Over the past decades Chessington World of Adventures in the UK has been known for it’s immersive, family-friendly experiences, particularly in its earliest years. At this park you can fly through the trees of Transylvania with a vampire, venture into an African safari, and get up close and personal with tigers, but as the World of Adventures evolves, so does its rides, and some attractions get left behind and subsequently updated. The 5th Dimension, once located in the show building that now houses Tomb Blaster, is a key example of this, so lets explore the history of this nostalgic adventure through your TV!
The Earliest Incarnation
When creating the plans for what would eventually become Chessington World of Adventures, designers such as John Wardley had big plans. The New-For-1987 theme park would open in stages throughout the 80s and 90s, the first stage introducing attractions such as Runaway Mine Train, Dragon River, Safari Skyway and The 5th Dimension. Fun fact- each one of Chessington’s opening day attractions were created by the same manufacturer: Mack Rides!
The latter attraction was a darkride using a prototype ride system similar to an OmniMover, in which riders would travel through an unstable computer cyberspace led by troubleshooting robot Zappomatic. Sadly, the original 5th Dimension didn’t draw as many crowds as Tussards had hoped. Visitors just didn’t see the ride to be as exciting or enticing as the others, and queues were often minimal. Once on the ride there weren’t too many complaints, other than the storyline being kind of confusing and hard to follow, particularly for kids. The 5th Dimension was a relatively big budget attraction for the time, and as it wasn’t living up to expectations something had to be done.
From Computer To TV Set
Just a year after its opening The 5th Dimension went down for refurbishment, and while the physical aspects such as the sets weren’t changed too much, the storyline was completely reworked. Zappomatic remained a major part of the attraction, yet now he was trying to catch the mischievous Gorg- “reminds me of school dinners!”- who could be hiding in any of the TV set’s five dimensions. The story became much simpler in order to be easily understood by younger children, and an updated preshow gave you a better idea of the experience before you boarded the ride.
Check out this POV of The 5th Dimension taken by British Theme Park Archive!
In this new version, riders would shrink to ‘TV size’ and pass by oversized sets, then would enter the TV’s first dimension. Here you would meet Zappomatic, who would introduce the Gorg and enlist your help in finding him. Passing through the other four dimensions, riders would then find themselves in the 5th dimension (hence the name!). You think you’re safe from the Gorg for now… but then it appears, angry and ugly as ever, and riders must press the button on their ride vehicles to get rid of the evil virus once and for all.
The dimension begins to collapse, and Zappomatic leads riders to safety, and the final few scenes of the attraction. This simplified incarnation of The 5th Dimension was a lot more popular with riders, becoming one of Chessington’s most popular rides, yet even the greatest things can’t last forever. By the mid 1990s it was becoming outdated, and it was time for something new.
The First Tomb
In 1993, Chessington World of Adventures announced that The 5th Dimension would close permanently, to make way for a brand new darkride utilising the latest technology. The old sets were removed and new ones put in, this time for a ride themed to a mystic haunted temple and a diamond thief. Terror Tomb opened in The 5th Dimension’s former show building in 1994, following tour guide Abdab as he takes every opportunity possible to steal a forbidden gem. Detailed animatronics, static figures and sets brought the story to life, and mixed classic jokes with some pretty dark scenes.
Check out this awesome POV of Terror Tomb, captured on its test day in 1994! ©British Theme Park Archive
Your ‘tour’ ended with the evil thief Abdab being captured and punished by the tomb’s mummies, and sacrificed while, erm… hard rock music plays in the background. I don’t really get that bit either.
Terror Tomb was the first ride to inhabit a new for 1994 themed area between what was then Dragon Falls and Calamity Canyon (now Tiger Rock and Mexicana): Forbidden Kingdom! A year after Terror Tomb opened, Forbidden Kingdom’s second attraction made its debut- Rameses Revenge, an all new Huss Topspin, and the first and only attraction at Chessington World of Adventures to invert.
Many rides to replace a much loved attraction are hated by some visitors simply because its not as good as the original, or because it replaced their favourite ride, but Terror Tomb was loved by riders regardless of whether they rode The 5th Dimension or not. The storyline was perfect, as were the sets and the dark humour, and a lot of riders considered Terror Tomb to be better than the ride that was there before!
Same Tomb, Different Ride
Despite being a favourite among visitors, Terror Tomb was coming to the end of its life by the 2000s, and in 2001, Abdab gave his last tour and stole his last gem. After a year’s refurbishment a new darkride opened as Tomb Blaster, with a similar theme in that riders are still venturing through a tomb, but other elements of the ride were completely changed. For a start, Abdab is no longer part of the attraction, and the hard rock concert finale is gone too.
The majority of Terror Tomb’s sets were left intact during the update, but the animatronics were removed altogether. What was arguably the biggest change however, was the addition of laser guns to the ride vehicles! Ancient Egyptian-esque sets were updated with targets that riders shoot at to earn points, and the aim (get it?) became to score as many points as possible in order to save the tomb. There are people who are able to max out the score and somehow shoot all the targets… but that’s definitely not me- I have terrible aim! My highest score, well let’s just say it’s pretty embarrassing!
The Future of the Tomb of Forbidden Kingdom
Tomb Blaster has now outlived both attractions that came before it, lasting for nearly eighteen years with only minor refurbishments until quite recently. The 5th Dimension lasted in both forms combined for seven years, while Terror Tomb had almost the same lifespan! Along with many other parts of Chessington World of Adventures, Tomb Blaster received a major upgrade during the 2019/20 off-season, implementing a more detailed storyline like the ones the Chessington darkrides of the 80s and 90s were known for.
Now, riders have been recruited to dispel the tomb’s ancient curse, by hitting as many targets as possible, though some targets were taken out, likely to draw more attention to the sets and the new story. Other, more subtle upgrades have been made over the years, including lighting and small aspects of the soundtrack, and this really suggests that Tomb Blaster is here to stay for at least another five to ten years!
Tomb Blaster isn’t the only attraction at Chessington World of Adventures with a detailed history- Gruffalo River Ride Adventure has had its ups and downs too! Check out this post if you want to learn more about the history of Bubbleworks and how it eventually ended up being rethemed!
The Secret Formula: the success and sad removal of Chessington’s Bubbleworks
Throughout the late 80s and early 90s, attraction designers like John Wardley were working hard to bring the American concept of a theme park to the UK, and a lot of the parks we know and love today, Thorpe Park, Chessington, Alton Towers and more, were all being redeveloped or built to fit into this…
Did you ever get to ride The 5th Dimension or Terror Tomb? What’s your highest score on Tomb Blaster? Let me know below!
Your articles are amazing. Thank you for your hard work.
It’s definitely worth a visit! 🙂
Interesting! Never heard of that park before
Love this Lily
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Photo credits:
-Parks, Scares & Glitter Blog http://psgblog.co.uk/
-@loopsandlaughs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/loopsandlaughs/
Thanks for your help!
Coaster Dreamers 
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoy them. Sorry about the late reply -Lily 🙂