“HELP, I’M LOCKED In!”
Northampton have parked the bus – and turned it into an escape room
It seems like every fan’s worst nightmare. You’re just yards from the stadium, but kick- off is fast approaching and you’re trapped on a double decker bus. Even worse, you’re being forced to listen to Jim Rosenthal.
Fear not, though: at Northampton Town, it’s all part of the pre- match experience – and supporters are lapping it up.
The Cobblers have become renowned for novel stadium attractions. Three years ago, they laid on an immersive theatre experience on the pitch for non- matchdays. Now, they’ve parked a bus outside Sixfields, complete with a full- on escape room.
Fans are given various challenges to complete, while Rosenthal chatters away on an audio tape.
“At the moment, it’s unique to Northampton,” says Matt Derrig, who works for the club. “We do birthday parties, which includes meeting some of the players, having your dinner at the stadium and watching a game, and as part of that we’ve added the escape bus. But it’s not just for kids – I’m 26 and I’ve had friends who have given it a go.”
Northampton stars Nicky Adams and Scott Pollock were the first to board the Trapp’d bus and take on the tasks. They escaped within 40 seconds, helped by the fact that the puzzles are Cobblers themed.
“Football’s not just about the 90 minutes on the pitch – you have to make it about families,” says Derrig. “The result aside, you can lose and still have a great day out in our family area and on the bus.”
The bus was only planned to be a season- long loan, but given how much of a hit it’s been, Derrig believes the club will offer Trapp’d a longer- term contract. The bus is outside the the stadium 24/ 7 – it hasn’t replaced the official team bus yet, although it could be a useful way of sidelining poor- performing players; tell them the boss wants a chat with them on it, then lock the door.
But Northampton would like to assure fans that no one’s actually missed kick- off because they have been stuck on the bus: the doors of the escape room open if the riddle can’t be solved within 30 minutes. “I’m sure there have been a few close scrapes, but we book parties in plenty of time just to make sure that people don’t miss kick- off,” confirms Derrig.
“As far as I’m aware, there’s no one still on board the bus, locked in any cupboards.”
Just as well – Northampton have had their most promising season since Chris Wilder’s days. If things go awry, the escape room could be more popular than ever – particularly between 3pm and 4.45pm.