most probably be somewhere like McDonalds or similar.Then we have the Eye and Madame Tussauds to do.Please don't feel as though you have to attend all of the attractions, people are welcome to join the meet at any time of the day at any of the attractions. I will provide contact details for people that wish to join later in the day. Likewise, if people don't wish to attend Winter Wonderland then we'll make sure you get home safely. ;)There is a possibility of a meal in the evening for anyone who is interested, though this is still in discussion- if you have any suggestions then please feel free to put them forward. Also if people wish to join us for the meal and haven't been able to attend any of the attractions then feel free to pop along. Keep an eye out here for any further information.For anyone that hasn't attended a meet before, this is a good one to come to as you'll get to know the members very well whilst enjoying the attractions. Last year there was a fantastic atmosphere. Every effort will be made to make all new members feel welcomed and we encourage meet- up virgins to come and join in the fun (wow how cheesy does this sound?).Feel free to discuss here. Let us know if you're attending/ not attending so we have a brief idea. Also why not add yourself to the attending list on the Facebook Event Page. We look forward to seeing you there in just 2 weeks time!

No I think Dan meant that the music itself could have been longer considering it's on a loop constantly. Same 5 minutes, over and over. Going to get annoying after a while, no matter how good it is.

Cheers Outfit, good work!

Whoa a ghost! Happy Birthday Alex.

From what I remember, the coil did work briefly at the start of season before it went offline for a while, in which time they made some modifications to it. Can't remember exactly what happened unfortunately... wasn't it something along the lines of it being too high a voltage?

Phwaorr Dan that's an incredibly sexy desktop you have there!

I actually quite like the London Eye one, much better and to me, has a much more emotional effect on the audience than that pants Marvel one at Tussauds.Shrek 4-D though, I'm still in two minds, I'm all for a 4D cinema as they're good people eaters and add something different to the line up of attractions at Alton Towers. I'm still not totally for the use of IPs, though I'd much rather guarantee a decent show than to have a rubbish one.

Oh my goodness that looks insane! That design will no doubt be one of the most intense fliers out there. I thought the pretzel loop was intense, just look at those curves. Where is this out of interest, Mark?

I'm interested in what aspect of the queue you think adds to the ride experience. Though I agree it wouldn't be the same without Wild Asia- it's a fantastic area .

I personally think we haven't even scratched the surface to dreams. They are really complicated and not a lot is really known about them. I can usually remember my dreams really well and they can be extremely vivid, sometimes even affecting some of the other senses such as smell, taste and touch.I've got my dream interpretation book here Steve, I'll try and interpret your dream for you.

I had a pretty horrific nightmare the other day actually. I can remember a baby being in some car seat thing. Eyes all blackened, blood coming out of its dark mouth, crusty around the edges.I remember two others being in the dream, I don't know who they were meant to be but I seemed to know them in the dream. They were screaming that it was possessed and had to be killed. Then we were all strapping this baby to a giant firework, as somebody was about to light the fuse, the baby's face went really cute and its bottom lip began to tremble.I screamed at them to stop, but it was too late and I watched this baby shoot up into the sky and explode, with bits of body falling down shortly after.Perhaps I should see some kind of psychologist? Lol!

Hey Lilly! Welcome to the forums. Glad to hear you had a good birthday. Hope you have fun on the forums!And yes, Blink was pretty darn scary. Most of The Moff's episodes freak me out tbh! Then again Waters of Mars, Midnight and Turn Left also scared me. Ha! Anyway, yes, welcome!

Oh my goodness! Parc Asterix trip is on the cards within the next few years I reckon. Blimey!

Yeah, I suppose that's true. I was mainly thinking about Wanyama, I guess. You're right Forbidden does have a completely different feel, I would argue that it's the best themed area of the park.Yeah I'd love to see something dramatic happen to Tomb, the theme is fine, keep the tone of the ride, there just needs to be more happening, to not make it so, as you put it, passive. It can feel like a passive experience at times. I feel the first half of the ride is great up to the point of Axe Alley where the light from that fire exit shows all the workings of the ride. The rest feels anti-climatic with black areas, sitting in front of a snake trying to hiss from side to side for a minute.

As much as this topic implies that you post your ideas about "your Chessington," I am going to remain realistic. This is what I'd like to happen (and I think will) during this closed season. Beginnings of South Car park re-design; Retheme of Toytown; Bubbleworks de-brand; Subtle hints to support the integration of Mystic East with Wild Asia; Possible Runaway re-furb; Beginnings of toilets re-furb. What I find interesting is Forbidden Kingdom's future. If the park go for continental themed areas, then they will have Africa with the Zoo (could be passed off as South Africa I suppose) and then they will have Africa again with Forbidden Kingdom (Egypt is part of Africa). Perhaps I'm being a bit of a continuity freak, but unless they're planning on having guests go from Africa, to America (suggested Mexicana re-theme) and then Africa again, then I predict some changes to Forbidden in the future.

Nothing major will happen to Bubbleworks for a good few seasons, I don't think. I can see some very minimal changes until they decide that it's time for something different. It's depressing that the ride still seems to do well in guest feedback surveys. Unfortunately, success doesn't always mean quality.

Welcome Ben! Another Brighton member (not that I'm one)... Gotta love Brighton

End of Season Trip A little bit of spontaneity doesn't hurt anyone. It was late yesterday evening that I found out I'd be going to Chessingtpn for the last time this year. I've visited a good handful of times this year and have enjoyed all of them on some level, this one though, was particularly special.I don't usually get excited about visiting Chessington anymore, I look forward to visiting, yes, but to say I get that same excitement that I get when I visit Alton Towers, for example, would be a lie. I arrive at the park with my friend James and we agree to make our way over to Transylvania. Unlike Alton and Thorpe, Chessington actually still operate their Halloween attractions for their last day of season, I assume this is because it seems a bit silly to just have one day of park operation with all the event infrastructure still evident.There are some small, yet effective touches throughout the whole park that help link the theme of this event together. The more prominent presence of the witches this year meant that guests knew the brief backstory of the event, which I feel gives it some depth, and helps it stand out from some of the other Merlin parks. A lot of the props and sets have been recycled from previous years, which makes sense, though I liked the additional bits and bobs such as improved lighting, improved Trick or Treat Doors and the best of them all.... the Wild Asia Voo-Doo Dolls... how creepy were they?! :(Bubbleworks- oh dear. Probably the lowlight of the day in terms of ride experiences. This is for me, a sub standard attraction that seriously needs all of the sets, effects, lighting rig, sound equipment ect; completely gutted and started over afresh (as have been mentioned a few times by members). The Fountain Finale in particular, has been absolutely butchered within an inch of its life now, with most of it in complete darkness (one red and one green light are left illuminated). The fact that there is a Prof. Burp poster on show is in my view, a further insult to the fantastic ride that it once was.I thoroughly enjoyed the event attractions that were on offer, Trick or Treat doors looked impressive, the characters were pretty neat in it too. Black Forest Haunt, which we did in the day time, was a delight. Keeping the target audience in mind, I found it actually a cute experience and children seemed to think it was pretty cool judging by their reactions as they exited. Stand out characters were the grave digger and of course, the Vampire. :(Gorgeous meal is Pizza Pasta... I can't really speak highly enough of the two pizza buffet restaurants at Alton and Chessie. The place was packed, whilst other outlets across park were left unloved ().I do think very highly of Chessington, The park needs to keep going as they are, ie; recover from their period of no investment from their parent company. I think many fans of the park will know that they do have big ideas, ambitions and plans for the park to ensure that it goes places within the Theme Park Industry. Of course, they can't do everything at once, and I would ask that we're patient and understanding whilst they prioritise and organise their investment plan. It's clear things are bubbling behind the scenes, the evidence is across the whole park through the little additions that have been added throughout the year. At the moment it shows, very bluntly, which areas have been neglected and need some new life injected into them, still, I have faith in the park and look forward to see what they're planning next.I have so much to say, I want to type all my thoughts out at once; so much so, that it's actually difficult to think of what to say next and how to construct it all. A few bullet point statements, then:I prefer Griffin's to Kobra The park love smoke machines The constant loop of the Halloween track, parkwide, became annoying ...... Although saying that, I loved how it was a variation of Towers Suite/ Call to Adventure theme I can't wait for some of the attractions to receive an audio upgrade, some of the staff can be so tacky and "fairgroundy" over the PA.... Guest interaction is indeed awesome, if you know the correct way to do it and that it also doesn't clash with the attraction's theme Vampire in the dark is epic. Indeed, night-time falls and we enter the Vampire queueline as spooky silhouettes of gravestones, figures and ride vehicles soar through the night sky. I will admit, I was pretty scared walking though that queueline, through the thick smoke that filled the air, a beautiful, haunting palette of blues and purples draws you in, the atmosphere is actually stunning. There was something about that ride on Vampire, that was just so epic. The theatrical queue was sublime, only to then be topped by the station. With no natural light managing to seep through; it was beautiful, really powerful. Music blasting, a remarkably good ride operator with a silky, deep and dare I say it, almost seductive voice set the tone perfectly. I was impressed. The tunnel was the icing on the cake with those lighting effects- very surreal and disorientating. So there we have it, great trip, re-sparking my passion for the park that never went away, but has just made it stronger, positive and poised for the future. This park has some fantastic times ahead, you mark my words. :(Chessington: onwards and upwards!

It really is a shame that your experience was sub-standard, it does sound as though this hasn't been as good as some of his other attractions, like has been suggested elsewhere. Especially for £8 a ticket, I'm not surprised you feel short changed.I don't know Tom very well at all really, but you can tell that he has a real passion for the industry and does put a lot of effort into his attractions to ensure that they're unique and different to anything he's done before. I suppose it's very much an experimental thing, sometimes you take a risk and come up trumps, sometimes they don't work out so good.I also think this highlights the importance of the role the actors have in these type of attractions, especially if you're expecting huge amounts of interactivity and a high amount of one-on - one time with the actors, much like his other attractions, then, again, if this isn't the case when you went through then it will affect your experience.I also found it interesting that he deleted some of the comments made on Facebook. I'm not sure I found that necessary. Still, I hope his attractions continue to grow in scope and scale as well as popularity, they offer something very different to what we can expect at the theme park events.

Spent the majority of the day at the park today. I'll post a trip report in a while once I've come down from the high I'm on. Great day and awesome end to a cracking season for Chessington.

Review of Seance by Michael Bolton.13th SeanceDan, you clearly didn't like it because I wasn't acting in it..... :(

It does, to some extent. Though it's more ambient background noise than a theme, as such.

Canada Creek Railway (5)Colossus (5)Detonator (7)Flying Fish (2)Loggers Leap (5)Nemesis Inferno (5)Quantum (2)Rocky Express (5)Rush (6)Samurai (5)Slammer (5)Stealth (7)Storm in a teacup (6)Tidal Wave(6)Detonator +1Quantum -1

Amazingly, the world doesn't revolve around you.... :)Yeah I like the positive feedback option, I personally wouldn't like a negative option as people pre-judge members and their posts by the amount of rep points they have.