Ghost train

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Ghost train
Ghost Train in 2013

Ghost Train in 2013

Data
Location Blackpool Pleasure Beach , Blackpool
Type Ghost train
opening May 1930

Ghost Train ( dt. "Ghost" or "ghost train") is the name of a ghost train in the amusement park Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England . It is the oldest electrically operated, stationary ghost train in the world.

Location and history

Blackpool Pleasure Beach was opened in Blackpool, Lancashire , England in 1896 . In 1929, the designer Joseph Emberton designed and opened his first electrically operated ghost train. The ride was originally planned as a cozy family roller coaster, but Blackpool Pleasure Beach already had enough of that. Emberton was also fascinated by the horror rooms. So he thought of a ride that would combine the two. Due to the route, such railways were (and are) also known as the pretzel railroad ( Pretzelbahn ). However, Emberton found the name unappealing and decided on the name "Ghost Train", especially since the ride was supposed to give visitors a creepy feeling. And at the time a play with the same title was very popular in England. This piece is about passengers whose train runs aground at an abandoned train station , where there are supposed ghosts .

Ghost Train finally opened in May 1930 and became so popular that it continues and operates to this day. With over 90 years of operation, it is the oldest stationary ghost train in the world, followed by the “ ghost castle ” on Vienna's Prater in Austria (opened in 1933). Regular maintenance work takes place; admission currently costs £ 4.00 (around € 4.60).

description

Ghost Train is quite large and two stories high. The outer facade is modeled on a castle and decorated with classic monster and ghost figures such as trolls , witches and vampires . The left tower facade has been broken open and an oversized human skeleton protrudes. Visitors can sit individually or in pairs in the carriages (so-called chaises ), which then drive individually through the ghost train. The ghost figures inside are mostly modeled after well-known and popular movie monsters, other driving routes are decorated with scary motifs made of luminous paint. Appropriate sound and light effects are used and the scary puppets are jerked to scare the passengers. The cars leave the ghost train briefly in four places and then drive back in again. The journey takes about four minutes.

According to an urban legend , the ghost train is home to the ghost of a former technician. It is called "cloggy" because of its bulky work boots and is supposed to frighten visitors with its sudden appearance.

literature

  • Darren W. Ritson: Supernatural North . Amberley Publishing Limited, 2009, ISBN 978-1-4456-3122-6 , pp. 116-119.
  • Roland Girtler: Foray through the Wiener Wurstelprater: the colorful world of the showmen and innkeepers . Böhlau-Verlag, Vienna 2016, ISBN 978-3-205-20280-6 , pp. 118ff.

Web links

Coordinates: 53 ° 47 '28.7 "  N , 3 ° 3' 20.1"  W.