There’s only one theme park where you can be burned alive, hypnotised, and explore the meadow of In The Night Garden all in one day, and that’s Alton Towers. One of these things is not like the others, and that’s part of the reason we love this park so much- horror, thrills, calmness and magic combine to create an experience that truly has something for everyone.
In its forty years of operation, Alton Towers has been home to a range of attractions with all sorts of themes, and there’s no part of the park that represents this better than the show building of the Alton Towers Dungeon. While it may not seem like much, this building, nestled between Dark Forest and the World of David Walliams, actually holds a lot of history in its walls, and was once the location of attractions much more bright and colourful than the one that’s there now. Remember to keep your hands, arms and legs inside the boat at all times, as we explore the history of the Alton Towers Dungeon and everything that was there before!
A New Park with New Dreams
Throughout the 1970s and 80s, UK theme parks were booming. Despite never really having hardly anything big in terms of themed entertainment before, parks were popping up around the country. And while some people were concerned about the prospect of something that was until recently exclusively American, others were excited for the new era. Among these was property developer John Broome, who, after marrying the daughter of the estate’s majority shareholder Dennis Bagshaw, obtained the rights to the park and developed it into a full scale theme park.
Alton Towers theme park opened its doors on 4th April 1980, to a crowd of 30,000 guests eager to try out the new Northern attraction. Those visiting on opening day could twist and loop on Corkscrew, have a sliding adventure on a bobsled ride, and catch a show at the Cinema 2000, among several other experiences. But just like most theme parks in their opening year, Alton Towers wasn’t yet completed… in fact it was far from it.
Across the park, construction was continuing on a range of new rides and attractions from rollercoasters and log flumes to kiddie rides and haunted walkthroughs, and in a show building built to house two attractions at the bottom of the Talbot Street area, magic was happening. Attraction designer and developer Keith Sparks, in conjunction with Mack Rides, was working on a brand new dark ride for the 1981 season, based on a well-known story, which was sure to provide a unique and charming experience for the whole family to enjoy.
World-Travels and Water Rides
In 1873, writer Jules Verne introduced the world to Around The World in Eighty Days, a story following Phileas Fogg as he conquers the near impossible task of travelling the globe in quite a short space of time… eighty days to be exact! Alton Towers brought the adventures of Fogg to life a year after the park opened in 1981, when a new dark ride was opened with the same name. Unlike its neighbouring attraction Doom and Sons, which evoked fear in guests using illusions and special effects, the new dark ride created a very different feeling for riders: a sense of adventure.
Guests boarded their boat in the docks of London, and began their journey by setting sail across the River Thames. Before you knew it you would arrive in Thailand, on course to Egypt, where a mummy would welcome you to the Land of the Pharaohs, most likely creeping a few people out along the way. Next you would travel all the way from Africa to North America in the space of a few seconds, quickly arriving in New York City.
Standing at the foot of the Statue of Liberty, a man with a somewhat stereotypical American accent (though a lot of the accents on this ride were stereotypes!) would wish you a “real-good time” as you explored the city. After leaving New York and passing through the classic streets of Venice, guests found themselves in a slightly warmer and less secluded version of Antarctica, complete with igloos, sleds and an icy snowstorm.
In the next scene you would make a quick trip back to Las Vegas, where among flashing lights, Elvis Presley performed under glowing spotlights. Next you would return to Europe, exploring a ballroom in Vienna, then passing by the windmills of the Netherlands, before travelling all the way to Rio De Janiero just in time to experience the Rio Carnival. Your final stop would be Paris, where below hanging lights, artists painted, dancers performed in the Moulin Rouge and the Eiffel Tower stood tall (though not all tall as in real life obviously!) in all its romantic glory.
Up until 1990, the Paris scene acted as the ride’s finale, but after this, from 1991 until the attraction’s closure a few years later, your journey would take a seemingly random, and slightly spooky turn. Before reaching the station, guests would be greeted with a replica of a haunted house! This may seem like it had no business being on a family dark ride about travelling the world, but it was used to advertise Alton Towers’ new-for-1992 attraction, the Haunted House, which continues to operate today as Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back.
Around the World in Eighty Days was a popular, beloved ride enjoyed by families and those who weren’t too fond of the Towers’ more thrilling attractions like Corkscrew or the Black Hole. But by the mid-90s however, things around the park were changing, and the ride gave its last tour around the world in 1993. Before long, plans began growing for a different, but just as enjoyable attraction to take its place.
A Magical Tour in the Land of Make Believe
Throughout the 1990s, some theme parks, particularly Disney parks, were home to A LOT of weird, obscure and sometimes even nonsensical attractions, but that didn’t stop Alton Towers from competing in the strange ride game too. And the thing about both Disney parks and Alton Towers is that they’re constantly changing and evolving, whether that be with new rides, theming or even new themed lands completely. This is what happened in 1993 in the Talbot Street area of the park.
Talbot Street had been home to A LOT of different attractions, from a carousel to a Schwarzkopf Jetstar III named Alton Beast, but despite its interesting past decade, it wasn’t too long before it was time for a retheme. With just six of the attractions it once had, Talbot Street became the Land of Make Believe in 1993, and a rethemed Around The World in Eighty Days planned to open the following year.
The new dark ride, named Toyland Tours took guests on a whimsical journey through a factory where larger-than-life toys catch trains, compete in races, throw parties and much more. Setting sail from a station themed as a paddle steamer named the S.S. Toyland Tours, you would soon find yourself in the colourful, very kinetic first scene of the ride.
Here, a pink elephant with flight goggles and a propeller on his tail would fly through the clouds, while down on earth, toy cars were having a pit stop and, rather strangely if you really think about it, bouncy castles were jumping up and down on a trampoline. Instead of going into all the complex Toy Story type logic of why some toys can come to life and why other can’t- this ride was opened before Toy Story was released, after all- lets explore the next scene, which was largely decorated with puzzles.
Rainbow puzzle pieces weren’t the only toy this room housed however- it was also themed as a teddy bear stuffing area! Two brightly painted robots oversaw the stuffing process, while four teddy bears could be seen sat on a red and yellow conveyor belt, not-so-reassuringly reading “danger.” The next scene took the idea of toys coming to life to a new, sugary sweet level, as guests could see giant dolly mixtures being created in a machine that looked straight out of Santa’s workshop.
After something so sugary it’s only natural that your hands might be a little sticky… which led fittingly into the next scene, all about the wonders of bathtime, and, of course, bath toys! Dolphins, rubber ducks, and bizarrely, the Loch Ness Monster, could all be spotted enjoying the bubbles as lights created the magical sense of being underwater.
Bubbles and bathtubs couldn’t compare to what was to come next though. As an icon of countless childhoods during the 90s, and even today, Sonic the Hedgehog made an appearance in his own video game scene filled with screens, deep blue lights and the nostalgic sound of someone doing amazingly well in a Sonic game and gaining a lot of gold coins. The popular speedy blue hedgehog actually has quite an interesting history with Alton Tower. There were times when Sonic could be seen as a walkaround character, as well as having themed hotel rooms and even a retheme of Spinball Whizzer to Sonic Spinball for the 2010 season!
After this it was party time, with characters such as a toy giraffe, teddy bear and even toy soldiers having organised a huge celebration complete with fairy lights, a castle and lots and lots of wrapped presents! There were even giant cakes, with a three tier wedding-style cake spinning and glowing, and several cupcakes swirling and turning on a turntable, like cups on a teacup ride. With an enhanced version of the soundtrack and an exit arch formed of oversized candy canes, the attraction came to a close and guests would leave through the station, likely accompanied by the catchy tune and excited memories in their head for the rest of the day.
Toyland Tours was a massive success at the park, and quickly became an icon of Alton Towers history, with its colourful visuals, movement-heavy scenes and whimsical storyline earning a place in many guests’ hearts for years to come. But as with many attractions, Toyland Tours soon came to the end of its life. Some scenes, particularly the video game scene featuring Sonic, were starting to become outdated, which wasn’t helped by the fact that the Sonic animatronic was beginning to fall into disrepair until it just hardly moved at all.
The park realised this and development began on something new, that would both keep the whimsical feeling of the area that was now Cloud Cuckoo Land alive, and update the attraction for a modern audience. Early on in the 2005 season, it was announced that Toyland Tours would give its final tour that year, and a ride based on everyone’s favourite magical chocolate factory would replace it in April 2006.
From One Factory to Another
Whether you grew up with the 1971 or 2005 version, it’s likely all us at some point dreamed of finding a golden ticket and going on a magical tour through Willy Wonka’s eccentric and probably quite dangerous chocolate factory. By 2006, a year after the newer version of the film was released, Alton Towers decided it was time to bring this musical fever dream of a factory to life, in the form of a new dark ride that would take the place of Toyland Tours.
But while Toyland Tours was just one attraction, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: the Ride would included three! Guests would experience the dark ride as usual, passing through scenes from the ride stylised to the illustrations of Quentin Blake, then, in an unexpected turn, have the opportunity to rise, drop and explore the factory one of two iconic Great Glass Elevators! Sadly however, you wouldn’t actually travel in a gravity-defying lift: this part was created by two simulators.
Like many dark rides, the experience began before you even entered the show building, with an elaborate and immersive façade to really set the scene. This one was painted purple, beige and yellow, with bright blue windows showing children dancing, alongside grey pipes that stuck out into the sky to create the illusion of a factory. On entering the building, guests were greeted with the sweet scent of chocolate, as well as a preshow scene in which Willy Wonka and Charlie welcome you to the tour. After walking past illustrated portraits of the kids who didn’t have a great time at the factory in the book and movies, you soon board your boat, and set sail for your first stop: the Chocolate Room.
Here pipes and chocolate plants lined the walls (though the ones on the ride weren’t edible!) and, just like in the book and films the ride was based off, Augustus Gloop was being sucked up the pipe, his mother looking on shocked. In a voiceover from Willy Wonka and the remaining four kids, it is explained that he is going to the fudge room, as you head into the next scene. This next room, named the Inventing Room, was filled with whimsical machines, along with Violet Beauregarde being inflated to the size of a giant blueberry. We are told she is headed to the juicing room, and move onto the next part of the ride.
After a tunnel scene with mostly just music and blue lights, we arrive at the Nut Room, with Veruca Salt declaring that she wants a squirrel. Screens show her getting attacked by the squirrels she tried to take, and we learn that she has been declared a bad nut and sent down the rubbish chute. This scene was quite different from the one in the original book and movie- in the originals, Veruca tries to steal a golden egg from a magical chicken instead!
The boat ride ends here, but there’s still lots of magic left to experience. After disembarking, guests head to the TV Room, advertising treats such as Forever Freeze Ice Cream and Television Chocolate, and soon it starts to feel as if you are really inside of the screen. After a while the adverts flick off to show Mike Teevee being shrunk, and you get to go the part of the ride that everyone has been waiting for: the Great Glass Elevator.
From a vantage point in a simulated sky, guests could complete without even going anywhere: simulator technology and 3D effects create the feeling that you are moving and juddering through the factory at high speeds. Once your elevator has smashed through the factory roof, you plummet to the ground, ready to explore the rest of Cloud Cuckoo Land and Alton Towers.
Although it wasn’t as elaborate or long as either Around the World in Eighty Days or Toyland Tours, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory was an enjoyable ride in its own right, combining two mini pre-shows, a dark ride and a simulator to offer an experience unlike that many other attractions. The ride was often greeted with lengthy queues up to ninety minutes, likely due to the amount of parts to the experience.
However, just like the boats on this attractions didn’t travel as far, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’s time of operation didn’t last as long compared to its predecessors- but not because of a lack of popularity. After the tragic Smiler crash in June 2015, several attractions around the park remained closed for the remainder of the season. These included Hex, Ripsaw, the Flume and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and while some, like Hex, did reopen the following year, the latter attraction did not. The ride was boarded up, and the building that once held rides that had entertained generations of guests stood standing but not operating.
A Dungeon of Legends and History
Years passed and when 2018 came around, plans were appearing for a new development to take the place of the closed ride. Rumours began circulating on what was being planned, and when Alton Towers filed a trademark application for the name “Alton Towers Dungeon” in Summer 2018, it became clear that this new attraction wasn’t exactly going to be a magical family adventure like the ones that had been there previously.
Work began on removing the theming of the Chocolate Factory, with some of the more iconic parts being auctioned off to raise money for charity. It wasn’t too long before an announcement came from the park, confirming on 11th October (two weeks before Halloween, I like to think that was intentional!) that the Alton Towers Dungeon would give its first spooky tour in Summer 2019.
The Dungeon opened as an upcharge attraction a few months earlier than announced, on the 23rd of March 2019. Most of the experience was pretty similar to the iconic Dungeon attractions in London, Edinburgh and other UK cities and tourist spots, with segments such as a Plague scene and a not-so-relaxing boat ride all finding a home in this version, but with a twist. Similar to Hex, the Alton Towers Dungeon takes inspiration from Staffordshire’s history for parts of its storyline- most notably the Molly Leigh part of the walkthrough, which is based on a local legend.
The Dungeons promise to offer a tour of the “darkest past”, and it certainly delivers on that front, allowing brave guests to experience the plague, meet the ghost of a witch, and take a traitor’s expedition down the Black River. Today you can still come face to face with all these horrors and more at the Alton Towers Dungeon… that is, if you’re willing to endure pain at the hands of the Torturer and maybe even get hands on with the help of the plague doctor!
The Future of the Dungeon
The Alton Towers Dungeon may be a trip through some not-so-magical parts of the past, but lets break free from the rusty shackles of the dungeon for a bit and take a look at the future. Often walkthrough attractions like this are only temporary, and, most of the time, don’t last longer than the park’s Halloween event, but the Alton Towers Dungeon has already outlived many walkthroughs like it. Take into account that the Dungeons are a pretty well established brand in the UK, and that Alton Towers has only just opened a new dark ride in the form of Gangsta Granny the Ride, and it’s looking like the Alton Towers Dungeon is here to stay! Though if it is going to remain a permanent attraction, hopefully the upcharge will be lifted soon.
Despite this, the Alton Towers Dungeon needs A LOT of actors to operate the scenes and keep the fear factor high, which must be massively expensive for the park, which is probably why the attraction still operates on an upcharge. Each of the other Dungeons have the same thing, however the ones in London, York, Blackpool and Edinburgh are all just one attraction with nothing else that needs to be operated or paid for, and while Warwick Castle, the other Dungeon location, does have other attractions, there aren’t nearly as many as some major theme parks. Alton Towers is home to over forty other rides and attractions, all of which need frequent maintenance and safety checks to ensure everything is operating correctly. This means that at some point, the park may decide to divert more money and employees towards their more popular rides if they start to struggle financially, and be forced to close their version of the Dungeons.
Until now however, the Alton Towers Dungeons have proved to be relatively popular and a good fit for the park, especially for if it’s raining and/or you’re looking for an extra thrill on top of the rollercoasters and flat rides. Hopefully this terrifying walkthrough continues to operate for years to come, and when it does eventually get replaced, its replacement will have the same (or higher!) level of popularity and magic of the attractions that were there before!
Have you had the chance to experience any of these attractions? If not, which would you most like to have experienced? Let me know in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this article, check out some of my other posts from theme parks around the world, and find us on Instagram and Facebook for exclusive CoasterDreamers content!
No Way Out: The History of Thorpe Park’s X and the Walking Dead
Throughout its forty-three year history, Thorpe Park has been home to some pretty amazing rides. From petting farms to high-speed thrill rides, there has always been something for everyone, and some attractions leave more of a legacy than others. Among now defunct greats is X:/ No Way Out, which took riders on an adventure through…
Reaching for the Skies- the Evolution of London’s Airports
CW: Mentions of War and the Pandemic For years, aviation has been a massive part of the travel industry, whether you’re travelling to a far-flung location, or your destination is just a little too far to drive or go by ferry. But like any flight, the story of London’s five airports hasn’t been without turbulence.…
From Europe and Beyond- the history of Center Parcs | DreamVenture
If you’ve booked a European holiday in the past fifty-four years, chances are you’ve at least come across Center Parcs. First founded in 1968, this popular holiday park chain provides holidays aimed at those looking for an adventure, but also to escape the stresses of day-to-day life. But with an impressive twenty-eight resorts, two brand…
Subscribe to have all the latest CoasterDreamers articles delivered straight to your inbox!
Photo credits:
@attractionsource on Instagram Attraction Source (@attractionsource) • Instagram photos and videos. Community website: attractionsource – AttractionSource | bio.fm
@the_park_life_official on Instagram The Park Life (@the_park_life_official) • Instagram photos and videos
Coaster Dreamers 