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Disastrous family seasonal attractions and the never to be forgotten Lapland New Forest Theme Park

my fav baudrillard moment right now is those who do "van life", i.e. living out of van, totally off of grid, but then spend what seems like the entire time communicating the experience through social media and youtube. the replicated becoming, probably, more important than The Real, esp if they are racking up followers which equals the youtube dollars.
 
Really enjoying the excellent new book Goblinhood by Jen Calleja, which touches on the film Labyrinth a lot, and then unexpectedly veers into this thread's territory, when discussing a Labyrinth convention:
"I got massive gloopy blobs of schadenfreude from watching the disaster of the convention play out in the comments. The clues in the treasure hunt were wrong, it was a boiling hot day and there was no water, to get to the masked ball in the evening people had to traverse a wood and a grassy slop in the pitch black dark, the bar was massively understaffed, then the convention organisers closed the Facebook group, causing the dissenters to climb over the barricades and open a new one in which to post complaints."
 
I had put this in the local newspaper headlines thread, but it seems to fit well here too, so for people that don't read the other thread -


A family friendly fireworks display in the South West raised eyebrows when members of the public realised the music played alongside the show contained some X-rated lyrics which were not for little ears. Some of the lyrics mentioned strippers, drugs and there was also some choice expletive language in songs on the playlist.

In the letter sent to the town council, and also copied in to Gloucestershire Live, the complainant wrote: "One song included lyrics such as, 'I’m in Paris baby, got stripper's t**s in my face' which is hardly fitting for a family audience. "

The letter added: "Additionally, another song included explicit language with phrases such as, 'big as the super bowl but the difference is it’s just guys playing… sh*t [expletive] that they did in the studio'

:D
 
I had put this in the local newspaper headlines thread, but it seems to fit well here too, so for people that don't read the other thread -

I like this pile of crap by way of an explanation:

Director at Apex Fireworks, Thomas Grant , said: "At Apex Events Team Ltd and Apex Fireworks, we pride ourselves on creating fireworks displays and events that are not only spectacular but also give back to the communities we serve. Our core commitment is to make fireworks more acceptable, accessible, and beneficial to charities, community groups, and other organisations we can help, such as local businesses, all while keeping costs down.

"By maintaining a small, dedicated team and leveraging modern technology, we enable these groups to redirect funds into their missions, maximizing the positive impact within their communities.

"Our creative approach allows us to deliver events with broad appeal, introducing fresh experiences to audiences while supporting local charities, such as James Hopkins Trust, The Redwell Centre, and Heart Heroes, as we have this year. Additionally, we work with youth sports clubs to boost fundraising, collaborate with PTAs facing insurance challenges, and involve local businesses to keep our events deeply rooted in the community.


"We’re also pioneering a youth initiative, the first of its kind in the UK, that educates young people on fireworks safety through STEM-aligned sessions, underscoring our commitment to safety and awareness.

"In this recent event, an unfortunate error in our AI-driven music obfuscation technology allowed some inappropriate language to pass through. Despite extensive precautions and manual checks, this oversight occurred, and we sincerely apologize for any offence caused.
 
I like this pile of crap by way of an explanation:

"...Our core commitment is to make fireworks more acceptable...

"... Additionally, we work with ... PTAs facing insurance challenges...

"In this recent event, an unfortunate error in our AI-driven music obfuscation technology allowed some inappropriate language to pass through...
🤣
 
img_6080-jpeg.452727


:D :D :D
The Glitch.jpg
 

Sorry, poor copy and past from FB, but it's good to see a strong, local performance.....

WINCHESTER RANTS

Anonymous participant
· 56m ·

https://www.facebook.com/#
Santa at the Great hall- what an absolute let down, how disappointing. It’s no longer ran by HCC and it shows, it’s was terrible. Chaotic activities in the tiny westgate museum , and then you walked by an elf ( someone in their winter coat , who hadn’t even thought of an elf name).
Then you go in to a bare great hall, where you are read a story by the elf in a noisy environment.
Then called by the next elf in to the grotto in the corner, and then in to see Santa ( the normal cliche of a man in a cheap costume with a dodgy beard! - where is the usual Santa?!?) . The present is no where near the quality of last years gifts.
Then you leave and we headed to get our free hot chocolate- nope not anymore.
There is one trestle table with a few crafts on.
Where was the jester??!
Finally to top it off so that they don’t lose revenue , they allow multiple groups of the general public to view the round table at the same time.
Hugely disappointed. £18.50 per child and £6 per accompanying adult was an absolute joke for the experience we had.
All reactions:
33
 
This has been asked a zillion time's before, but why on earth do people still shell out for these atrocities?

Not to dis the punters, but surely most must be aware of the charlatans who run these disasters?

It's one of those mysteries, a bit like idiots booking holidays at Pontins, despite reading the reviews, and thinking it couldn't be that bad, and then moaning about the fact that it was. 🤷‍♂️
 
It's one of those mysteries, a bit like idiots booking holidays at Pontins, despite reading the reviews, and thinking it couldn't be that bad, and then moaning about the fact that it was. 🤷‍♂️

I can't say that they're idiots, but I do wonder if they pay attention to the Christmas capitalist crap that's been well documented from quite some time now...
 
I can't say that they're idiots, but I do wonder if they pay attention to the Christmas capitalist crap that's been well documented from quite some time now...

I wouldn't say, nor did I say, people booking these Xmas events are idiots.

I said they are a bit like those idiots that moan about how bad Pontins was, whilst admitting they had read the reviews, i.e. the warnings, because they didn't believe them.
 
I wouldn't say, nor did I say, people booking these Xmas events are idiots.

I said they are a bit like those idiots that moan about how bad Pontins was, whilst admitting they had read the reviews, i.e. the warnings, because they didn't believe them.
Yeah but I didn't say that you said they are idiots, I said that I wouldn't say that they are idiots.

It's all very sad that they don't seem to pay attention to the multitudes of complaints...

Can't get my head round it.
 
People want a ready made Disneyworld experience I suppose. But for £25 a head and within an hours drive of home.

Now compare a purpose built theme park with hundreds of millions of quid of attractions, thousands of staff and a whole cavalcade of things to do, versus a small exhibition hall with half a vanload of decorations, a couple of jobbing actors in makeshift costumes and a few hundred quid spent in a Bookers on refreshments.

Which of these is likely to be a better experience, putting cost to one side for a moment.
 
Yeah but I didn't say that you said they are idiots, I said that I wouldn't say that they are idiots.

It's all very sad that they don't seem to pay attention to the multitudes of complaints...

Can't get my head round it.

On reflection, there're hundreds of these events happening across the county every year, most must be fine, because we only ever heard of the few that are complete rip-offs.

So, I withdraw my comparison with those people moaning about Pontins, having read the reviews before booking.
 
It's people with kids though isn't it: trying to give them something to do over the holidays and the like, particularly if the kids start going "mum mum mum, dad dad dad can we go that looks fun can we pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease". ["no, fuck off"]

A major reason I've never wanted kids is because places like Pontins and Alton Towers are my idea of hell and I knew I'd spend the week dreading round being dragged round them of a weekend.
 
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