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Business Mayor
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Mayor
The £346milion theme park that wanted to be the ‘English Disneyland' in the 1980s… but was never built
A THEME park that wanted to be the UK's version of Disneyland was nearly built in the 1980s. The theme park, called WonderWorld, hoped to open in Corby in Northamptonshire. 6 The site of England's Disneyland was due to be in Corby, Northamptonshire Credit: 6 The park would have featured a stadium theme on one of the Martian tripods from Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds Credit: BBC 6 In total, the park would have had 13 themed villages Credit: BBC In 1981, planning permission was granted for a the theme park to be built on a 1,000-acre site, around two miles from Corby. Located at Priors Hall, the park was to be built on a disused quarry which was once linked to the town's former steelworks. Group Five, who were due to be the developers, claimed that support from the local area including county authorities and the Commission for New Towns. The attraction was to be modelled on Walt Disney World's Epcot which opened in Orlando in 1982 and would include 13 themed villages built around a central bowl measuring 700 metres in diameter. Six of the worlds would open in 1992 and were expected to draw in four million visitors annually. The attraction would have featured high-tech rides, educational centres, themed restaurants, a conservation zone and several shopping areas. There would have also been an open air concert hall designed to look like one of the Martian tripods from Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds and rides designed by Monty Python's Terry Gilliam. A brochure produced on the planned park suggested that it would be a 'unique resort set in beautifully landscaped surroundings'. Later in 1985, one of the architects, Derek Walker, said: 'The basic ingredients [for WonderWorld] are very simple: entertainment at the very highest level. It's participatory and it's incredibly educational. Paulton's Park reveals first look at new £3.5million ride opening next month '[WonderWorld] will offer the best of British design,' according to the BBC. In addition, botanist David Bellamy was involved in planning a mock safari and astronomer Sir Patrick Moore was set to contribute an observatory. There would also have been a 10,000-seat stadium for sports. A family resort with seven hotels initially, an 18-hole golf course and 100 holiday villas were due to be a part of the destination too. The overall ambition was to launch a new leisure industry built around 'British heritage, folklore, science and innovation', which was particular supported following the closure of the nearby steelworks in 1980. 6 The park was due to provide new jobs, following the closure of the steelworks in 1980 Credit: 6 If the park went ahead, it would have opened in 1985 Credit: The project was estimated to cost £346million in total and aimed for an initial opening in 1985. However, due to rising costs, planning delays and difficultly securing long-term funding meant that some of the backers pulled out. Eventually the plans faded into obscurity and the only parts of the attraction that were built were a large WonderWorld sign and a small wooden cabin. Today, the site is home to more than 1,000 houses and here are plans to build around 5,000 more in the future . A £2.5billion 'UK Disneyland' theme park was also announced in 2012, before being scrapped – and images were released of what it could have looked like. However, there is a Universal theme park coming to the UK in the next decade.
The Sun
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
The £346milion theme park that wanted to be the ‘English Disneyland' in the 1980s… but was never built
A THEME park that wanted to be the UK's version of Disneyland was nearly built in the 1980s. The theme park, called WonderWorld, hoped to open in Corby in Northamptonshire. 6 6 In 1981, planning permission was granted for a the theme park to be built on a 1,000-acre site, around two miles from Corby. Located at Priors Hall, the park was to be built on a disused quarry which was once linked to the town's former steelworks. Group Five, who were due to be the developers, claimed that support from the local area including county authorities and the Commission for New Towns. The attraction was to be modelled on Walt Disney World 's Epcot which opened in Orlando in 1982 and would include 13 themed villages built around a central bowl measuring 700 metres in diameter. Six of the worlds would open in 1992 and were expected to draw in four million visitors annually. The attraction would have featured high-tech rides, educational centres, themed restaurants, a conservation zone and several shopping areas. There would have also been an open air concert hall designed to look like one of the Martian tripods from Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds and rides designed by Monty Python's Terry Gilliam. A brochure produced on the planned park suggested that it would be a "unique resort set in beautifully landscaped surroundings". Later in 1985, one of the architects, Derek Walker, said: "The basic ingredients [for WonderWorld] are very simple: entertainment at the very highest level. It's participatory and it's incredibly educational. Paulton's Park reveals first look at new £3.5million ride opening next month "[WonderWorld] will offer the best of British design," according to the BBC. In addition, botanist David Bellamy was involved in planning a mock safari and astronomer Sir Patrick Moore was set to contribute an observatory. There would also have been a 10,000-seat stadium for sports. A family resort with seven hotels initially, an 18-hole golf course and 100 holiday villas were due to be a part of the destination too. The overall ambition was to launch a new leisure industry built around "British heritage, folklore, science and innovation", which was particular supported following the closure of the nearby steelworks in 1980. 6 The project was estimated to cost £346million in total and aimed for an initial opening in 1985. However, due to rising costs, planning delays and difficultly securing long-term funding meant that some of the backers pulled out. Eventually the plans faded into obscurity and the only parts of the attraction that were built were a large WonderWorld sign and a small wooden cabin. Today, the site is home to more than 1,000 houses and here are plans to build around 5,000 more in the future. A £2.5billion 'UK Disneyland' theme park was also announced in 2012, before being scrapped - and images were released of what it could have looked like. However, there is a Universal theme park coming to the UK in the next decade. 6
The Irish Sun
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
The £346milion theme park that wanted to be the ‘English Disneyland' in the 1980s… but was never built
A THEME park that wanted to be the UK's version of Disneyland was nearly built in the 1980s. The theme park, called WonderWorld, hoped to open in Corby in Northamptonshire. Advertisement 6 The site of England's Disneyland was due to be in Corby, Northamptonshire Credit: 6 The park would have featured a stadium theme on one of the Martian tripods from Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds Credit: BBC 6 In total, the park would have had 13 themed villages Credit: BBC In 1981, planning permission was granted for a the theme park to be built on a 1,000-acre site, around two miles from Corby. Located at Priors Hall, the park was to be built on a disused quarry which was once linked to the town's former steelworks. Group Five, who were due to be the developers, claimed that support from the local area including county authorities and the Commission for New Towns. The attraction was to be modelled on Walt Disney World's Epcot which opened in Orlando in 1982 and would include 13 themed villages built around a central bowl measuring 700 metres in diameter. Advertisement Read more on theme parks Six of the worlds would open in 1992 and were expected to draw in four million visitors annually. The attraction would have featured high-tech rides, educational centres, themed restaurants, a conservation zone and several shopping areas. There would have also been an open air concert hall designed to look like one of the Martian tripods from Jeff Wayne's A brochure produced on the planned park suggested that it would be a "unique resort set in beautifully landscaped surroundings". Advertisement Most read in Travel Latest Later in 1985, one of the architects, Derek Walker, said: "The basic ingredients [for WonderWorld] are very simple: entertainment at the very highest level. It's participatory and it's incredibly educational. Paulton's Park reveals first look at new £3.5million ride opening next month "[WonderWorld] will offer the best of British design," according to the In addition, botanist David Bellamy was involved in planning a mock safari and astronomer Sir Patrick Moore was set to contribute an observatory. There would also have been a 10,000-seat Advertisement A family resort with seven hotels initially, an 18-hole golf course and 100 holiday villas were due to be a part of the destination too. The overall ambition was to launch a new leisure industry built around "British heritage, folklore, science and innovation", which was particular supported following the closure of the nearby steelworks in 1980. 6 The park was due to provide new jobs, following the closure of the steelworks in 1980 Credit: 6 If the park went ahead, it would have opened in 1985 Credit: Advertisement The project was estimated to cost £346million in total and aimed for an initial opening in 1985. However, due to rising costs, planning delays and difficultly securing long-term funding meant that some of the backers pulled out. Eventually the plans faded into obscurity and the only parts of the attraction that were built were a large WonderWorld sign and a small wooden cabin. Today, the site is home to more than 1,000 houses and here are plans to build around 5,000 more in the future . Advertisement A However, there is a 6 Rising costs and backers pulling out of the project ultimately led to WonderWorld's demise Credit: BBC
BBC News
21-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
The 1980s 'British Disneyland' near Corby that never happened
A new Universal resort near Bedford is due to open in 2031, creating 28,000 jobs and attracting 8.5 million visitors a more than 30 years ago, a similar vision was announced just outside Corby, WonderWorld, the ambitious £346m project promised a British answer to Disney – complete with themed villages, hotels, and rides designed by Monty Python's Terry Gilliam. But it never opened. Here's what was planned, and why it was never built... Where was WonderWorld? In 1981, planning permission was granted for WonderWorld to be built on a 1,000-acre site at Priors Hall, about two miles (3km) north-east of land, part of a disused quarry once linked to the town's former steelworks, was identified as the ideal location due to strong local for the theme park feature in Netflix's Toxic Town, and it is mentioned in BBC podcast The Toxic Waste Group Five described the area as the perfect home for the park, citing the "positive attitude displayed by the local and county authorities and the Commission for the New Towns".The attraction was described as the "equivalent of America's Disneyland", and it was supposed to be an answer to unemployment in Corby following the 1980 closure of the steelworks, which led to 10,000 job losses and left nearly a third of the town out of work. What would be in WonderWorld? Modelled on Walt Disney World's Epcot, the attraction was to include 13 themed "villages" built around a central bowl, 700m in of these were due to open in the summer of 1992, with a projected four million annual visitors and parking for 7,000 included hi-tech rides, educational centres, themed restaurants, a conservation zone and shopping areas. A brochure promised "a unique resort set in beautifully landscaped surroundings", with an "accent very much on participation".In 1985, one of the architects, Derek Walker, said: "The basic ingredients [for WonderWorld] are very simple: entertainment at the very highest level. It's participatory and it's incredibly educational."[WonderWorld] will offer the best of British design." Botanist David Bellamy was involved in planning a mock safari while astronomer Sir Patrick Moore was to contribute to an complex would house a covered 10,000-seat stadium for indoor sports, changing rooms, rugby and football pitches, and all-weather tennis were also proposals for a family resort with hotels – 2,000 rooms in seven hotels initially, expanding to 6,000 rooms – and an 18-hole golf course with 100 holiday park's overall goal was to launch a new leisure industry built around "British heritage, folklore, science, and innovation". Who was building WonderWorld? The developer behind WonderWorld was Group Five, a company that pitched the park as "a family affair" offering a broad mix of attractions to suit all ages and first phase of construction was estimated to cost £223m, with the full development forecast to hit £346m. A 39-month construction timeline was set, aiming for an initial opening in 1985. Why was WonderWorld never finished? Despite early enthusiasm, WonderWorld's momentum began to costs, planning delays and difficulty securing long-term funding meant backers pulled out, and so as public investment wavered, the vision began to that was ever erected at the site was a large WonderWorld sign and a small wooden land is now home to more than 1,000 houses at Priors Hall Park, and there are plans to build just more than another 5,000 houses. Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
