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This
Page is an Archive of all news items featured on the Joyland Books News
Page between 1 January and 30 June 2004.
For the latest news, click here.
Blackpool Pleasure
Beach's Chairman Doris Thompson Dies [23/6/04]
| Doris Thompson, the 101-year-old
Chairman of Britain's most visited tourist attraction, Blackpool
Pleasure Beach, has died only hours after the funeral of her son.
Mrs Thompson was the daughter of WG Bean, the man who founded the
park in 1896, and she had continued to have an active involvement in
the running and development of the park. Mrs Thompson had been too
unwell to attend her son's funeral earlier that day, and a company
statement said that she died peacefully in her sleep. She was
awarded an MBE in 1969, and the OBE in 2003. |
 |
Blackpool Pleasure
Beach's Geoffrey Thompson Dies [12/6/04]
| It is with great sadness that
Joyland Books reports the death of Geoffrey Thompson OBE, Managing
Director of Blackpool Pleasure Beach, and one of the most important
and influential figures in Britain's tourism industry. Mr Thompson
took over the reigns of the Pleasure Beach from his father, Leonard
Thompson, in 1976. Few could have predicted at the time the extent
to which the 40 year old Cambridge-educated economist would change
the face of Britain's biggest tourist attraction. |
 |
He was quick to make his mark on the park,
bringing new ride concepts to the UK for the first time. The unique
Steeplechase roller coaster (1977), which was introduced within 12 months of
his assuming the role of Managing Director, sits riders on carousel-style
horses as they race around a half mile long track. Other major rides quickly
followed: Europe's first looping roller coaster, The Revolution (1979); a
roller coaster in the dark, Space Invader (1984);and Britain's first
bobsleigh coaster, The Avalanche (1988). In 1994, the park's biggest
investment to date was the massive Pepsi Max Big One roller coaster, the
world's tallest and fastest roller coaster and a ride that still dominates
the park. Valhalla, hailed as the world's biggest dark ride, opened in 2000
and brought more acclaim to this increasingly spectacular amusement park.
Thompson's new rides dramatically changed the appearance of the park, and
the skyline of Blackpool, but he also had a passion for vintage rides. Under
Geoffrey's guidance, the popularity of many of the park's classic rides was
increased. The Grand National received a new station (1990), and other rides
such as the Noah's Ark, Turtle Chase and Flying Machine were lovingly
maintained and carefully developed in ways that would appeal to new
generations.
But Geoffrey's time at the helm of
Blackpool Pleasure Beach was not just focused on the rides. Under his
enthusiastic and dedicated leadership, the park innovated in all areas.
Geoffrey gradually - but very noticeably - turned Blackpool Pleasure Beach
from a large seaside amusement park into a highly sophisticated
international tourism destination. New and contemporary facilities were
introduced: shops, restaurants, bars, world-class shows and - more recently
- quality hotel accommodation. These facilities, alongside Thompson's new
rides, created a destination against which many other attractions on a world
scale are now judged. Geoffrey Thompson was a brilliant innovator, a shrewd
businessman, and Britain's best international tourism ambassador. He was
also a kind and warm individual who always had time for those interested in
his beloved park. He was awarded the OBE in 1998.
Geoffrey Thompson died at the Pleasure
Beach, during a private family function at the park. It is fitting
that he died in the place he loved so much, as the Pleasure Beach will
remain a lasting tribute to a truly great man.
The Pleasure Beach remains open for
business as usual. Geoffrey's funeral will be held on 23 June 2004 at a
nearby church. Geoffrey's daughter Amanda has now been appointed as Managing
Director, with his son Nick retaining his existing role as Deputy Managing
Director.
Seaside Nostalgia on
Video [4/6/04]
| Take a trip down memory lane with
three nostalgic videos of British seaside resorts.
Memories of Clacton-on-Sea
shows you the Pier and its famous Steel Stella roller coaster,
Butlin's Pleasure Park and the Butlins Holiday Camp which replaced
it, the 1953 floods, the Palace by the Sea, and much, much more.
We also now stock the two-volume
Southend Memories series.
Each tape offers one hour of pure nostalgia, featuring the Kursaal,
Golden Mile, Southend Pier, two Pier fires, the Golden Hind, the
Empire Theatre, and much more.
We have loads more seaside memories
in other videos, such as
Skegness, Blackpool,
Brighton,
Colwyn Bay,
Scarborough,
Rhyl,
Aberystwyth and
Weston-Super-Mare.
Click
here for our full range of videos and DVDs. |
 |
Rare Nottingham
Goose Fair Books Added [4/6/04]
| More second-hand books have been
added to the Secondhand Shop
- be sure to visit soon, as books have been selling very quickly.
The first item is the very rare Nottingham Evening Post celebration
of
700 Years of Goose Fair
by Ian Manning. Published in 1994, this A4-sized book is packed
full of information and photographs of this famous fair's 700 year
history. Even more scarce is
a 1979 booklet published by the Nottingham Historical Film Unit,
looking back at the early history of the fair. Old
Nottingham Goose Fair: A
Story in Pictures is a detailed and superbly illustrated
publication. And for Goose Fair collectors, we have an original
Goose Fair: A Legend
of Nottingham cover, over 100 years old. |
 |
New Funfair DVDs [4/6/04]
| Two new funfair DVDs have been
added to Joyland Books, both of which are also available on video.
The first is Kirkcaldy
Links Market 2004. This video of the 700th Anniversary Fair
shows Europe's largest street fair in action.
Click here for details
of the video and
here for the new book about Kirkcaldy Links Market.
The second new DVD is the latest in
the popular Fun Fairs on the Move series.
Fun Fairs on the Move
2004 Vol 7 DVD shows fairground transport at Stamford
Mid-Lent Fair, Wakefield's Heath Common and Spalding.
Click here for
details.
And
click here for our full
list of fairground DVDs and videos. |
 |
Joyland Forum: Come on in! [26/5/04]
We also have
special forums to post messages about the
Save
Dreamland Campaign and your favourite
books, videos and DVDs. If you aren't already a member, just
click on
register,
sign up, and join in the fun!
Click here
to go straight to the Forum.
Pleasure Beach Fire: Not Arson [25/5/04]
According to the
Blackpool Gazette, arson has been ruled out as the cause of the fire that
destroyed part of the Grand National roller coaster and damaged the Alice's
Wonderland and Trauma Towers rides. Although the official results of the
investigation will not be known until later this week, a representative of
the fire service has already stated that an electrical fault is the most
likely cause.
Ride the Flying Machine at Crystal Palace [24/5/04]
| New to Joyland Books is a
fascinating look at one of Britain's most famous pleasure palaces,
the Crystal Palace. Besides the famous glass palace and park,
Crystal Palace also featured a sizeable amusement park, with rides
such as the Water Chute, Helter Skelter, Joy Wheel and Hiram Maxim's
Flying Machine (pictured on the front cover, right).
The Perfect Playground
is built up from taped interviews made by the Palace Memories Group
who are committed to preserving first-hand accounts of the Palace
for future generations. The book includes many unusual photographs -
many published for the first time.
Click here for
details.
Although the big rides have all
gone, the Crystal
Palace Dinosaurs still exist in the park.
Click here
for details of a book about the world's first prehistoric
sculptures. |
Above: The Perfect Playground:
Childhood Memories of the Crystal Palace. |
Grand National on Fire Again [23/5/04]
Granada News is reporting
that twenty fire-fighters returned to Blackpool Pleasure Beach yesterday
when the Grand National roller coaster reignited following the fire on
Thursday evening. Fire-fighters were in the park for several hours and had
to cut away part of the ride to put out the blaze and protect the surviving
parts of the ride.
Joyland Books Forum [22/5/04]
The Joyland Books
Forum will be down
for approximately 24-48 hours whilst Joyland's UK website (on which the
Forums are hosted) is transferred to a new, larger server. This will result
in a much faster and more reliable forum. All of our other services,
including the shopping basket, are unaffected by this move. The UK and US
Joyland Books websites will continue to operate normally during this period.
We thank you for your patience and apologise for any inconvenience. The
Forums will be back on line on Monday.
The Story of Harris's Fun Fairs Reduced! [21/5/04]
| Joyland Books has slashed £5.00
off the price of The Story of
Harris's Fun Fairs.
The Story of Harris's Fun Fairs is the amazing tale of one of the
great showland families which has travelled the Eastern Counties
since the late 1700s. Written by Ken Page, the book has been
acclaimed by World's Fair newspaper, and features well over 400
photographs, many in colour. The book has been a strong seller at
its original price of £20, but Joyland Books now makes it available
at only £15.00. Click here
for more information and how to buy.
Right: The colourful cover of
The Story of Harris's Fun Fairs, now only £15!. |
 |
Fire at Blackpool Pleasure Beach [20/5/04]
10.15pm on Thursday 20
May: News has just come in to Joyland Books from Blackpool Illuminations
Manager Richard Ryan that there is a large fire at the Pleasure Beach. Fire
engines are attending the scene. The fire appears to be coming from the
Grand National station, Trauma Towers and Alice's Wonderland. We understand
that the much of the Grand National Station has been destroyed.
Update 11.30pm: We
understand from Blackpool Pleasure Beach that the Grand National station
area has been partly destroyed, and the Trauma Towers and Alice's Wonderland
dark rides have also been damaged. Part of the side wall of the Alice's
Wonderland ride has collapsed. The Grand National, a twin-track racing
wooden roller coaster built in 1935, is one of the Pleasure Beach's most
famous attractions. Blackpool Pleasure Beach's Managing Director Geoffrey
Thompson has already pledged to rebuild the Grand National.
New Books, New DVD! [18/5/04]
|
Amusement Parks of
New Jersey by Jim Futrell is a comprehensive guide profiling
17 major amusement parks in the Garden State. Complete information
on rides and attractions is accompanied by dozens of vintage
photographs and postcard scenes.
Poole's Myriorama,
by Hudson John Powell, is the fascinating story of the Poole
brothers, who back in the late 1800s travelled panoramas and
dioramas, along with 'Pepper's Ghost' shows, the forerunner of the
modern ghost train. This book, which also features over 50 pictures,
provides an authoritative account of the history of the showmen and
their contemporaries. And for
lovers of long lost amusement parks,
The History of Belle Vue
is now available on DVD in three volumes.
Click here for
information on Volume One. |
 |
Alton Towers Boss Resigns [15/5/04]
Ralph Almond, divisional
director of Alton Towers, has resigned after nine years with the park. Mr
Almond's time with Alton Towers has seen the installation of roller coasters
Oblivion and AIR , and the development of two hotels and a water park. It
has also seen the controversial introduction of car parking charges. His
resignation was reportedly due to restructuring at the park by its owners,
the Tussauds Group.
Celebrate 700 Years of Kirkcaldy Links Market [3/5/04]
| Kirkcaldy Links Market has a
special atmosphere all of its own: a heady mixture of fun,
sophistication and nostalgia made up of bright lights, music,
breathtaking rides and colourful sideshows, all adding up to the
longest street fair in Europe and the largest in Scotland. Released
to coincide with the 700th Anniversary of the granting of the
original Charter in 1304,
Kirkcaldy Links Market
by Carol McNeill is a history of this famous Scottish fair.
This fascinating story is told with
the help of numerous photographs, both colour and black & white, and
the book is already winning excellent reviews.
Click here for
details. |
 |
Seaside Celebration at Joyland [3/5/04]
| With spring upon us it is time to
visit the seaside with the help of Joyland Books.
The English Seaside
is a wonderful collection of coloured photographs covering all the
major – and several minor – resorts around England’s coast. This
unique book celebrates the heyday of the seaside holiday - in
Victorian and Edwardian times - based on postcards of resorts from
the 1890s onwards. John Hannavy, Professor in Art and Design at
Bolton Institute, has assembled a fine collection of seaside
photographic prints, both colour and black & white, with fascinating
text.
Click here for
details. If you just can't
get enough of the British seaside, then visit our special
Seaside department where you
will find enough seaside books to last you all summer! |
 |
Blackgang Chine Coaster Fails Safety Test [2/5/04]
|
The owners of
Blackgang Chine Theme Park on the Isle of Wight have demanded that
the Italian manufacturers of their new 'Tornado' roller coaster
either get the ride running by the end of May 2004 or dismantle it
and returns the ride to Italy. The £310,000 Tornado coaster was
exclusively announced by Joyland Books in
December 2002, with a
special VIP opening ceremony planned for
June 2003. The ride's
opening was delayed until
October 2003, to allow
"modifications" to be made to the ride. The ride never opened.
Having been standing but not operating for a year, it has now been
revealed that the new ride did not open in 2003 because it failed to
meet UK health and safety regulations, which require at least 800
millimetres clearance between the side of cars and the columns which
support the ride. The ride had instead been built to German
specifications, which only require 500mm clearance. The
manufacturers are currently fabricating new support columns in Italy
to replace the existing stanchions. If this work has not been
completed by the end of May, Blackgang Chine has demanded that the
ride is dismantled and removed from the park. |
Above: Tornado - standing but not
operating for a year. |
Buy Your Own Piece of Pleasure Beach History [30/4/04]
Newly rebranded Pleasure
Beach Blackpool (formerly Blackpool Pleasure Beach) announces a special
charity memorabilia auction for Sunday 14 May 2004. Up to 100 items will be
going under the hammer including Log Flume boats, Dodgems and Vintage Cars,
ride wheels, show memorabilia, Big One track, park signs and Revolution car
bodies. Plus the Big Dipper seat where Richard Rodriguez sat during his 2000
world record marathon! Viewing at the Horseshow in the Casino building from
11am. The auction starts at 12 noon. The auction is in support of UNICEF.
South East Amusement Parks on DVD [28/4/04]
| Travel back to 1993 and visit some
of the South East coast's best amusement parks and fairground in
this unique DVD from Dave Homer Video,
South East Tour 1993.
See Margate's famous Dreamland Amusement Park, when it was Bembom
Brothers' White Knuckle Theme Park. See rides like the Looping Star,
Water Chute and Britain's biggest Big Wheel in action.
Then visit Folkestone's Rotunda
Amusement Park, owned by Jimmy Godden. See the Super 8 Bahn Coaster
in action (now Pleasurewood Hills' Cannonball Express) and get wet
on the Log Flume.
Then visit fairs at Margate,
Hastings and Horsted Keynes.
Click here for
details. |
 |
£2m Investment for Loudoun Castle Theme Park [27/4/04]
| Scotland's biggest theme park has
announced a £2 million package of new rides and attractions over the
next 12 months. The biggest ride would be a 1500ft long chairlift,
offering stunning views across the beautiful Castle grounds, and
featuring two stations. Loudoun Castle was acquired by Parkware Ltd
in January 2003, and Managing Director Henk Bembom has stated that
visitors will notice a big difference at the park over the coming
months, with five new rides. New rides for 2004 include the
Slitherin' Roller Coaster (opens in May), the Black Pearl
(Dreamland's former Mary Rose) and the Captain's Wheel enterprise
ride. |
Above: Crowds queue to enter
Loudoun Castle Theme Park. |
| For more details visit
the park's website:
www.loudouncastle.co.uk. |
Coney Beach Amusement Park to be Redeveloped [26/4/04]
| Porthcawl's famous Coney Beach
Amusement Park, the town's biggest tourist attraction for over 60
years, is to be redeveloped under Council plans. The Porthcawl
Development Framework, drawn up by consultants for Bridgend County
Borough Council, proposes to develop a road across the centre of the
site, with residential development, a public park, and 'mixed use'
development across the remainder of the site. Despite describing the
amusement park as "the main reason for people visiting Porthcawl",
the consultants recommend that redevelopment commences within 2
years. |
Above: The entrance to Coney Beach
Amusement Park. |
New Coaster to Open at GreenWood Forest Park [26/4/04]
A brand new roller
coaster is to open on 29th May 2004 at the GreenWood Forest Park in North
Wales. The 280-metre long Green Dragon will use "green technology" to hoist
the trains up the lift hill. It will achieve a speed of 22 mph and is based
on an idea once used in the country’s slate quarries. GreenWood Forest Park
managing director Stephen Bristow explains: “We are doing this with people.
They walk up a hill, get into a carriage, roll down the rails and so pull up
the empty coaster cars, which are on a transporter on the main track. At the
bottom, the passengers get out, walk up the hill again and go on the ride.
At the end of the ride the cars roll onto the transporter, the people get
off and the process starts again.” The Energy Coaster, which will cost
£460,000, is being part-funded by a £220,000 grant from the Wales Tourist
Board. It will create 34 new jobs and will generate more electricity than it
uses. For more information, visit
http://www.greenwood-centre.co.uk.
Secondhand Roller Coaster Magazines Added [25/4/04]
| Perfect for roller coaster
enthusiasts who want to read more about their favourite ride,
Joyland Books has added second-hand copies of the UK's two leading
roller coaster magazines, First Drop and Airtime.
First Drop - the magazine of the
European Coaster Club - is Europe's top coaster magazine, packed
with in-depth articles and news, plus stunning photographs. We have
the first 56 issues
available to buy, and various other
packs of old editions of the magazine, all in good
condition.
Airtime is the magazine of the
Roller Coaster Club of Great Britain, and we have the
first 9 issues
available to buy.
Click here for a full list of second-hand magazines and
books. |
Above: First Drop 58 |
Stamford Mid Lent Fair 2004 on DVD [24/4/04]
| Experience all the sights, sounds
and excitement of the 2004
Stamford Mid Lent Fair on DVD now. This was the largest Mid
Lent Fair in this Lincolnshire market town's history,
featuring many new large attractions. These included John Bugg's
'Oblivion' Afterburner, James Cox's Move It 32, C&R Amusements' 'Air
Force 1' Street Fighter and Theodore Whyatt's Jump and Smile. This
year James Mellors presented a new fairground section on the town
meadows. That included his 'Magic Mouse' spinning car roller coaster
on a first time visit. Also featured on this video is the transport
pull on, which is one of the highlights of the fair.
As with all BCM productions, it is
without commentary or music, just the full fairground experience.
Click here for more
details.
Visit
our DVD and Video Shop. |
 |
Ride New Coasters on DVD [23/4/04]
| A brand new DVD full of the
world's latest roller coaster rides has been added to Joyland Books.
Roller Coaster Adventures
Volume 7 has the newest and most exciting roller coasters on
the planet. Experience these amazing roller coasters with
never-before-seen footage, full circuit point-of-view rides,
exclusive construction footage, and all access admittance inside the
massive steel and wooden structures.
The DVD features front seat rides
on Magnus Colossus, Tizona, Tren Bravo, Flying Coaster, Twister II,
Boomerang, Mind Eraser, The Phoenix, Twister, Tennessee Tornado,
Superman, Batman, Stuntfall, Gwazi, Montu and the latest prototype
coaster, Screaming Squirrel.
Click here for
more details. |
 |
Take a Trip to Coney Island [23/4/04]
|
Coney Island,
photographed by Howard Stein, is an evocative and colourful
collection of colour images and is now available from Joyland. With
photographs of the amusement parks, the colourful rides, the roller
coasters, the ride operators, the side stalls, the street
entertainers. The photographs reveal a Coney Island that is very
much alive. Click here
for details. More Coney Island...
Coney Island by Professor
Solomon
Coney Island Vol 1 Video
Coney Island Vol 2 Video |
 |
Fairs on the River Thames! [23/4/04]
| Frost Fairs took place frequently
on the Thames for 600 years. London historian and art expert
Nicholas Reed looks in detail at some of the many pictures of those
fairs in the book Frost Fairs
on the Frozen Thames. Feasting and drinking were much in
evidence, with oxen being roasted on the ice and the first
roundabouts appearing. From just before Christmas, when the Thames
froze solid enough for people to walk from one bank to another,
people would take to the ice for fun, games and profit. The fairs
all took place upstream from the Old London Bridge. With forty
illustrations, most of them in colour, this book is a must for
anyone interested in London's river.
Click here for more
details. |
 |
More
Secondhand Books Added...[23/4/04]
| A number of second-hand books and
other ephemera have been added to Joyland's
Secondhand Shop. Two souvenir
newspapers have been added. The first,
Coaster City News
(right), is a special souvenir newspaper published in 1993 to
celebrate the wooden roller coasters of Blackpool Pleasure Beach.
The 700th Goose
Fair is a souvenir guide to the event published by the
Nottingham Evening Post. Lots of books for roller coaster
enthusiasts.
Roller
Coasters of America is a history of US coasters and a guide
to the best coasters in the country.
Roller Coasters
or I Had so Much Fun I Almost Puked is a general book about
coasters aimed at junior readers.
The Amusement Park
Guide is the first edition of the now legendary US park
guide. And this is only the tip of the iceberg.
Click here for a full list. |
 |
Theme Park Millionaires Ride High in Times Rich List [18/4/04]
Today's Times Rich List
again features several amusement park millionaires. Top of the list as usual
is Blackpool Tower and American Adventure owner Trevor Hemmings, with a
fortune of £700 million (up from £480 million last year). He bought
Blackpool Tower in 1998 for £74 million, and plans to open resort casinos in
Blackpool following the proposed gambling deregulation. Also rising this
year is the owner of Fantasy Island, John Woodward, with his fortune up from
£63 to £67 million. However profits in his Fantasy Island/Blue Anchor
Leisure Group fell in 2002 to £3.9 million (with a turnover of £29.7m), but
his East Coast theme park resort is valued at £64 million. David Allen, with
a net worth of £48 million, has a stake in Bourne Leisure, the owner of the
Butlins Family Entertainment Resorts empire.
Adventure Island Makes Bid for Dreamland [16/4/04]
| The
Save
Dreamland Campaign today announces that the owner of
Southend's Adventure Island Theme Park has made a bid to buy
Margate's famous Dreamland Pleasure Park. Dreamland, the home of the
UK's oldest roller coaster, has been threatened with demolition for
over a year, but a campaign has been set up to save it. If
successful in their bid, Adventure Island would invest £10m in new
rides and attractions, including the full restoration of the
84-year-old Scenic Railway. For more details, visit the
Save Dreamland News page. |
 |
Japanese Coaster Madness at Joyland Books! [12/4/04]
| Following on from the success of
Front Seat Thrills
and the Roller Coaster
Adventures series, Joyland Books brings to the UK another
fantastic DVD full of roller coaster rides. Pure, unadulterated
front seat point-of-view (POV) rides on some amazing coasters that
are little known in the west. No music, no sound effects, no
editing; just 100% front seat rides on roller coasters the like of
which you will have never seen before.
This program features 12 on board full 'point-of-view' rides, aerial
shots, and exclusive tours of these amazing roller coasters. Some of
these coasters cannot be seen anywhere except this DVD.
Cross the world and
ride these eastern delights:
Click here
for more details. |
 |
New Fairground Book: Funfairs at Fleet [12/4/04]
| A new fairground book has been
released looking at the history of funfairs visiting the Hampshire
town of Fleet. In
Funfairs at Fleet,
local author Phyl Ralton uses original research and people's
memories to show which fairs came to Fleet, and the rides and
engines that were used. Photographs, some previously unpublished,
have been chosen to illustrate this aspect of Fleet's history. This
will appeal to Fleet residents who want to know more of the history
of their town and to people with an interest in steam engines and
showmen. The book costs only
£5 and is available from Joyland Books now.
Click here for more
details or to order a copy. |
 |
Rare Used Books Added [12/4/04]
New
Funfair DVDs [12/4/04]
| Two brand new funfair DVDs/videos
have been added to Joyland Books.
King's Lynn Mart 2004
allows you to soak up the atmosphere of the first fair of the new
season. The Tuesday Market Place was filled with a varied selection
of amusements. The grand official civic opening ceremony is
featured, followed by all the rides and attractions in full swing at
night. Also featured is the showmen's transport and living vans
pulling off.
Held on the Elland Road Football
Ground car park, the 2004 Leeds
Great Valentines Fair featured the largest collection of
rides and attractions ever, professionally presented by
International Funfairs. Also featured is a wide variety of showmen's
transport arriving at the pull-on.
Click
here for our full selection of videos and DVDs. |
 |
April Sale: £7 off Men at Work! [9/4/04]
| For the month of April, buy a copy
of Men at Work for only
£12.99, a saving of £7.00 off the recommended retail price! The book
tells the story of fairground ride builders Orton & Spooner and the
artistry of the father and son team, Albert and Sid Howell, whose
work adorned many of their most famous rides. The Howells were
regarded as two of the most respected fairground artists of the
Twentieth Century and this book shows many examples of their huge
talent, as well as paintings and drawings from their private
collections. Featuring over 200 never before seen photographs from
the Howell collection, many in colour, this book will be a must for
anyone interested in the history of fairground rides or fairground
art. Click here for
details. |
 |
Crealy Acquires Popular Cornish Theme Park [28/3/04]
Maximum Fun Ltd, the
owner of Devon's Crealy Adventure Park, has acquired Shires Family
Adventure Park, near Newquay in Cornwall. The 110-acre theme park, which
will reopen on 1 April 2004 as Crealy Great Adventure Park features
several major attractions, including a new log flume, water coaster,
pirate ship and a huge indoor play area. Maximum Fun's Managing Director
Angela Wright MBE, has confirmed that the park's existing staff will be
retained, and has announced plans to invest in new attractions at the
park over the coming years. The original Crealy Park was founded in 1989
and features six 'realms', 9 rides and over 200 animals and now attracts
over 500,000 visitors every year.
New
Range of Amusement Park Books Added [6/3/04]
Classic 1970s Coaster Documentary Available on DVD [29/2/04]
| Available for the
first time on DVD is this 1970s documentary following the
construction of the Great American Scream Machine roller coaster at
Six Flags Over Georgia. Excitement builds as what was the world's
biggest roller coaster rises from the ground. The picture quality
may be grainy, but this 1973 documentary is enthralling, with
never-before-seen interviews with roller coaster designer John Allen
and fascinating footage showing the construction, testing and
opening of this beautiful wooden roller coaster.
The DVD also features bonus
material: 1973 newsreel footage, Six Flags Over Georgia
photographs, amateur film footage of Six Flags Over Georgia, and
time lapse photography of the construction of the Georgia
Cyclone.
Click here
for details. |
 |
Planning Application Submitted for 'Devon Eye' [29/2/04]
The owner of the
Atlantic Adventure Park, a new fun park attached to the Atlantic Village
Outlet Centre in Bideford (Devon), has applied for planning permission
to construct a 35-metre big wheel at the park. Rick Turner, the park's
operator, has reportedly been influenced by the famous 135-metre high
London Eye. The popularity of the London attraction has seen big wheels
popping up around the country, with a new 75-metre high big wheel at
Fantasy Island, Ingoldmells (Lincolnshire), and a 60-metre high wheel
has been operating in Birmingham for the last few months. Blackpool's
33-metre high Big Wheel on the Central Pier was re-erected last week
following a major overhaul. A decision on the Devon Eye is expected from
Torridge District Council within the next two months.
The
Last Sideshow [21/2/04]
| A totally unique book,
about a community of circus and fairground sideshow performers in
the USA, is out now and available from Joyland Books.
The Last Sideshow by Hanspeter Schneider takes you into a
world populated solely by sideshow 'freaks' and circus performers.
Schneider, a leading European fashion photographer whose work has
appeared in Rolling Stone, GQ, Vogue and Stern, has created a
permanent record showing beauty, humour and understanding.
Click here for more details.
"Hanspeter doesn't just bring
out a person's personality, he speeds them up, he makes them
fly."
Stephan Meyer, German GQ |
 |
Visitor Numbers Down at Britain's Biggest Parks [21/2/04]
Both Legoland and
Blackpool Pleasure Beach saw their visitor numbers fall in 2003, despite
favourable weather conditions, according to statistics released by ALVA,
the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. Legoland suffered the
biggest fall of any tourist attraction represented by the association,
dropping by 19%. ALVA, which represents only the UK's biggest and
best-known attractions, claimed that Britain's most popular tourist
attraction, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, welcomed only 5.7 million visitors
in 2003, a drop of 10% on 2002. But Blackpool Pleasure Beach has
clarified that the official visitor numbers for 2003 were actually 6.2
million, a small drop from the 2002 figure of 6.4 million. Other major
tourist attractions to see their visitor numbers slump were London Zoo,
Whipsnade Zoo and Tate Modern. The Museum of Liverpool Life saw the
biggest gains, with a 40% increase. Blackpool Pleasure Beach is still
ranked as the most visited attraction, and has a major programme of
investment in new rides and attractions planned over the next five
years, which will see the park change significantly.
Brighton Pier Wins Another Planning Battle [14/2/04]
| Planning permission has been
granted on appeal for two new rides on Brighton Pier. The permission
will allow pier owners, the Noble Organisation, to replace the
existing Ventura and Ranger rides with two 40-metre-high booster
rides. Planning permission had been refused by Brighton and Hove
City Council, but Government Inspector Katie Peerless overturned the
decision and ordered the Council to pay part of the Noble
Organisation's costs. The two new rides will be located either side
of a 35m high drop tower ride, to be called Megadrop. |
Brighton Pier: Another planning
battle won this week. |
New
Book Offers Insight Into the World of the Fair [8/2/04]
| Between October 2003 and January
2004 the Pleasurelands Exhibition was held at the Millennium
Galleries, offering visitors a way into the world of the fair. As
the exhibition begins its UK tour, which takes it to Croydon and
Edinburgh, Joyland Books offers you the chance to buy the book that
accompanies the event. This book celebrates the essential
ingredients that have enabled the travelling fairground industry to
survive for the past eight hundred years; a tradition still very
much alive. It comprises four extensive essays by Dr. Vanessa
Toulmin (Director of the National Fairground Archive, University of
Sheffield): Spectacle, Experience, Illusion, and Reality. With 100
black and white photographs, and a 16-page colour section, this book
takes you on a journey into a fascinating world.
Click here for details. |
 |
Variety Days in Joyland's New Department [8/2/04]
|
More Variety Days is a new addition to Joyland's brand new
department: Specialist
Entertainment. This department will feature books on the
history of numerous different forms of entertainment, many of which
originated on the travelling fair. From freak shows and fairground
sideshows to music hall and variety theatre. Look out for more books
to be added over the coming months. More Variety Days is the
critically acclaimed follow-up to 'Those Variety Days' (now
deleted). Spanning two centuries, it starts with early nineteenth
century fairs and fit-ups and ends in the 1980s with television and
cabaret. Click here
for more information.
Don't forget to bookmark our new
department: Specialist
Entertainment. |
 |
Changes at Blackpool Pleasure Beach for 2004 [2/2/04]
There will be several
changes to Blackpool Pleasure Beach when it opens in March for the 2004
season. The Space Invader ride, opened by Doctor Who actor Colin Baker
in 1984, has had a £1m revamp. The ride will feature state-of-the-art
rocket cars, which will "shoot visitors to the moon". The ride will be
renamed 'Space Invader 2'. An all-new ride is Bling, a 100ft high Zierer
Star Shape ride. Other new attractions include a construction site
complete with mini-diggers, tiny forklift trucks and pint-sized
supertrucks, plus a remote control Formula One racing track. An all-new
restaurant will open in a completely new themed area of the park
opposite the Ghost Train and Wild Mouse. The side stalls in that area
have all been demolished to create a new restaurant that will allow
visitors to dine in "charming chalets with deep-eaved roofs, surrounded
by flowing streams and gorges". The park opens for the first weekend in
March, with wristbands at the reduced price of £10.
Joyland's Circus Book Range Expands [1/2/04]
| Joyland Books' range of
circus books has expanded with the addition of John Turner's
much admired two-volume work on the history of circus performers.
Victorian Arena Volumes
One and Two
are a detailed and well-researched biography of British Circus
performers. The men and women who performed in the circus were
equestrians, acrobats, jugglers, clowns, masters of every speciality
of skill and dating. Their names were recorded on flamboyant
posters. John Turner has combed the records, and brought the
performers back to life in a work of fantastic research. Students of
popular entertainment everywhere will find this work beyond compare,
in revealing a world that seemed lost beyond recall.
Click here for details. |
 |
New
Rides for Brean Leisure Park [30/1/04]
A number of new rides
and attractions are to open at Brean Leisure Park in Somerset for the
2004 season. Opening on 1 July 2004 are two major new rides: Sky
Scraper, a giant 30-metre high (over 100 feet) big wheel and Shock Wave,
a looping roller coaster, previously located at Pleasure Island theme
park at Cleethorpes. Two new rides for the children - Canoe River and
Pony Adventure - will also open this year, and Terror Castle, the UK's
most gruesome ghost train, has been refitted with terrifying new scenes
imported from Hollywood.
The
End for Brighton's West Pier [29/1/04]
The Heritage Lottery
Fund has formally withdrawn its £19m funding of the restoration of
Brighton's West Pier, virtually ending all hope of the pier being
rebuilt. Despite the recent fires which destroyed all the structures on
the Pier, the West Pier Trust had hoped that the promised funds would
still be forthcoming. It is estimated that demolition of the West Pier
will cost £2m, but this can not take place until its Grade I listed
status is reduced.
M&D's New Coaster for 2004 [28/1/04]
M&D's Theme Park near Glasgow has
taken delivery of a new inverted coaster which it is hoped will be
open for the 2004 season. The coaster, an Inverted Pinfari XP56, is
65 feet high, has two inversions and travels at a speed of 38 mph.
The ride, which will be called Tsunami, operated at the Millennium
Dome over the New Year period.
This is only one of several medium sized roller coasters opening
in the UK at what promises to be a bumper year for coaster
enthusiasts. |
Tsunami: Newly arrived at M&D's,
Scotland's Theme Park |
| Two custom designed
Maurer Sohne spinning coasters will open this year, one at Alton
Towers and the other (larger) one at Chessington World of
Adventures. Legoland Windsor will add a 52ft high Mack Wild Mouse,
to be called Jungle Coaster. Codona's Amusement Park at Aberdeen
will open a Mini Mega Coaster, similar to the rides already
operating at Southend's Adventure Island and Gulliver's Land at
Milton Keynes. And Pleasurewood Hills in Suffolk is also reported to
be opening two Vekoma coasters this year, one junior coaster and one
inverted coaster for all the family.
(With thanks: Jamie Lee) |
Ride
the Latest Coasters on DVD! [24/1/04]
| Joyland Books now stocks the full
Roller Coaster Adventures series of DVDs. Ride the newest
and most exciting roller coasters in the world. Experience these
amazing roller coasters with never before seen footage, full circuit
point-of-view rides and exclusive construction footage. Coaters from
the USA, Japan, Europe and Australia are featured. The latest
release, Volume 6,
features the world's first strata coaster, Top Thrill Dragster at
Cedar Point, the world's first looping wooden coaster, Son of Beast
at Paramount's Kings Island, and the world's first tilt-coaster,
Gravity Max at Taiwan's Discovery World. Plus Nemesis Inferno at
Thorpe Park, Cannon Ball at Lake Winnespesaukah, and much, much
more.
Click here for a full list of our roller coaster DVDs
and videos. |
 |
Enjoy Front Seat Thrills on DVD [24/1/04]
| The people who
brought you the Roller
Coaster Adventures series now bring you a DVD of
uninterrupted, unobstructed front seat point-of-view excitement. On
Front Seat Thrills
you will experience a front seat ride on 35 different roller
coasters from the USA, Germany and the UK. From classic wooden
roller coasters to new mega steel coasters, you will be launched,
flipped, dropped and twisted in every direction possible. Roller
coasters like Top Thrill Dragster, Son of Beast, Superman Ride of
Steel are just a few that await you!
Click here for a full list of featured rides.
Click here for more details or to buy a copy. We have a
large range of roller coaster DVDs - browse our range by
clicking here.
And don't forget to visit our
Message Board! |
 |
Circus Performers on Show in New Book [20/1/04]
| Available to pre-order is a new
book out in February 2004.
The Last Sideshow is an interesting photographic account of
a community of travelling circus performers in America. Hanspeter
Schneider's book is a compelling portrait of the last surviving
sideshow 'Freaks' and the community they founded in Gibsontown,
Florida, USA. The images in this book are Schneider’s outstanding
personal record of the town and the people that live there. They are
a permanent record, showing beauty, humour and above all
understanding.
Click here for more information or to pre-order your
copy of the book now! |
|
More
Secondhand Books [19/1/04]
New
Books Added [18/1/04]
European Coaster Thrills on DVD [18/1/04]
| One of the most popular releases
of 2002 was the
European Coaster Thrills video. Now we take you even closer
to the action with the release of European Coaster Thrills on DVD,
with an extra 15 minutes of bonus footage! Turn your easy chair into
the front seat and experience a whole new meaning of speed and
suspension. You will see the coasters in every detail, accompanied
by a blasting soundtrack. The DVD version contains more than 15
minutes of bonus material of the roller coasters 'Thriller' (Oscar
Bruch, Six Flags), 'Goliath' (Six Flags Holland), 'SilverStar'
(Europa Park) and a hidden feature (easteregg).
Click here for details. |
 |
Limited Edition Fairground Print Available [4/1/04]
Following the success of last
year's publication,
Houghton Feast: The Ancient Festival of Houghton-le-Spring,
local author Paul Lanagan has produced a limited edition lithograph
print featuring the Houghton Feast Lake fairground in 1914.
Each print is individually numbered and is an ideal gift. As an
added bonus, the reverse of each print features a recently uncovered
Houghton Feast poem. Click
here for details. |
 |
Chessington Plans to Go Ahead [2/1/04]
The regeneration and
revitalisation of Chessington World of Adventures - which will change
the park beyond all recognition - are to go ahead after councillors at
the London Borough of Kingston voted in favour of the plans. The park is
to be changed from a theme park to a 22-acre safari park with £20m
hotel, with theme park rides taking a back seat. Despite a huge amount
of local objection, the development committee passed nine out of the ten
planning applications, including 4d Cinema and a 200 foot high 'Flying
Island' viewing platform. Three of the applications (a 1,250-seat show
venue, a beach complex and the 150-bedroom hotel) have to be referred to
London Mayor Ken Livingstone. The only application still awaiting
approval by the Council is the animal safari.
Fun
Fair Videos on DVD! [2/1/04]
New for 2004 are
funfair videos on DVD. Several of our most popular funfair videos have
been made available on DVD for 2004, for the same price as they were on
video. From Boston Fair to Goose Fair, see your favourite fair in
digital quality. Click here for a
full list of Videos and DVDs - the
titles available on DVD are clearly marked.
Happy New Year From Joyland Books [1/1/04]
Happy New Year from
all of us at Joyland Books! Joyland has had yet another fantastic
year. Visitor numbers to the main joylandbooks.com website in
November 2003 (the last full month for which statistics are
available) were up by 108% compared to the same month last year
(which itself was up by 90% over the same period the previous
year).
|
| 2003 has been an eventful year for
Joyland Books. In January 2003, it was announced that Margate's
Dreamland Fun Park was to close and be redeveloped as a supermarket
and shops. Dreamland is home to the Grade II listed Scenic Railway
roller coaster (the ride had been listed the previous year following
a report issued by Joyland Books editor Nick Laister to the UK
Government in 2001). In the same month Nick set up the
Save Dreamland Campaign, which has had a successful year.
One of the highlights of the Campaign's year was the
Save Dreamland Convention at Margate's historic Theatre
Royal in June 2003. |
Above: The
Scenic Railway, Dreamland, now under threat. |
Later in January, Joyland Books launched a new
Forum
for discussing amusement parks, theme parks and funfairs. April
saw the release of the highly acclaimed book
Kursaal Memories - the history of Southend's famous
amusement park - which turned out to be one of the big hits of the
year. In May, Joyland jumped on the Kursaal Memories bandwagon, with
the launch of a special exhibition of
Kursaal photographs, all from the new book. In July, Joyland
Books entered the art world with a new department selling limited
edition reproductions of watercolour, acrylic and airbrush paintings
of gallopers and carousels by award-winning American artist
Deborah Budney. September saw the release of a landmark book
on the history of fairground ride builders Orton & Spooner and the
art of father and son team Albert and Sid Howell, whose work adorned
many of their most famous rides.
Men at Work, by the late Alan S Howell, won rave reviews and
turned into a substantial Christmas hit. The release was quickly
followed by an exclusive photographic
exhibition. In November, Joyland Books editor Nick Laister
was contacted by a campaign group fighting to save Shipley Glen
Pleasure Grounds. With Nick's help, the
Aerial Glide ride, threatened with imminent demolition,
became a Grade II listed building, adding a further obstacle to the
closure of this much-loved amusement park. |
Top 50 Worldwide Amusement/Theme Parks Announced [1/1/04]
Amusement Business
Magazine has issued a list of the world's top 50 amusement and theme
parks for the 2003 season. Topping the list is the Magic Kingdom at Walt
Disney World (Florida, USA), with 14.4 million visitors. In fact, nine
of the top 15 parks in the world were Disney parks. Only one UK park -
Blackpool Pleasure Beach - makes the Top 15, with 6.2 million visitors.
Only one other UK park appears in the Top 50: Alton Towers, with 2.5
million visitors. Amusement Business also ranks the world's Top 10
Amusement Park Chains. Unsurprisingly, Disney heads the list with 96.96
million visitors. The other chains in the top 10 are:
2: Six Flags (48.17m);
3: Universal Studios (31.04m); 4: Anheuser-Busch (20.02m); 5: Cedar Fair
(14.65m); 6: Paramount (13.64m); 7: Palace Entertainment (12.38m); 8:
Grupo Magico (11.38m); 9: The Tussauds Group (10m); 10: Blackpool
Pleasure Beach Group (8.4m). For more information, visit
www.amusementbusiness.com.
Coaster Club Chairman Awarded MBE [1/1/04]
The Roller Coaster
Club of Great Britain (RCCGB) Chairman, Mr Andy Hine, has been awarded
an MBE in Her Majesty The Queen’s 2004 New Years Honours List. The
honour has been given for his ‘Services to Tourism’. Andy Hine founded
the RCCGB in August 1988 and has continued to Chair the Club from its
inauguration.
Fun
Fairs on the Move [1/1/04]
More
Secondhand Books [1/1/04]
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