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Dreamland Margate: General Discussion

It makes me so happy to see the Scenic restored to its former glory at the heart of Margate :D Whilst there is still a lot to be done, I shall be visiting when it opens - even if I am only half an hour away :')
 
Is there any original structure left?

Otherwise there is an anecdote with a broom that I think might be apt

You don't have any of the same cells that you did seven years ago, but you're still Dave ;)
 
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You don't have any of the same cells that you did seven years ago, but you're still Dave . ;)

Well actually I have quite a few stem cells left over from birth and some mature neurons that have been with me since childhood and will likely roll along until I go to the great theme park in the sky.....

But that's by the by
 
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Dreamland have posted a series of aerial images of the park on their Facebook:

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Two months until opening and that's how it looks? Erm...
I've not been following this at all so apologies for my naive question - but what exactly are they doing here apart from restoring the old wooden coaster? Just if this is meant to be a visitor attraction that is due to open this year it doesn't seem like there is much there at all. In fact it looks like a brownfield site with a half built coaster on it!

I'm sure they are doing good work but there appears to be tonnes to do. I assume there will be other rides and associated infrastructure?

:)
 
They've already said that it'll pretty much just open with the woodie and a few other things dotted around it, and from there on it'll be a continuously improving work-in-progress. I really like the idea - each week a new path, a new bit of concrete turned into a garden, etc etc.

I think people will be so moved by seeing the magnificent Scenic run again that it won't really matter what the rest of the park looks like - the Scenic is enough. They know that this is a charity effort, not a new-build mega park.
 
I think people will be so moved by seeing the magnificent Scenic run again that it won't really matter what the rest of the park looks like - the Scenic is enough.
The public are not going to want to go somewhere that only has one old woody and nothing else. The Scenic isn't even that good, it just has legendary status because of it's age.
I think they are making a mistake by opening so early, and it's going to hurt their image. They should wait until they have some more perminant attractions, not just a Big Apple and some cruddy old traveling rides.
Once they have the wooden mouse, the water chute, the whip and the river caves that we were promised all those years ago, then the place will be worth a visit.
 
I suppose it depends how many visitors they are expecting and/or need. If it is a very small number then fine; there will be a relatively small group who wish to visit for the Scenic. These people will appreciate it and the work that has been done.

But do they plan on attracting the wider general public? If so they have a hell of a lot to do. The vast majoirity of people aren't going to have a clue about what has been done at the park. They won't go for what they see as 'some small old wooden thing that has been re-built'. It's harsh but true.

:)
 
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Once they have the wooden mouse, the water chute, the whip and the river caves that we were promised all those years ago, then the place will be worth a visit.
The Waterchute/river caves which consist of the boats and mechanical elements were never going to show up straight away due to the sheer cost of a rebuild. It would likely require further lottery funding to achieve this.
The Whip will seemingly be coming later (shame they couldn't get it ready for the opening).

The Wild mouse along with countless other "rescued" rides such as the Caterpillar, Cableway etc had key components destroyed by the former owners before they were evicted from the site making many beyond economic repair.
 
That's a real shame if the mouse is beyond repair. :( Hopefully they will be able to do something with it eventually.

I wonder if they could partner with Carter's Steam Fair to get a few more rides?
 
By the looks of things the Mistral rescued from Southport (i.e. the interactive mini Flying Machines) seems to be part of Oakwood's Neverland expansion - can anyone verify this?
 
^ Same type of ride but its not the Southport/Dreamland one as that one one of the rides they were unfortunately scrapped.

Hopefully the missing parts of the mouse can one day be rebuilt as I believe the majority is still there. Suppose it is all about cost and how easy it is to replace the missing components.
 
The time lapse for March and April was just uploaded :)



Again some lovely shots in it :) It also appears that they have fitted lights to the Scenic :D

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Can't wait to see what this looks like at night!
 
Third post in a row, clearly I can't contain my excitement :') Just a few small updates:

Dreamland was featured in an interesting, and almost emotional BBC feature the other day, which can be seen here. They give a good overview of its story, not to mention its strategy as a heritage amusement park in contrast to a competitor to Merlin's parks. I am especially pleased to hear that they will be using the wood salvaged from the Scenic for tables and benches around the park :)

They have also uploaded the first of a series of behind the scenes videos to their Facebook page, which can be seen here. Similar to their timelapses (despite the somewhat annoying music!), it's interesting to see what else they have been up to in addition to the Scenic's restoration! I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the videos :)

Lastly, the Big Wheel has arrived :)

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Credit to I <3 Dreamland, Margate Local & Family History and Dreamland for the images :)
 
Didn't even realise the manager was active on the forums! That sounds intriguing though, definitely something to keep an eye on :)
 
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