Alton Towering inferno
‘Safety paramount’ on park’s fiery Wicker Man rollercoaster
ALTON Towers is opening a wooden rollercoaster with thrill-seekers plunging through a six-storey “wall of flame”.
Inspired by 1973 horror movie The Wicker Man, it will be the first wooden coaster built in the UK for 21 years.
The £16million structure will launch in spring, nearly three years after the horrific accident on Alton’s Smiler coaster when two carriages collided.
Vicky Balch, then 19, and Leah Washington, then 17, lost legs. Alton owners Merlin Attractions was fined £5million.
The park insists that “safety has been paramount” in building the new ride.
A 17.5m “wicker man” will appear to ignite, in a mix of real fire and flame effect, as riders race through the structure three times. Alton Towers stressed that the real flames will be far from passengers. Bradley Wynne, creative head at the park, said: “We hope visitors will be blown away by Wicker Man’s scale while the astonishing effects will leave them delighted.” Andy Hine, chairman of the Roller Coaster Club of Great Britain, said: “We’ve been hoping that Alton Towers would invest in a wooden coaster for a long time.” The Wicker Man film stars Edward Woodward and Christopher Lee. A dire US 2006 remake starred Nicolas Cage. ■ A 60-year-old wooden rollercoaster has been demolished at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. The popular Wild Mouse was shut for most of 2017.