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Inferno

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  1. Inferno
    You know those 'memory' notifications you get on your iPhone now and then, where it features a load of photos from a past trip?
    One of those popped up for me recently from an old meet up we had on another site, which sent me on a bit of a nostalgic frenzy.
     
    Since that happened, I've spent a bit too much time these last few weeks looking back through old photos and videos, and it's prompted me to reach out to some old 'theme park friends' who I haven't spoken to for a while. To be honest it's been absolutely bloody fab.
     
    But it's got me thinking... Being a theme park enthusiast just isn't what it used to be.  I'm wondering if others feel this way too?
     
    Of course I dearly miss the days in my teens where I'd regularly meet my friends at the parks, but equally I am finding myself really missing all the fan forums that there used to be, and how busy they were every evening.  The forums used to be buzzing with excitement and discussion about our weird shared favourite topic!  And that was just it, it was a discussion, often about the unknown.  It was rare that we actually knew what was going to be happening at the parks, so speculation and rumour really did drive the discussion and keep everyone interested!
     
    Aside from the big forums and fan sites, there were also countless smaller sites, run by people who loved the parks just as much and just wanted to share their hobby and interest.
     
    It didn't stop at the forums either - YouTube was awash with videos from enthusiasts everywhere, not just the big names, who now seem to have unlimited access to everything. I remember sat at my laptop in my room at my parents house, most nights I'd check my usual sites and channels for any updates I could find!  It was exciting - had someone managed to get a blurry photo from underneath a fence, or even better get a 20 second video clip of a scare maze entrance, or a trench being dug somewhere?  Or the rare holy grail, someone had found some plans on a planning portal somewhere! 😮
     
    I absolutely loved the mystery and excitement surrounding everything - "what could be under those tarps?", "Did anyone see that crane today?", "There's a new poster for Fright Nights!"...
    If you wanted to know what happened inside the Asylum, you would need to physically go into the Asylum and find out for yourself! There were no HD POV videos from press night, no behind the scenes videos, and no real construction updates to speak of. All you had to go on was the reviews and discussion from others who had been through before.
    God... it was brilliant wasn't it?
     
    There's no denying, however, that things are better now.  We got what we wanted.  We now have more access to information than ever before, with the parks being very open about what they're doing, and the YouTubers and Influencers of today being very detailed in what they show.  It really is good that we have access to all this stuff - but I have to admit I do miss the days when the 'news' came from everyone - whoever happened to be at the parks (or peeping over the fences) that day, with their blackberry camera out and ready to snap a picture or two!
     
    I think the age of the influencer and all of this free and open information has nearly killed off the forums, and the way that theme park enthusiasm used to be.
    It seems that now, the 'star enthusiasts' who run the major YouTube channels and social media pages, are in some ways an extension of the park's own marketing team, with some influencers quite literally being employed by the parks, even creatively responsoble for some of the attractions...
     
    It would also appear that, although I have nothing against any influencers out there, that the enthusiast game has in some ways become about building up an audience and even making a living from it - it's not as much a 'hobby' as it used to be it seems?
     
    Taking a wonky photo of the Curse arriving on the rain soaked beach, or Saw the Ride's brand new supports going in to the newly reclaimed land, and getting home to plug in your cable to transfer the image to your laptop to post it on the forums was never about seeing how many likes you could get - it was about sharing the joy with like-minded people from across the country, or it was in my case at least, then having a good chat about it.
     
    Social media has killed off the forums really hasn't it, all those little hidden communities where friendships were made and interests were shared!
    There's no denying that social media is better, and information is more readily available, but are we better off as enthusiasts?  I'm not convinced we are.
  2. Inferno
    As we approach the start of the preparation for Fright Nights 2024, I thought I'd do a few more blog post ramblings on some nostalgic Thorpe memories I have.
     
    I started off a couple of years ago now, with Dr Pepper Sun Scream, then Brave it Alone in Cabin in the Woods back when it opened in 2013...  Now it's time for another trip down memory lane, to Brave it Alone in Studio 13, 2014 (a staggering 10 years ago somehow).
     
    - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
     
    We did Studio 13 way back in 2014, the second ever year of Brave it Alone, and I believe the last year they let you choose which maze you wanted to experience?

    So... with our brave it alone tickets booked for the brand new Studio 13, here's what happened!
     
    10PM came around on a surprisingly quiet Fright Nights at Thorpe.  We had been fortunate in that we'd managed to experience all of the mazes multiple times that evening, including I believe 3 or 4 runs through Studio. I think unfortunately the days of the lucky quiet evening at FN have long since gone!
     
    Much like the previous year when we'd braved it alone in Cabin in the Woods, we met up with the other participants at the Clypso BBQ, and were asked to sign the waver form.
    One notable difference this year was that there were far fewer staff running this, there were no managers present as there were in large numbers the previous year, and the bar was closed and we weren't offered a drink as part of the experience, although the Director was there again chatting to us along with a couple of members of park staff.
    As far as I remember, there were 2 of us (my friend and I) doing Studio, 2 others doing Cabin, and 1 doing My Bloody Valentine. So in all honesty you can see why Brave it Alone had to change - they were having to keep 3 mazes open after hours for very little money really....
     
    After chatting with the director for 20 minutes or so, we were taken by one of the members of staff down to the iconic and formidable blue door at the entrance to Studio 13, where we waited and chatted with the member of staff for another 10 minutes or so, the memorable Studio queue music still playing!
     
    This was a stark difference to last year, where we were very much outnumbered by concerned staff and Thorpe management who were I think quite stressed about the whole affair... This year it was very much cut back in terms of a single member of staff with us, having a nice chit chat!
     
    Anyway... the time had come!
    While we were chatting at the door, it suddenly swung open, and an actor grabbed my shoulder and screamed at me "YOU'RE LATE! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?", as she pulled me inside, shut the door, and held me against the wall opposite.
    Here, she stood very much in my face and warned me that if my lateness made her look bad, I'd be dead.
    I was given the hurry up and told to run down the iconic first corridor, while she pushed me along it.
     
    When I reached the end of the corridor there were multiple actors waiting for me, all seemingly very upset about how late I was!
     
    I was pulled and pushed around, backwards through various doors as far as I remember, then was stood against the wall while they took my 'photo', which involved a blinding flash, before I was spun around multiple times and sent on my way through the next part of the maze alone.
     
    I don't think I made it far before I made it to the makeup department scene.
    I was sat down in to an office chair and as far as I remember I was taped to it, to stop me from 'wasting any more time'!
    Here I had the unpleasant experience of multiple actors putting makeup on my face!
    This only lasted a few seconds before I was released and sent on my way through the rest of the maze.
     
    I am finding it a struggle to remember the middle part of the maze, but from memory I think much of it was a similar idea to the Asylum, it was very much a case of following the fences through the maze, with no particular scenes as such for a short while.
    What I do remember though is spending the entire middle portion of the maze being utterly crowded by the actors, who were all seemingly taking it in turns to get right up in to my face to tell me to hurry up!
     
    I distinctly, however, remember the ending of the maze...
     
    As I approached the bedroom scene, I was surprised to realise that one of them had managed to get a bottle of water in to the front of my jeans and had proceeded to empty the contents in to my nether regions...  I have to admit at this point I did think to myself... ok, wtf is this?
     
    The majority of the actors then disappeared, and I was left at the entrance of the bedroom scene with a single actor, who had interacted with me earlier on after the makeup scene!  He had complimented my pretty eyes and told me "You'll do nicely".... The reason behind all this then became apparent, as he said he wanted me to meet his daughter.
     
    I don't specifically remember at what point during the maze my hands had been tied in front of me (or was I wrapped in tape with arms by my side? Can't remember), but I was tied up regardless.  The actor pulled me in to the bedroom where I saw his daughter (a live actor I think?) led on the bed. He told me to say hello and give her a kiss, which of course I denied. He pushed me towards the bed, and I believe other actors then came to his aid and also assisted in getting me to be on the bed with her...
     
    He then asked me what I was doing, and seemed very angry when he discovered how wet the front of my trousers were 🙄
    He had the chainsaw in his hands at this point and told me he'd never let me do this to anyone ever again, before the chainsaw was very abruptly pushed up between my legs, and off we both went down the exit corridor and out of the doors!  I was half way across the path before the chainsaw was eventually removed from my damp crotch.
     
    The member of staff was waiting at the exit, where she said to me "... you ok?" 🤣.   A few moments later my friend came out, who had suffered the same fate, and off we went (still tied up by the way) to collect our bags from the BBQ before heading out.  Unfortunately there wasn't an opportunity to chat to the other participants at the other mazes this year as there was previously.
     
    --
     
    In conclusion, I will say that I did enjoy Brave it Alone in studio 13, although this was a very different approach to Cabin in the Woods the previous year.
    Where the Cabin BIA experience focused on a lot of physical pushing and shoving, shouting, being physically picked up and moved, crawling, and even bodily fluids to some extent, the Studio experience was more about making you feel uncomfortable and awkward, and it was a lot less 'hands on' when it came to all the pushing and shoving.
    It certainly was a less 'scary' experience than the previous year.
     
    I don't want to be a bore, but I wouldn't have gone with the bedroom scene, and if I'm honest the wet underwear was something I could have done without on the drive home!
    I also found the "You're late" storyline (which seemed to fade away during the maze) meant that the experience was very quick as it really was a fast run through the maze.
     
    I have to say that I did also miss the 'meet-up' at the bar with everyone at the end, as this was a great way for everyone to chat and compare experiences as you all left the park.
     
    All in all, this is a great memory I have of 'old thorpe' - I commend them for trying something niche, and for daring to be different.
     
    I love the idea of brave it alone, and who knows, maybe one day it'll make a return in some form or other. But until then, I'll never forget it - Fright Nights a decade ago was Thorpe at its peak in my opinion.
  3. Inferno

    Remembering Sun Scream at Thorpe Park

    By Inferno,


    Remembering series
    As we approach the start of the 2022 season, I thought I'd do a few blog post ramblings on some nostalgic Thorpe memories I have.
     
    Let's start off with Dr Pepper Sun Scream!
     

     
    Launching way back in 2009 when Saw opened, Sun Scream ran every year for many summers at the park, bringing live music, silent discos, stunt displays, beatboxing, sideshows and festival vibes.
     
    In reality, Sun Scream wasn't much in terms of an event, starting off as simply a stunt show and some yellow t-shirts for the rides staff, it evolved as the years went on and new things were tried, but I do have a lot of good memories from my annual mid-summer visits in the sunny weather!
     
     
    The amazing Stunt Show
     
    The standout feature of Sun Scream for me was the incredible stunt show in the Arena in the centre of the park.
    This was one of the few times during the season that the Arena was actually used, but it was used well!
    I remember sitting in the stands watching the Red Bull Stuntriders going over jumps and performing in the small area, and it was very impressive! I do remember one year one of the riders came off his motorbike during one of the performances, and was luckily ok, but the show was very good and (other than fright nights and Thorpe Blast) was probably the best 'show' the park has ever put on in my opinion, even in later years when it was replaced by a BMX display team.
     
     
    Other activities
     
    There were some less than ideal 'activities' as part of Sun Scream..
    I distinctly remember a silent disco was tried one year in the Colossus queue line.
    At a point early in the queue, everyone was offered a pair of wireless headphones which played music for everyone to jam to in the queue.
    The thing is, in a typically British fashion, very few people actually took the headphones, and even fewer took part in the disco.
    A nice idea, but didn't really work in reality.
    I also remember several performances, like a beatboxer one year.. Again, nice idea, but the crowd in front of the stage (in front of X) never really grew to more than about 10 people at any time despite the best efforts of the staff pulling people in.
     
     
    Late opening
     
    One of the great things about Sun Scream was the 8PM closing time.
    Being summer, this didn't really allow for night rides, but it was 'dusk' at least towards the end, and on the warm summer evenings it was great to stay late in the park after the crowds left.
    This no doubt paved the way for the Summer Nights event that followed years later.
     
     
    That 'Thorpe Park feeling' was at its strongest
     
    I'm not sure about what it was about Thorpe in the 2009 - 2012 period, but for me that was when Thorpe was at its absolute best.
    I always remember driving home from Thorpe, especially in the summer, with "that Thorpe Park feeling".
    I can't describe it, but it's the feeling you get when you've had a great day, you're knackered, aching and have a fuzzy head, your hair is a mess, and you stink... But you can't wait to go back and do it all again, preferably tomorrow.
    Sun Scream brought this feeling more than ever - it was such a positive and lively event, the sun was nearly always shining, the staff were lively and happy, and the park was always on top form.
    We also had a new ride in Saw, and The Swarm was under construction. The park was alive in this period and at its best.
     
     
    Dr Pepper
     
    Dr Pepper was the sponsor for Sun Scream, and as such during the event the staff handed out free little Dr Pepper cans.
    Because of this, I always associate the taste and smell of Dr Pepper with Thorpe Park, and every time I have it even all these years later, it takes me right back to "the good days" at Thorpe.
     
     
    __________
     
    Does anyone have any memories of Sun Scream?
  4. Inferno
    As we approach the start of the 2022 season, I thought I'd do a few blog post ramblings on some nostalgic Thorpe memories I have.
     
    I started off with Dr Pepper Sun Scream, now it's time for Brave it Alone back when it opened in 2013...
     
    I have hazy memories about this, but recently I found an old post I made after I experienced it and thought I'd spruce it up a bit and share!
     
    - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
     
    We did Cabin in the Woods way back on Sunday 13th October 2013, when the experience was brand new (and in my opinion at its best!)

    So... Here's what happened!

    After park closing at 10 pm, we met the Director, his assistant, and some park managers along with the other 'brave-it-aloners' at the bar area in Clypso BBQ, where we were read a very long and elaborate warning speech while having a drink.
    We then had to sign an agreement that stated that 'you are prepared for anything to happen' and that 'TP takes no responsibility for anything', blah blah...

    After around 20 minutes, when the guests had all left the park, the 10 or so of us were then given one of the classic "Don't wet yourself" ponchos to protect clothes from fake blood, dirt, facepaint and bodily fluids (yep, really).

    We were then split up and were walked with a park manager to our chosen mazes, where we were asked further questions such as "are you aware that literally anything could happen in here", and "please you must tell us now if you have any reason to not experience this"... 
    At this point the nerves were setting in - why did these warnings keep coming up? What on earth was going to happen inside?

    After waiting outside the cabin door for a few moments listening to the actors inside, I stepped in to the cabin's first room, the one with the 4 doors, which was brightly lit. I was alone. Suddenly the lights turn off for a second, then back on, but now there are 2 actors standing right in my face!
    Do any of you remember the guy who played Les Coogan back in 2011/2012? Well I had asked him if he's still known as Les Coogan earlier in the day, But I'll come back to that in a minute.
    'Les' pushed me backwards in to a chair in the corner of the room, where I was screamed at and told of the horrors I was about to see. The chair was then tipped backwards and I was led on my back!
    This was amazingly intense. The interrogation continued.
    The actors were hillbillies of some sort, so there was... Umm... dribble.... lol!
    I was then told to crawl in to the next room.

    Here I was left alone with a single actor who after a while forced me to 'kiss the moose' on the wall, similar to the film. Interrogation went on for a couple of minutes, lights flashed on and off, the actor started getting crazy bouncing off the walls, when my friend crawled in to the room with an actor riding on his back! (I did laugh at this!) I snuck out in to the next room at this point...

    This room had a person in a plain white mask, and was one of the most surreal parts. She forced me against a wall and slithered around me... very odd! The lights then went out, flashed back on, revealing her mask right up in my face. This happened a few times with her appearing and disappearing at different points.

    I was then grabbed by another actor who looked panicked, saying "don't look, just get over here". He stood facing me and grabbed me by the shoulders, then pushed backwards (quite fast!) through several flaps and doors until my back banged against a wall!!

    I was then pushed (very violently) back down on to the floor by a different actor, and told to continue onwards.

    This next part is a blur to be honest, but I did a lot of walking, crawling, being pulled and pushed around, had lots of jump scares, until I reached the spinning tunnel, which had 2 female clowns inside...
    Both clowns had 'penis shaped' balloons which they, errm, 'rubbed' me with in various ways... Yeah I'll leave that to your imagination...
    They then taunted me with them and popped them in my ears.
    One of the clowns then got behind me, wrapped herself around me and held me still, while the other licked my face and neck while the other laughed in my ear. This was very uncomfortable and weird!!! CLOWNS!?! All of this while the tunnel was spinning around me!

    I can't remember what happened between here and the final room., however when I did reach the final room, the actor who played Les Coogan in previous years (remember from earlier?) stormed up to me, with about 5 other actors in tow! They each took hold of one of my limbs, picked me up and put me flat on my back on the floor.... 'Les' then completely went crazy!! They were dragging me around, and Les's final words to me were "DON'T YOU ****ING DARE CALL ME LES COOGAN AGAIN BOY. GET OUT OF HERE NOW." I was then pretty much forced to apologise to 'Les', and literally thrown in to a door leading out of the maze!

    The look on the faces of the park staff was hilarious when I came out!  I particularly remember one of the managers looking genuinely worried!

    It was absolutely fantastic and much more intense than I could have imagined. The whole experience lasted around 10 minutes. Worth every penny of the £15! Bargain.

    I have probably missed bits here, and probably haven't done it justice, but you get the basic idea.

    We then all made our way back from the various mazes and met back at the 'bar' in the BBQ, where we all had a good chat about it!
    Some of the other guests had done Asylum, which was totally mad apparently. They were all drenched in fake blood, and said that many of the asylum patients were completely naked. Lots of 'adult' themes going on in there, including a performance in the bed scene which I'm not sure would hold up today.
    Some of the others had done Saw Alive which was apparently amazing as well.
     
    I can't describe how good Brave it Alone was in its first year! Genuinely terrifying to have literally ALL of the actors focusing on you the entire time.
  5. Inferno

    Am I getting too old for theme parks? 🤔

    By Inferno,


    Theme Parks
    This is something that's been playing on my mind for the past 3 years or so.
     
    Whenever I visit a theme park these days, there's usually one or two moments throughout the day where I feel like the odd one out.  At 30 years of age, I feel old.
     
    I look round me when stood in a queue, and most of the other guests are teenagers or adults with kids.  Yes, there are a few couples or older groups etc who visit, but they're a rare sight.
     
    Usually the feeling passes after a moment, and I brush it off with my usual "who cares, I love theme parks!" take on the situation.
     
    But this year at Fright Nights, it really hit me. For most of the day, the feeling stuck with me. I know it wasn't the case, but I felt like the oldest person on the entire park. Nearly everyone queueing around me was in their teens (except my theme park buddy who is a year younger than me), and going through the mazes with a group of young teenagers did make me feel like an old man, reminiscing about mazes from over 10 years ago, when many of the other guests would have been toddlers.
     
    As we head towards next weekend, me and Mrs Inferno are heading to the fireworks at Alton Towers, and I have a very faint feeling of dread building - am I getting too old for all this stuff?
     
    I've always been a firm believer in just going for it, and if anyone ever asked me the question "am I too old to go to a theme park", I would say absolutely not!  But just lately, I'm beginning to understand why people might feel that way.
     
    I'd love to know if anyone else ever feels similar, and what your take is on being "too old for theme parks"?
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