Blackpool Pleasure Beach to welcome Wallace & Gromit

Wallace and Gromit are set to join Blackpool Pleasure Beach with a brand new family ride – the ‘Thrill-O-Matic’ – which will take fans of the dynamic duo on a trip through their much-loved films. Starting with A Grand Day Out, stopping off to visit The Wrong Trousers, hurtling past A Close Shave and followed by dealing with A Matter of Loaf and Death, the ride promises to be a thrill-a-minute.

The ride, which cost a total of £5 million, will then lead the visitors into a shop where exclusive Wallace and Gromit merchandise can be bought. The 175 square metre store has something for all Wallace and Gromit fans, including an exciting ‘Thrill-O-Matic’ range and a variety of existing Aardman products sure to impress any fan. The four-minute ride allows the visitors to be part of Wallace and Gromit’s most memorable scenes from their best-loved films, Aardman have been working closely with pleasure beach and their engineering team to achieve this.

Creator of Wallace and Gromit, Nick Park, said: “We are really enjoying working with the Pleasure Beach team on this new ride and new format for Wallace and Gromit, and can’t wait to get started on building all the props and set pieces.”

Hoardings featuring Wallace and Gromit are due to be erected at the site of the Thrill-O-Matic’ as engineering work continues. The ride, is set to open in 2013 and all of the most memorable characters from Wallace and Gromit’s many adventures will feature in the opening shindig.

Managing director of Pleasure Beach, Amanda Thompson OBE said: “We are delighted to be welcoming Wallace & Gromit to Pleasure Beach.

“Thrill-O-Matic represents a significant investment in the park and we know the characters will be a huge hit with the families who come and visit pleasure beach.

“Wallace & Gromit are national treasures and to have them here re-affirms our commitment to attracting families back to the resort for what we hope will be A Grand Day Out!”

About Aardman Animations

Aardman, based in Bristol (UK) co-founded and run by Peter Lord and David Sproxton, is a world leader in animation. It produces feature films, television series and television commercials for both the domestic and international market. Their multi-award winning productions are novel, entertaining, brilliantly characterised and full of charm that reflects the unique talent, energy and personal commitment of the very special people who make up the Aardman team. The studio’s work is often imitated and yet the company continues to lead the field producing a rare brand of visually stunning and amusing independent and commercials productions.

www.aardman.com

About Pleasure Beach

Pleasure Beach is a 42-acre amusement park featuring over 125 rides and attractions.  It was established in 1896 by William G Bean and his great granddaughter, Amanda Thompson OBE is the current Managing Director and the fourth generation of the family to hold this position.