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[2023] The Curse at Alton Manor

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I think Candy Holland might have been in charge of Thirteen's theme, as well as some rides at Thorpe Park like Saw and The Swarm. She may possibly have been involved with The Smiler's, but I seem to remember that being done by someone else (Ben Dowson, if I'm remembering correctly?).

With his Merlin rides, John was always keen to stress that he only designed the layouts of them; he always argued that he got far too much credit for those rides, with Candy Holland being the main thematic designer of many of the Merlin attractions that John worked on.
 
Matt N said:
I think Candy Holland might have been in charge of Thirteen's theme, as well as some rides at Thorpe Park like Saw and The Swarm. She may possibly have been involved with The Smiler's, but I seem to remember that being done by someone else (Ben Dowson, if I'm remembering correctly?).

With his Merlin rides, John was always keen to stress that he only designed the layouts of them; he always argued that he got far too much credit for those rides, with Candy Holland being the main thematic designer of many of the Merlin attractions that John worked on.
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I know that Candy was involved in TH13TEEN, but I don't know the full extent of what she did. She also helped with Oblivion and Air, but again I'm not sure how much of a role she had.
After looking online, it seems like Ben Dowson was involved in creating the projection mapping for The Smiler and also created the Smiler App.
 
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One thing that is quite prevalent is that theme park attractions do not have credits like a feature film, so nobody ever really knows who has done what or has driven many of the important decisions governing the attraction’s successes. Yet, when a name is even slightly associated, there is an assumption that they are the brains behind it all, when often, their involvement is minimal at most.
 
MaxPower said:
Candy Holland has worked on attractions dating back to Hex if I recall.
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According to an interview in 2011 for the opening of Krake, she started working for Tussauds in 1994, and her first major project that she worked on was Oblivion. I am very pleased that she seems to be working on this project as she is very experienced.
 
I think Candy goes as far back as Nemesis?

She’s certainly worked on every major ride since Oblivion at Alton Towers.

It goes to prove that roller coasters/rides are not designed/conceived/built by an individual. There are teams of people that work on these projects. Worth remembering now and again.
 
NoSmoking said:
Hahaha, she already did work on a revamp of the ride, it was called Duel and opened in 2003. This project doesn't hinge on one individual or other.
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She did yes - but as with any business, people move on, roles change, people’s responsibilities change.

But again, unlike where you can watch a film and then sit in awe as you watch the names of the monumental amount of people who were involved in the production, under the direction of the producers and studio executives, in the attractions world people generally don’t get significant recognition or ‘credit’ for having spent enormous parts of their lives basically dreaming up these immense projects and bringing them to life. A quick google will normally bring up some of the most senior people within the entity that is responsible for the projects’ delivery, but there is often a misconception as to who actually devoted their time to developing inconceivable amounts of concepts and then having to fight all of the battles imaginable to navigate through the intense and painful process of project delivery it bring it to actual, tangible life for visitors to enjoy.

And sure, somebody, anybody, can come along as an advisor, with experience, be a well known name and give their input, as per any creative project. It can give clout to a project, but it can also blur the lines of who is actually steering the ship, both creatively and from an actual project delivery perspective.

Why do Imagineers and creatives hide their names, dates of births and other personal information cleverly into their attractions? Because that’s the closest thing they’ll get to recognition without the vehicle stopping at unload and the credits rolling on an enormous projection screen…
 
WWTP Radio said:
A quick google will normally bring up some of the most senior people within the entity that is responsible for the projects’ delivery, but there is often a misconception as to who actually devoted their time to developing inconceivable amounts of concepts and then having to fight all of the battles imaginable to navigate through the intense and painful process of project delivery it bring it to actual, tangible life for visitors to enjoy.
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I'm very glad Candy Holland (or anyone from that era) devoted their time and energy into Duel, Imperial Leather Bubbleworks and Something In The Dungheap, though not sure what that's got to do with this current project 20 years later.

If (as Merlin folks suggest) the intention is to recapture the original intention, then John Wardley is the most relevant name from the past because he originally produced it, so has been asked for his input. But it will be designed & built by a team
 
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James said:
I think Candy goes as far back as Nemesis?

She’s certainly worked on every major ride since Oblivion at Alton Towers.

It goes to prove that roller coasters/rides are not designed/conceived/built by an individual. There are teams of people that work on these projects. Worth remembering now and again.
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Wait a minute. I hope you're not suggesting that John Wardley hasn't spent most of December in an American steel plant spaying black paint over B&M track before returning back to the UK with his tool box in hand to work 18 hours a day on a piece by piece full recreation of the original Haunted House?

I refuse to believe it!
 
I just thought. If what people are expecting that the new ride will have you follow Emily as she Tours you through house, wouldn't that go against John's Original intention of wanting the riders to be alone? I know Emily is a ghost and all, but wouldn't it go against that concept entirely? I definitely think she'll appear at least once when the ride reopens, but people thinking she'll be the new ghost host is kind of weird since John doesn't like the HM because of the lacking of being alone and isolated from many aspects, such as the ride system and how its executed? Guess we'll have to wait and see until the ride reopens.
 
Trooper Looper said:
I just thought. If what people are expecting that the new ride will have you follow Emily as she Tours you through house, wouldn't that go against John's Original intention of wanting the riders to be alone? I know Emily is a ghost and all, but wouldn't it go against that concept entirely? I definitely think she'll appear at least once when the ride reopens, but people thinking she'll be the new ghost host is kind of weird since John doesn't like the HM because of the lacking of being alone and isolated from many aspects, such as the ride system and how its executed? Guess we'll have to wait and see until the ride reopens.
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JW didn't like the Haunted Mansion system purely due to the fact the cars were in a loop and riders could see what was coming.
 
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