Post by cheesygrin on May 25, 2007 8:55:33 GMT
Sounds different ;D I wouldn't mind going.
A new theme park inspired by the work of Charles Dickens - complete with authentic 19th century stinking sewers - is finally opening its doors to the public.
The designers have re-created Victorian Britain with startling reality.
No white-knuckle rides and screaming kids here - Dickens World is a theme park with a difference.
Entering into the main square of this virtual world, visitors are confronted by characters from Charles Dickens' lifetime - each played by somewhat over enthusiastic actors.
Dotted around the square are 19th century shops and a themed restaurant. Next door a Dickensian school teacher complete with mortarboard invites visitors into his classroom.
Walk through the doors of the vast warehouse on the marina in Chatham and you really do feel like you are walking into the past.
The visitors are then subjected to a history lesson - Dickens style. Think dunce caps and bellowing screams: "Speak only when spoken to, boy!"
The highlight of the centre is an indoor boat ride carrying visitors on a trip through a mock London sewer. It then climbs high into the sky for a flight across the roof tops of the city. And those seeking a thrill won't be disappointed - it ends with a drop back down to earth and a splash or two.
A drive down the M2 motorway to an area of the Kent coast doesn't immediately jump out as a daytrip destination, so what is the point of it all? Education or entertainment?
"Stimulation," says Kevin Christie, Dickens World managing director.
"If we can stimulate you, if you can enjoy yourself here, then you're more likely to take an interest in all the different levels. This was the world from which Charles Dickens drew his inspiration.
"There are so many access points from an educational point of view. Dickens wrote great stories - we're recreating a fantastic period of history."
A new theme park inspired by the work of Charles Dickens - complete with authentic 19th century stinking sewers - is finally opening its doors to the public.
The designers have re-created Victorian Britain with startling reality.
No white-knuckle rides and screaming kids here - Dickens World is a theme park with a difference.
Entering into the main square of this virtual world, visitors are confronted by characters from Charles Dickens' lifetime - each played by somewhat over enthusiastic actors.
Dotted around the square are 19th century shops and a themed restaurant. Next door a Dickensian school teacher complete with mortarboard invites visitors into his classroom.
Walk through the doors of the vast warehouse on the marina in Chatham and you really do feel like you are walking into the past.
The visitors are then subjected to a history lesson - Dickens style. Think dunce caps and bellowing screams: "Speak only when spoken to, boy!"
The highlight of the centre is an indoor boat ride carrying visitors on a trip through a mock London sewer. It then climbs high into the sky for a flight across the roof tops of the city. And those seeking a thrill won't be disappointed - it ends with a drop back down to earth and a splash or two.
A drive down the M2 motorway to an area of the Kent coast doesn't immediately jump out as a daytrip destination, so what is the point of it all? Education or entertainment?
"Stimulation," says Kevin Christie, Dickens World managing director.
"If we can stimulate you, if you can enjoy yourself here, then you're more likely to take an interest in all the different levels. This was the world from which Charles Dickens drew his inspiration.
"There are so many access points from an educational point of view. Dickens wrote great stories - we're recreating a fantastic period of history."