UK Theme Parks Archives

31st March 2025

Chessington gets planning permission for Project Refresh and Renew

We know 2025 is a transitional year for Chessington with Mexicana closed as it makes way for Project Play, a new (Paw Patrol rumoured) themed area opening in 2026 with new kids coaster and 3 flat rides and closes Wild Asia to make way for the 2027 Minecraft Land which will see a new indoor […]

29th March 2025

Updates from Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach

Situated on the seafront of Great Yarmouth, Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach has been operating for a very long time and is home to the only operating wooden coaster in the UK with a man operating the breaks (the other coaster like this in the UK is at Dreamland Margate which is currently S.B.N.O). Ahead of […]

21st March 2025

Blackpool Pleasure Beach announces new gyro swing ride for 2026 plus more changes!

A few weeks back Blackpool Pleasure Beach provided a series of updates on the resort for 2025 which included various rides being closed for all or part of the season and promised an update on the future of the park soon. You can read more about that here. Yesterday we got the first part of […]

18th March 2025

Paultons Park submit plans for on-site accommodation

Yesterday, Paultons Park have submitted plans to their local council to build their first on-site accommodation. The plans show us that the park are planning to build a mix of 2, 3 and 4 bed self-catering lodges in a ‘Scandinavian village’ style which is fitting given they will be situated at the end of the […]

11th March 2025

Which UK Theme Parks are worth a visit in 2025?

2024 was certainly the year of the new attraction in the UK with the opening of Hyperia at Thorpe Park, Nemesis Reborn at Alton Towers and Gold Rush at Drayton Manor whereas 2025 is shaping up to be a much quieter (and more destructive) year. For that reason I thought I’d write about the top […]

8th March 2025

Chessington to auction Scorpion Express Memorabilia

Starting on Monday at 10am Chessington World of Adventures will be holding a series of auctions on their online store for various pieces of memorabilia from their Scorpion Express ride which has now been dismantled to make way for their new Project Play. You can read more about that here. Scorpion Express operated at the […]

4th March 2025

Oakwood Theme Park in Wales Closes with Immediate Effect

In shock news this afternoon Oakwood Theme Park in Wales have published a news article on their site stating the immediate closure of the park for the 2025 season leaving the future uncertain. In the blog the park’s parent company state: “It is with much sadness that we have to announce the immediate closure of […]

20th February 2025

Chessington’s ‘Project Play’ gets the go-ahead

I reported a while back that Chessington had submitted planning permission to re-develop the Mexicana area of the park. Yesterday, that planning permission was granted by Kingston upon Thames Borough Council. You can see the full planning application here. What next? It’s been reported that some preliminary work has already started in the Mexicana area […]

16th February 2025

Is a Universal Studios UK announcement finally going to happen?

Theme Park enthusiasts across the country have been waiting for further news on a Universal Studios UK announcement for a while now. There was initially some hope that it would be part of the Chancellor’s announcements for growth a few weeks ago but despite mentions of Bedford during the speech there was no mention of […]

12th February 2025

What is going on with Merlin?

It’s no secret that Merlin have got some financial issues after running a huge loss, seeing lower visitors than expected at their new Korea and New York Legoland parks plus visitors spending less money when visiting their parks. In the last few days however news of further cut-backs have come for Merlin’s UK parks. In […]

4th February 2025

Has the Eagles Claw left Lightwater Valley?

Lightwater Valley, once a fantastic park in Yorkshire has been through quite a journey over the last few years since The Brighton Pier Group took over. During that time as they have tried to refocus the struggling park to be aimed at families they have removed a number of rides but most notably The Raptor, […]

21st January 2025

Could Universal Studios UK get the green light by the end of January?

It’s no secret that Universal Studios have purchased a huge amount of land near Bedford and have been going through a consultation process around opening a new Universal Studios Resort in the UK which is incredibly exciting, not least because the UK economy really needs it plus it would make Merlin work harder to compete. […]

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