Alton Towers: What Ever Happened to...?

What rides and attractions do you miss? Share your memories of Alton Towers' extensive past here.
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PeteB
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Ok, I can't find any similar topics to the type of thing I want to create here so I'll explain what this is about.  Many ideas, plans, and rumours have popped up over the years and then been long forgotton about and lost in time. There's also been real physical things on park that have dissapeared without reason or explanation, and quite alot are insignificant enough to warrant their own topics.  For example warldey's woodie, but that's something thats been talked about alot and there's info already on the TT History page.

You start off by asking "What ever happend to... [insert topic]" and whoever knows can post their reply with a quote to that question.


A list of questions answered so far - UPDATED: 25/02/2010

Q: What ever happend to the Nemesis Bus (Nemesis Nosh)
A: It is believed the roof collapsed and since a larger Nemesis Nosh outlet was built, the bus was removed altogether.

Q: What ever happend to Alton Towers Hotel extension?
A: The application was withdrawn after it had been approved.  The plans were used to bump up the value of the resort as it was going through the sale (from DIC to Blackstone / Merlin).

Q: What ever happened to the old parade floats?
A: Many of the old floats are/were stored in the builders yard next to the Flag Tower.

Q: What happened to the old paddle steamer style funhouse (Mississippi Showboat) next to the swans?
A: There's currently one at Parque De Atracciones in Madrid as La Reine de Africa.  It is believed the one at Alton was demolished.  The ride experience was very similar to what you might get on a Fun House at a funfair. Moving platforms, moving steps, air blasts, rotating barrels and alike, but ever so compact. So much so that eventually it is believed HSE caught up with these attractions in the UK due to very narrow corridors and lack of lighting.

Q: What ever happened to the second arm on submission?
A: It's still there, but hardley ever gets used because it's not busy enough most of the time.  There are also several other rumours floating around such as it needing new parts or maintenace, it possibly uses too much power in the X Sector area, and also that it is very costly to run.  None of these rumours have been confirmed though.

Q: What ever happened to the Nemesis bus smoke (Mushroom Cloud Luxury Tours Bus)?
A: The bus is still there and smoke is often seen working throughout the season, however it requires a person to climb inside the crashed bus in order to access the fog machine and this can sometimes be difficult in busy periods when there are other things to maintain on park. Most of the time though, the bus does still pump out smoke as if it had just crashed.

Q: Has the bus always been at the last barrel roll on Nemesis?
A: Yes, its location has never changed but it does go unoticed sometimes particularly when the smoke effect is not working to draw your attention to it.

Q: What ever happened to the Nemesis truck?
A: The Nemesis truck is currently sat outside of Studios North, behind the driving school, looking  in a bit of a sorry state. It was removed when fish and chips opened to replace the Nemesis Nosh outlet.

Q: What happened to the old style Nemesis sign that was located on the bridge just after the vertical loop?
A: This was saved and placed in Area 3 of the queue line - area 3 is the 3rd extension to the queue line which is near the first drop, going round the top of the pit above the loop and back round the top of the lift. It can be see on a very busy day when the queues are well over 1 hour and that's your only chance. It sits in amongst some grass harking back to 1994.

Q: What ever happened to the numerous effects in the Duel/Haunted House queue room?
A: Most of this happened in the Haunted House to Duel changeover.  Some of the effects were vandalised, some simply stopped working due to lack of maintenance and Alton didn't want to replace them, like the purple curtians. They were constantly ripped and once even burned. After being burned they were removed. Some of the portraits were also removed due to copyright issues. Detailed information about Duel/Haunted House can found at <!-- m -->[url=http://www.hauntedone.co.uk"%20onclick="window.open(this.href);return%20false;]http://www.hauntedone.co.uk[/url]<!-- m -->

Q: What ever happened to the 2007 park, nemesis and rita music?
A: It was all royalty free music and the chances of ever finding it are slim to zero, given the abundance of royalty free music available most of which is unnamed.

Q: What ever happened to free fasttrack?
A: Like anything, if its popular enough you can usually charge for it and thats exactly what Alton Towers started doing.
Last edited by PeteB on Tue Jun 11, 2013 7:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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rjwilletts
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I believe the roof collapsed on the Nemesis Nosh bus, so they decided since they had the larger Nemesis Nosh outlet, to remove the bus altogether.
oldgitBEN

nemesis nosh - bus was falling to bits and really busy so it was replaced, sadly i loved that bus!

Hotel extension - the application was withdrawn after it had been approved.
The plans were used to bump up the value of the resort as it was going through the sale. (dic to blackstone / merlin i believe, i get abit confused about ownership).

Ok my turn whatever happened to the old parade floats?
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jomo1993
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[quote=""oldgitBEN""]Ok my turn whatever happened to the old parade floats?[/quote]

Last year i dont know if you noticed whilst riding the twirling toadstool, you could see a swan boat in the storage area behin the operators cabing. Now i thought this was just a swan boat, but I heard it was one of the old parade floats.

Sadly, you can no longer see it anymore, even whilst riding the twirling toadstool, cos theyve erected a big fence.
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[quote=""jomo1993""][quote=""oldgitBEN""]Ok my turn whatever happened to the old parade floats?[/quote]

Last year i dont know if you noticed whilst riding the twirling toadstool, you could see a swan boat in the storage area behin the operators cabing. Now i thought this was just a swan boat, but I heard it was one of the old parade floats.

Sadly, you can no longer see it anymore, even whilst riding the twirling toadstool, cos theyve erected a big fence.[/quote]
Yes, many of the old floats are/were stored in the builders yard next to the Flag Tower.
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Danger Noise
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what happened to the old paddle steamer style funhouse thingy next to the swans? that used to rock...
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Gloomy Dude
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[quote=""Danger Noise""]what happened to the old paddle steamer style funhouse thingy next to the swans? that used to rock...[/quote]

I don't know if it went straight from Alton Towers to there, but it's currently at Parque De Atracciones in Madrid as La Reine de Africa.

Picture
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[quote=""Gloomy Dude""][quote=""Danger Noise""]what happened to the old paddle steamer style funhouse thingy next to the swans? that used to rock...[/quote]

I don't know if it went straight from Alton Towers to there, but it's currently at Parque De Atracciones in Madrid as La Reine de Africa.

Picture[/quote]

Ooh, good find (I'm a big Mississippi Showboat fan). Though I don't think that's the one from Alton Towers, as I had a look and that one looks like it opened before the one at the Towers. (Plus, I'm pretty certain I read somewhere the one at Alton was demolished).
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Gloomy Dude
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Hmmm. Maybe not. I presume more than one was actually produced. Sadly, very little real information about and we're unlikely ever to know 100%. My only source if I remember correctly, was rather dubiously, a TPR trip report that refered to it as 'Alton Towers' old Mississippi Showboat'. I just assumed it was true.

What did it actually consist of? I know it's a fun house of sorts, but any more details? That said, I am hoping to head Madrid way this Summer, so should be able to find out myself :)
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what ever happened to the second arm on submission?
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Evostance
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[quote=""rollercoaster_crazy""]what ever happened to the second arm on submission?[/quote]

Its still there..?

Never gets used because its not busy enough
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Squiggles
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[quote=""Gloomy Dude""]Hmmm. Maybe not. I presume more than one was actually produced. Sadly, very little real information about and we're unlikely ever to know 100%. My only source if I remember correctly, was rather dubiously, a TPR trip report that refered to it as 'Alton Towers' old Mississippi Showboat'. I just assumed it was true.

What did it actually consist of? I know it's a fun house of sorts, but any more details? That said, I am hoping to head Madrid way this Summer, so should be able to find out myself :)[/quote]

There certainly were more then one of this attraction made; as well as Alton Towers both the American Adventure and Drayton Manor also had one of these. In fact Drayton Manor still have theirs. If you're ever at the park you'll notice a very dilapidated boat moored near the Buffalo, well that too is a Mississippi Showboat (incidentally my favourite ride as a child), which closed many years ago (perhaps 1998/1999).

The ride experience was very similar to what you might get on a Fun House at a funfair. Moving platforms/moving steps/air blasts/ rotating barrels and alike, but ever so compact. So much so that eventually I believe HSE caught up with these attractions in this country due to very narrow corridors and lack of lighting.

To carry on the bad news... if you head to Madrid this summer you may be too late, because when I was doing my bit of research the other day there seemed to be a lot of talk about this ride being removed this season, though whether that was fact or rumour I do not know... I guess all will be clear by the start of the season. Incidentally, the opening date I found for the ride in Madrid was 1973.
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rollercoaster_crazy

[quote=""Danger Noise""]what happened to the old paddle steamer style funhouse thingy next to the swans? that used to rock...[/quote]

If my memory serves there was (maybe still is) one of these located at Parque des Attractiones in Zaragoza (a sister park to the one in Madrid) It was very run down and tired looking and could quite possibly be the Alton Towers one - certainly old enough.

I'll scout for a picture.

*** Appears to be no picture to be found - but the attraction is still on the park map and is called 'Mississippi'
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Squiggles
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I did find a video of the one in Zaragoza. Not an especially great source, but it certainly shows it is a similar ride... but not the one from AT, as it has a different stairway/entrance configuration.
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rollercoaster_crazy

yeah definatly not the same one - as an aside the one in Zaragoza was particularly awful!
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Whatever happened to the Nemesis truck and bus smoke, as well as the numerous effects in the Duel queue room?
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I believe that the duel effects were vandalised and Alton didn't want to replace them like the purple curtians. They were constantly ripped and once even burned. After being burned they were removed. Some of the portraits were also removed due to copyright issues.

Check Website: [url=http://WWW.HAUNTEDONE.CO.UK" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;]WWW.HAUNTEDONE.CO.UK[/url]

Hope that helps! :D
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[quote=""Squiggles""]
In fact Drayton Manor still have theirs. If you're ever at the park you'll notice a very dilapidated boat moored near the Buffalo, well that too is a Mississippi Showboat (incidentally my favourite ride as a child), which closed many years ago (perhaps 1998/1999).
[/quote]

That boat is still used though isn't it? Or is that a different boat, because there is most certainally a boat ride at Drayton Manor, which takes you across the lake. :?
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Doopy Dan
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Yea its a different boat thats used to take you round the lake at Drayton, The Misisippi showboat is much much bigger.
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