If I were to tell you it was based lovingly on the concept of Charles Dickens' life, stories and characters - you'd probably be more obliged to believe me.
Yes - Dickens World was erected in the historic Dockyard of Chatham in Kent (outside of Rochester, where Dickens spent a lot of his writing life), and opened in May of 2007 to huge crowds. However, the day I went with two friends was a perfect day - as we were practically the only people there.
Whilst the realism of a cramped Dickensian town, full with ragamuffin children running around picking one's pockets would have added to the realism, I preferred the fact we were there on a quiet Tuesday afternoon. This odd attraction boasts a boat ride, 4-D movie, animatronic show, live theatre, a haunted house special effects show, a restaurant, bar/pub, gift shop and some of the most amazing theming seen within the confines of the British borders.
The vast scale of this indoor attraction is like nothing I've ever seen in this country; the buildings are life-size, the lighting is moody and creates a nice "dusk" atmosphere and the wondering Dickensian characters are very entertaining and not threatening at all.Upon talking to one of the character actors, he told us about the way they create their characters. He said that most of the actors are asked to put themselves in a Dickens' novel, create a Dickensian name for themselves and create a character based on that - which, I thought is a very interesting concept of character development.
Great Expectations is the main attraction here - a huge, totally indoor log flume ride that tells the story of Great Expectations, and introduces concepts of Dickens' characters along the way. The scenery in the ride is brilliant, as well as the lighting.
However, our first trip round the circuit was marred by the fact our boat didn't have the narration playing - and there were far too many static figures along the way, so it was like going on the ride with all the effects turned off.Yes - there's a backward drop in the dark (the same ride system is a Mack ride system also employed at The Dungeon attractions over Europe), and the boats move at a nice steady pace to allow one to appreciate the scenery. My main issue was that there isn't enough movement to merit the speed of the boat to appreciate it all!
The queue line through the Newgate prison and mental asylum is atmospheric (again... reminiscent of The London Dungeon's boat ride attraction), made enjoyable by the quiet nature of the attraction that day. Walking right past the "45 minute wait from this point" sign is always a gleeful moment for any theme park fan! The main let-down of the day was a haunted mansion, called Haunted Man (named after a novella by Dickens)... Basically, it's a walk 'round Scrooge's house looking at about six Pepper's Ghost effect shows (an effect very prominent in Dickens' time), exploring the villains in the works of Dickens. It is a nice effect once... but seeing it over and over again is a bit cumbersome. However, one must remember this is not a Halloween event, it's an educational attraction to teach one about Dickens.
There is a delightful - but overlong at 30 minutes - animatronics show (an effect not very prominent in Dickens' time), with some of the most amazing "holographic" projections and effects I've seen in a long time. It basically introduces us to three major characters in Dickens' novels - with a bit of Marley's ghost thrown in for macabre effect.There is a very fun 4-D movie (again, an effect not very prominent in Dickens' time) that is more entertaining than Avatar; made more sense and had better 3-D! Though it is computer animated, I thought the direction was very imaginative and told the story of Dickens' life - including a very interesting fact about a train!
I do urge you to check out Dickens World if you're in the beautiful area of Rochester in Kent; do take a couple of hours to have a look!
PROS: Good entry price, amazing theming, atmospheric, amazing use of technology, imaginative 4-D movie.
CONS: The theming on the boat ride is far too static, audio wasn't working on the boat ride our first time 'round, haunted house is not haunted enough, and too long-winded.
Dickens WorldLeviathan Way
Chatham Maritime
Kent
ME4 4LL
Telephone : 01634 890 421 Fax: 01634 891 972
Email: enquiries@dickensworld.co.uk
Editor's Note: Nick Hutson is a regular on The Season Pass Podcast and is one of the founders of MusicalTalk, the independent UK podcast for musical theater. Nick lives in London and is a huge fan of themed entertainment. We are thankful for this fun trip report - our readers always get a kick out of what's happening on the other side of the pond!
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