May 2007 – Blackpools Noahs ark is getting the second part of a much needed paint job to the exterior. The ark is just over 85 years old and considering the Blackpool climate has survived pretty well since the hey days of 1922. The first part of this work took place at around the same time in 2006 with alot of the exterior animals, policeman and Mt Ararat been spruced up. At one point during the 2006 touch up Noah was left headless for a couple of weeks. For some reason perhaps budget the paint job was never completed. Heres a bunch of pictures taking on May 12th. As usual if you have any comments please dont hesistate to get in touch.

Noah standing proud.

Here you can clearly see the amount of scaffolding they have used.

The amount of work on the front of the Ark is quite extensive.

A close up showing the dinosaur caged in scaffolding.

A couple of shots taken from the rear of the Ark.

The Polar bear at the rear of the Ark, I was always puzzled why this didnt get painted back in 2006, for me looking up at the ark it always looked out of place with the freshly painted animals around it.

If you want to use any photographs on this blog please get in touch paul@ridemad.com im quite happy to share and have high resolution copies of everything used, to see the complete gallery visit the Ridemad Gallery

Thanks for Reading.

Ever since Southport Pleasureland closed back on Septmber 5th 2006 the fun house has stayed open honouring parties and bookings that were made when the park was in operation.

Unfortunately this all came to an end on the 31st March 2007 when the fun house held its final party.

As a member of Club Pleasure Beach I was invited to the final ever party in the fun house, it was an invite I couldnt afford to turn down having visited the park and fun house for as long as I can remember.

I dont recall many early memories of the fun house apart from the social mixer, joy wheel and the rotating barrel, I dont even think I walked around the interior completely until a few years ago, but I must have as a nosey child.

It was arranged so that the club and a number of guests including former pleasureland staff would have the fun house to ourselves between 6pm and 9pm on the Saturday evening, in total about 50 people attended the event.

Ok heres a few pictures and a quick tour of the fun house.

The Joywheel.

The Joywheel is a huge spining wheel. the idea is to sit as central as possible to avoid being span off into the soft cushioning. Obviously its alot more difficult than it looks or sounds and a skilled operator can have you off and in a heap in seconds.

My 2 kids, the older one was the final one to stay on the Joy wheel that evening. Anyone on the wheel to long is encouraged to put their hands on their heads, its not long before they are joining the rest of the riders in a heap.

Social Mixer.

This is a great ride, everyone sits around the edge of ride and then its starts to spin. Gravity soon takes over and you become stuck against the wall, a game they play is trying to get someone to touch the centre of the mixer.

Rotating Barrel.

This is great fun to watch, you get everything from kids trying to run through it to grown ups ending up in a heap on the base of it. Anyone who is tall can do a handstand in the barrel and it looks quite cool, been a 5ft 4inch shorty its something I didnt consider.

As you would expect from a fun house there are all sorts of moving floors, shaky steps, slides, bouncy castle and other stunts to make you feel uneasy on your feet.

Wobbly steps.

looking down from the top.

The view from the top of the steps.

At the top of the fun house there was some other activities and a small soft play area for the children.

Walking further around the top of the funhouse towards the slide.

The top of the slide.

Wobbly planks move back and forward.

a nice view of the joy wheel from the top of the fun house.

Back down to ground level they had a inflatable castle that made the trip over from frontierland.

I havent a clue what this is , i think you roll coins round it.

A wooden Maze, similar to whats installed in Noahs Ark at blackpool.

They also held a charity auction with various club members picking up some items and merchandise, I got a pleasureland fleece for £5.

Various ride signs and pictures from the ghost train.

Overall we had a great night with some great company, Id like to thank everyone invovled in arranging this and wish the pleasureland staff the best of luck.

If you want to use any photographs on this blog please get in touch paul@ridemad.com im quite happy to share and have high resolution copies of everything used, to see the complete gallery visit the Ridemad Gallery

Thanks for Reading.