‘I want to turn Pontins into the Amazon jungle’
THE star of TV’s Great British Benefit Handout says he now wants to take over Southport’s Pontins and turn it into an Amazon jungle holiday park.
Scott Gavin, who was given £26,000 on Great British Benefit Handout TV show, transformed his home into a mini-zoo and has since launched his own business called Party Central Entertainments.
But now the 33-year-old is setting his sights on a much more ambitious projectj andd hopes to be able to either buy or work with Britannia Hotels to transform the “run-down site”.
Scott, from Kirkby in Liverpool, said: “From the reports I have heard lately Southport Pontins is not a good place to go.
“It needs gutting and I want to get my hands on it and do it up.
“I want to transform it into an Amazon themed jungle holiday park.
“The chalets would be knocked down and I would put in wood effect cabins like you see in the jungle.
“There would be tropical plants everywhere and speakers playing jungle sounds.
“I would have an enclosure with all the exotic animals, like monkeys, birds of prey, racoons, snakes, and different species of mammals, and I would have animal shows.
“There would be entertainers on throughout the day and night and there would still be a bar area but it would be done up in an Amazon jun- gle theme. We are already in the process of having personalised mascots made as well which would be a racoon and a monkey and they would walk around the park.
“It would be a completely different place.”
The couple already have 90 animals including lizards, bearded dragons, iguanas, snakes, giant snails, monkeys and owls and will be opening the Party Central Jungle Room on Kirkby Industrial Estate in the next five to six weeks.
The dad-of-five, who says that he now employs nine members of staff, said guests at the transformed Pontins site would be able to stay over or just visit the zoo area.
He said: “I don’t know what the prices would be for the holiday side part of it, because while I have always wanted to open a zoo I never thought of doing it as a holiday park.
“But entry for the zoo would be around £5 or £6 for adults and children.
“And that would be for everything – I don’t want people having to pull money out of their pockets for the shows and things like that.”
The ambitious plans, which Scott estimated would costs “a couple of hundred thousand” have not yet been put to Britannia, Pontins’ owners, and Scott said he expected to have a “fight on his hands”.
He said: “There is no way they will sell it but something needs to be done about the site.
“Even if they don’t want to sell it they should let me take it on and I will do it all up and add my touch to it and then I can take a percentage. That is what I am hoping.
“They need someone like me with fresh ideas to come in and if you don’t ask, you don’t get.”
Scott said he had been overwhelmed with the response to his plans to take over the site and he has had more than 100 shares on Facebook by people championing the idea.
A petition has also been set up, which has since gained 125 signatures.
He added: “I didn’t know that it would get as much attention as it has, so I haven’t gone to Britannia yet, but I will getting in touch now.
“If they do say no I am still going to be looking into buying at least eight acres of land somewhere.
“It is up to them really and if they want to cash in on this.”
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