Drayton Manor Park

[Bowser]

I don’t think theming is necessarily the factor here, because you’re forgetting the other big success of 1994… The Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. That ride had no theming at all, but was a huge success and is still arguably Blackpool’s most iconic attraction 30 years on.

A good point. Then I would say theming was “a” factor rather than “the” factor.

With the likes of Nemesis, Haunted Manor, RMT whilst over at Chessington you had Vampire, Bubbleworks etc, Tussauds were offering the closest thing to the Disney experience that was unaffordable for many.

I think for the casual visitor, “worlds tallest” is the metric that supersedes everything. It’s why Hyperia is so popular devoid of theming.

An inverter coaster was novel but I think the whole package of its presentation is what cemented its legacy rather than just the type. Drayton and co never had that.

 

[Willemgorman1]

Drayton have shown they are willing to spend so here’s sWhat i would do in the next ten years (pictures in time order) including removing the zoo.

Picture 1 - bikinis should say vikings

 

[Maelstrom]

They are highly unlikely to be allowed to build rides such as coasters on the site of the zoo (particularly the end closer to Thomas land) due to the housing estate that backs onto this side of the park.

 

[WillPS]

Drayton have shown they are willing to spend so here’s sWhat i would do in the next ten years (pictures in time order) including removing the zoo.

Picture 1 - bikinis should say vikings

Memories of Warrior Pig Land...

 

[Shaggy_Dog_]

I don’t think theming is necessarily the factor here, because you’re forgetting the other big success of 1994… The Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. That ride had no theming at all, but was a huge success and is still arguably Blackpool’s most iconic attraction 30 years on.

I remember watching a report on the news about The Big One when it opened and seeing pictures of it in the newspaper, I can actually recall myself thinking how insane it looked and how I didn’t think I’d have the guts to ride something that size! But really though PMBO sold itself on account how massive it was, I think it really captured the public’s imagination in the way that no other coaster in this country has done.

 

[owenstreet7]

It's most likely that the Pirate Adventure and Excalibur areas will get the focus next for the big area.

There is Flying Dutchman which is in a part between Frontier Falls and Vikings.

There is unused space in Adventure Cove between Air Race and Maelstrom that was used by G Force and left over from Wave Swinger and Tidal Towers. It's big enough for a flat ride of some description.

There is also space in Vikings behind Walhalla next to Slepnir which would be big enough for a compact coaster (Wild Mouse, S&S Freespin etc.) or a flat ride of some description.

If using the big lake, there does appear to be space for something to use that area.

Jormungandr approaching the end of it's service life is potentially something they're thinking about as well.

 

[Alphe86]

It's most likely that the Pirate Adventure and Excalibur areas will get the focus next for the big area.

There is Flying Dutchman which is in a part between Frontier Falls and Vikings.

There is unused space in Adventure Cove between Air Race and Maelstrom that was used by G Force and left over from Wave Swinger and Tidal Towers. It's big enough for a flat ride of some description.

There is also space in Vikings behind Walhalla next to Slepnir which would be big enough for a compact coaster (Wild Mouse, S&S Freespin etc.) or a flat ride of some description.

If using the big lake, there does appear to be space for something to use that area.

Jormungandr approaching the end of it's service life is potentially something they're thinking about as well.

If there was no plans to renovate the powered coaster they wouldn’t have integrated it to the Vikings entry portal imo. Needs work though

 

[Secret Weapon]

I think AT was well established before Nemesis. We were going every year (from the south) from about 1987 so it evidently had enough of a national reputation by that point.

You're probably right; I'm too young to remember the pre-Nemesis era as I didn't visit AT for the first time until 1994 (I didn't go again until 2001 as I still preferred Drayton Manor!).

Other parks did get their own exclusive coasters like Shockwave at Drayton and whatever the boomerang was called at American Adventure but they didn’t have the theming. So the question may have been would nemesis be as successful if it had been plonked on some tarmac?

The Nemesis theming definitely helped, although the Batman inverted coasters from 1992 to 1994 (which pre-dated Nemesis) were still quite popular; given that Shockwave used the same name and branding as a similar ride from the USA, I wonder if Drayton Manor would have simply tried to copy the Batman-esque theming for a hypothetical 1994 inverted coaster? (although they probably wouldn't have used the official Batman character)

I remember hearing that Corkscrew had huge queues when it first opened in 1980 (in spite of the plain theming), although maybe customer expectations had changed by 1994 and theming had become more important by then?