Phill Pritchard

We rode it twice on Sunday, once in the morning and then again in the afternoon and I think it may have been playing a different track each time.We enjoyed it, but then we always have. The new LED lights on one of the brake runs were a nice touch but at the beginning of the ride there is too much light so you can see the floor of the pyramid etc. The music was ok, but could have definitely done with being louder in the ride itself, they need to get that right to gain some of the atmosphere that other 'rave' rides like EuroSat have. I also agree that some lasers would be a nice addition.

I was wondering if anybody else could remember the old Virtual Reality Theatre that was at Chessington in the early 2000's?I remember on one visit with my family and Girlfriend (now Wife) we gave this new attraction in Mexicana a go. It consisted of a number of large seats arranged in rows facing out into the park and you had to pay to use the attraction.The attraction basically involved a number of members of the public making fools of themselves for the entertainment of nearby spectators. With the 'players' wearing immersive VR goggles they were kind of cut off from the outside world and it was very easy to caught up in the game and forget that you were in full show to the public and could be watched by a large crowd. Boarding the attraction the attendant would ask for each player’s name, what they didn't realise is that once the 'game' started this attendant would also be participating giving commands and instructions to the group and individuals via their headsets as the game continued. I feel that calling players by their own names to encourage them to get more involved was a nice touch. I wish I could remember what the game was about but during the game you would be encouraged to run on the spot, bounce around in & jump up off the seat, scream, duck etc.I have found some information about these attractions online:Apparently the Chessington installation was originally quite a nice money earner: http://rteops.com/chessington.htmlAn archived site with a pdf brochure for this type of Virtual Reality Theatre: http://web.archive.org/web/20040307123724/http://www.cyberminduk.com/entertainment/vr/theatre/vr_theatre.htmAnd last but not least here is the video of a similar installation that brought back some happy memories for me:

I seem to be having trouble commenting on other people profiles. This happened with one user last night and with another this morning. Is anybody else having this problem or can anybody help?

We had a very similar experience too with a very long queue during the 'hottest day of the year' in either 2002 or 2003. We can't remember how long the queue was but we would guess at over 2 hours. It was so hot that Thorpe Park had extra members of staff walking past the queue lines selling bottles of cold water and people were buying bottles to drink and some to pour over themselves to cool down whilst waiting for the ride. That day the queue could have done with some of those queue line misters that they love so much in the Orlando parks! But as was mentioned above this was back in the early days of the ride when there was still quite a lot of 'buzz' surrounding the ride and the effects we still entertaining even when you had been queuing for over an hour.

The great news of the new coaster means that we will definitely have to make a return visit sometime soon in the next couple of years. I can't wait!

Wow... just wow! The level of detail at that place looks amazing. Another one for the list!

Actually I have just looked at the map and that night we started with Torture which means we missed out Labyrinth of Lost Souls, Plague, Great Fire of London and Surgery from the first section. Then after the new Jack the Ripper section we were led via the old Fire of London spinning tunnel to the Extremis waiting area therefore missing out Bloody Mary. We did get to walk through the Labyrinth section later in the evening, just as a well lit mirror maze though.Despite this it seemed like a really full experience when we were there. But I think we will definitely have to go back again soon to see the rest of the attraction.

Great review Benin. One thing I have learnt from your post is that the 'full' London Dungeon show at the preview evening was not quite full. We did not get to see the new surgery room or Bloody Mary, the later being a show we have not seen before, following our tour that night I thought that maybe these were not currently being used as part of the normal show, just us that night then.

The last couple of days I have been listening to the Dreamgirls soundtrack in the car. I had forgotten just how good that one was aswell!

Wow has anybody else seen todays Doodle? It's a strumable guitar! http://www.google.co.uk/

Another great sounding ride that had closed by the time of my first trip to Alton Towers.

I wish I could have had the chance to ride the original Haunted House, from what I have read and all the photos I have seen online I think I would have loved it. I enjoy Duel but I think I would have prefered it just as a normal Dark Ride.

The new Potter trailer does look amazing! I can't wait to see how it all turns out. (p.s. I have not read the books and would appreciate no spoilers )

I cannot usually stand Jeremy Kyle but that was inspired! Where do they get all these freaky people from?

Hi Neil, I couldn't agree more with your review. It is such a shame that the guns do not currently have any real purpose if they could sort that out some how it would definitely improve the ride. As you said on twitter it's not really a stand out attraction and its maybe not worth going to the Dungeon just to ride Vengeance but if you were going to visit anyway it is definitely a very nice addition to the other shows and rides at London Dungeon.We were there at the preview event (I won a chance to go) and when we were waiting to go on to the ride we were stood in a room made to look like the hallway of the house. And then a butler type character explained to us the story about how haunted the property is and that a number of strange things have happened at previous séances but we should be ok tonight. He also told us that our protective eye glasses (the 3D glasses) should protect us from any spectres and spirits that may appear.So did you not get any of this when you went on yesterday?I must say the actors were all on top form the other week when we went.

Either way it sounds really cool!

Thanks for a great TR so far, I think we will have to try out some more of the German parks at some point. Fluch von Novgorod looks and sounds so good!

Oh dear now I feel old...

Yes a lot of the German guests that were waiting seemed quite genuinely shocked that there was a problem and that they had to cancel that performance. Some looked like they didn't quite know what to do. lol But I guess us Brits are kind of used to it. :)Oh and as we were leaving the theatre the guy that was sat at the mixing desk was busy on his mobile looking very harassed.

I have just found this really random article online: http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/towns/devizesheadlines/9050108.Love_has_its_ups_and_downs_for_Devizes_couple/People have joked that my Wife and I will be like this many years down the line!

I am not even the tiniest bit embarrassed to be looking forward to this movie as much as I am!