Disastrous family seasonal attractions and the never to be forgotten Lapland New Forest Theme Park
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spliff
New Member
"The Men Who Stole Christmas" was shown on BBC South @7.30pm last night and is fairly interesting: (30mins)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00zb19g/The_Men_Who_Stole_Christmas_Lapland_New_Forest/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00zb19g/The_Men_Who_Stole_Christmas_Lapland_New_Forest/
Cloo
Approved by toads
I don't get why people were so keen to go to it in the first place... I googled it at the time and there were loads of posts on family forums and the like, before the truth emerged, with people going 'Ooh, I fancy going to this Lapland place, it sounds really good', 'Yeah, me too, I've bought tickets' - without there being any evidence from the website that it was going to be anything but cheap shite. But then, I don't celebrate Xmas and don't have kids who are aware of it, so I presumably it sounded like it might be a nice treat, so I do understand why people were so upset.
I think people were fools to spend such a lot of money on this in the first place. It is as if they genuinely believed that the organisers could create a snowy wonderland in the UK. People were saying "there was only fake snow sprayed onto the trees, not on the ground, the ground was all muddy". Eh? How could it be otherwise? It's not real snow, its not cold enough for actual snow, so the ground is either going to be tarmac, or if its bare earth and the weather is wet, its going to be muddy. I suppose they could have simply chucked bag fulls of those bits of polystyrene packing material all over the floor.
I've been to a couple of "Christmas markets" and the advertising makes out that you will somehow believe you are in some beautiful medieval town, and find enough to do and see that you can happily spend all day there, just breathing in the Christmassiness of it all, all day. In fact, its just the usual bunch of market stalls selling Xmas tat, some burger vans, and maybe a crap mulled-wine stall. At least I did not pay £30 to get in to the Christmas market though. It was free, and worth every penny.
And what's wrong with elves smoking anyway? Maybe its an elf-ish tradition? Who are we to judge what is and is not appropriate elf behaviour?
Giles..
I've been to a couple of "Christmas markets" and the advertising makes out that you will somehow believe you are in some beautiful medieval town, and find enough to do and see that you can happily spend all day there, just breathing in the Christmassiness of it all, all day. In fact, its just the usual bunch of market stalls selling Xmas tat, some burger vans, and maybe a crap mulled-wine stall. At least I did not pay £30 to get in to the Christmas market though. It was free, and worth every penny.
And what's wrong with elves smoking anyway? Maybe its an elf-ish tradition? Who are we to judge what is and is not appropriate elf behaviour?
Giles..
I think Lapland New Forest's website (sadly no longer online) featured a lot of photographs claiming to be of the place itself, and obviously it turned out they weren't.
The BBC have a slideshow with a dozen pictures of the real thing - enjoy!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/uk_lapland_new_forest/html/1.stm
I bet if it re-opened exactly the way it was, loads of people would go along.
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
Why not?
Lapland UK based at Bewl Water in Kent has been doing it for years and was a total sell out in 2010.
Bewl Water said:
They seem to get good reviews on the Review Centre site:
So, I think it's a bit harsh to have a go at those that paid for what they expected would be something like Lapland UK, how the hell would they know that these bastards were just riding off the back of Lapland UK and only interested in ripping off the public?
As much as it was funny as fuck as a story
, I hope these bastards are sent down for at least a few months for the fraud they planned at the cost of ruining kid's dreams. 
Dillinger4
Es gibt Zeit
*wipes a patriotic tear from my eye*
Dillinger4
Es gibt Zeit
She is a visionary.
I still can't stop laughing to myself. I have this image of disabled Hampshire folk struggling to get their wheel chairs through the mud whilst elves just nonchantly smoke in ignorance around them with good Christian children looking on in horror
Chris Morris couldn't have done this better. Absolute class
Chris Morris couldn't have done this better. Absolute class
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
That's well worth watching.
Victor Mears has served time before for fraud, so on reflection forget a few months, he should be going down for a few years.
Still £250k in takings remain unaccounted for.
spliff
New Member
Like any comedy it's all down to timing innit! The Mears bruvs were ahead of their time.
Two years later and they could have had real snow and a bucketful of paid up no-shows due to the adverse weather conditions.
Queues would have been shorter. Santa could have longer fag breaks. The muddy field could easily have become the ice rink.
side note: interesting that Victor Mears was a defence witness in 1986 when Kenneth Noye got 14 years for handling the stolen Brinks-Mat gold.
Two years later and they could have had real snow and a bucketful of paid up no-shows due to the adverse weather conditions.
Queues would have been shorter. Santa could have longer fag breaks. The muddy field could easily have become the ice rink.
side note: interesting that Victor Mears was a defence witness in 1986 when Kenneth Noye got 14 years for handling the stolen Brinks-Mat gold.
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
I liked the bit about the elves having to close the Gingerbread House early, because they had run out of ingredients, being reduced to tears as angry parents tried to kick down the doors.
Felt sorry for the female elf that was grabbed by the neck and slapped across the face.
I liked the bit about the elves having to close the Gingerbread House early, because they had run out of ingredients, being reduced to tears as angry parents tried to kick down the doors.
Felt sorry for the female elf that was grabbed by the neck and slapped across the face.
Angry mob justice eh? Tempers must have been a bit frayed and although the epic elf fail is a source of great amusement to me it was a bit harsh. The woman shouting something like 'Santa is dead' to one of the elves was classic.
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
Agreed, hence I found it funny about the elves in the Gingerbread House, because no actual physical violence took place, whereas for that poor woman.
Dillinger4
Es gibt Zeit
In a lot of ways, I would have loved to have worked there as well.
I mean, apart from getting beaten up etc. I bet it would have been a gloriously shit place to work.
I mean, apart from getting beaten up etc. I bet it would have been a gloriously shit place to work.
Been thinking the same.
Getting temp pay and temp money to work in a shit place like that. It would be one of things that would be so awful you would have to laugh about it. Dealing with angry punters when all you can say is 'I just work here' and stuff. The costumes would have probably put me off though
Agreed, hence I found it funny about the elves in the Gingerbread House, because no actual physical violence took place, whereas for that poor woman.
On the plus side her family must laugh like drains at Christmas time
What was (did it show that?) name? I hope it began with L so she is known as 'Lapland Lucy' or something
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
On the plus side her family must laugh like drains at Christmas time
What was (did it show that?) name? I hope it began with L so she is known as 'Lapland Lucy' or something
I also felt sorry for the husband & wife team behind Lapland UK in Kent that almost went bust because of the publicity surrounding Lapland New Forest, just imagine spending a couple of years developing an idea that is not only popular but loved by visitors only to see these bastards *try* ‘to copy it’ and fuck you over.
Voley
🐀
I also felt sorry for the husband & wife team behind Lapland UK in Kent that almost went bust because of the publicity surrounding Lapland New Forest, just imagine spending a couple of years developing an idea that is not only popular but loved by visitors only to see these bastards *try* ‘to copy it’ and fuck you over.
I didn't feel sorry for them. Their idea's shit too.
TopCat
Putin fanboy
Just on't radio, disabled folk were stuck in mud in wheel chairs, Elves just stood around smoking, cunts.
What would you have the elves do?
Thos pic makes me laugh the most in its patheticness
hehehe.
I also felt sorry for the husband & wife team behind Lapland UK in Kent that almost went bust because of the publicity surrounding Lapland New Forest, just imagine spending a couple of years developing an idea that is not only popular but loved by visitors only to see these bastards *try* ‘to copy it’ and fuck you over.
I work as an event organiser.
Not fun elf related family stuff sadly, more corporate.
Our event was set up in 2002 (do between 2 and 5 a year) and every year since another event has started up. Essentially just copying our website and business model. Normally charging less but promising more. None so far have lasted more than an year but everytime it causes us major headaches. One bastard took a load of peoples money, never did an event, folded his company and then had the nerve to try and sell us his customers information.
claphamboy
The wheels on the bus go round and round....
Not according to their happy customers.
The scale of the con?
£1.2m taken on the website within just a few weeks.
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