MOMENTUM

Merlin Entertainments, the owner of scores of attractions including Madame Tussauds, Alton Towers and the Edinburgh Dungeon, has laid bare the impact of last summer’s terror attacks in London.

In a trading update covering 2017, the group said it saw a 17 per cent plunge in visitors to its London attractions, which include the London Eye and the London Dungeons, after attacks took place during its critical trading period.

This led to a 5 per cent fall in operating profit at Merlin’s Midway division last year to £152 million, with like-for-like revenue dipping 1.2 per cent.

However, shares received a boost as investors cheered news of a hike in profits and overall revenues.

The group told investors: “After a strong start to the year, Midway like-for-like revenue growth slowed following the spate of terror attacks in the UK which particularly impacted trading in London.

“The attacks led to a significant and immediate decline in domestic visitation, with international visitation falling

0 The Edinburgh Dungeon is one of the many attractions run by the group

NICK VARNEY, CEO from the summer onwards.

“This resulted in an estimated 17 per cent drop in the London visitor attraction market over the key trading period.”

Merlin confirmed that it will now shift investment from Midway, which includes Madame Tussauds and Sea Life.

It will redirect £100m of investment away from its attractions between 2018 and 2021, putting the cash into developingnewhotelsinstead. On a group level, the company saw profits rise 4.8 per cent to £271m in 2017, helped by a record 66 million visits to its attractions around the world.

Revenue grew 11.6 per cent to £1.59 billion, like-for-like sales nudged up 0.7 per cent and comparable sales at Merlin’s Legoland parks grew 4.7 per cent.

Chief executive Nick Varney said: “A year that started well with positive momentum in almost every part of the group was ultimately defined by the unprecedented spate of terror attacks in the UK and poor to extreme weather throughout the summer season in Europe.

“Thanks to the efforts of our extraordinary team, we have reported overall growth in revenue, profit and cash flow”