ONE of Blackpool’s oldest rides has been demolished.
The wooden roller coaster known as Wild Mouse has been scrapped by Pleasure Beach bosses – 60 years after it first launched.
The ride was one of the last remaining four wooden Wild Mouse roller coasters in the world, but it has been taken down to make way for more modern rides.
While hundreds of these roller coasters have been built and demolished over the 20th century, Blackpool’s own was one of the first.
It was designed by a man called Frank Wright and first opened in 1958 at the seaside amusement park.
The coaster was one of the smallest roller coasters at the park and in the last year it mainly remained closed to visitors.
But the owners the owners finally decided to get rid of the ride this week.
They said in a statement: “After very careful consideration, our winter work programme has seen the dismantling of the Wild Mouse and the removal of the facade of the former Trauma Tower
attractions.
“This will create an area for future exciting developments.
“Blackpool Pleasure Beach is a constantly evolving amusement park and has been for the past 122 years.
“The changes it has seen over the years are what has made it the great park it is today.”
One of the biggest new changes for 2018 will be the launch of a brand new £16.25 million roller coaster called Icon.
The ride will be the UK's first double-launch roller coaster, propelling passengers at high speed at the beginning and during the middle of their two-and-a-half-minute hair-raising experience.
The ride will snake over and around 15 of the park's other rides, including The Big One.
When it opens this spring, riders will experience the same acceleration as that felt by a Formula 1 driver, and will reach speeds of up to 80mph.
Blackpool Pleasure Beach has long been a favourite with British families – since it first opened in 1896 by a man called Alderman William George Bean.
MOST READ IN TRAVEL
WOW FACTOR 
I bought a Wowcher Mystery Holiday and ended up with a luxury trip of a lifetime
I'm a hotel worker and here's the only way to guarantee clean sheets in a room
Passenger goes to extreme lengths for comfort on plane – shocking cabin crew
I book family hols in term time & save thousands – I don't care what school thinks
Back then, the park only had a handful of roundabouts, a bicycle railway and some side stalls, but a visit to Coney Island in New York inspired the owners to turn the plot into a grand seaside
fairground.
The same family has owned the park since its inception and the different generations have seen it grow in size, with some of the latest additions including Nickelodeon Land, Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic and Red Arrow's Skyforce.
The resort has also inspired several pop songs, including Jethro Tull's Up The 'Pool and The Beautiful South's Oh Blackpool.
Source: Read Full Article
