Blackpool Pleasure Beach (BPB) Discussion Thread

[verticalzero]

Theres a few stories that place the names for the mice and even more with conflicting dates for when they were named, surfice to say it opened with 10 mice in 1955 un named, but by the time it was modified to a three tier coaster the names appeared.

 

1 : Fergie

2 : Libby

3 : Trixie

4 : Louise

5 : Mousey

6 : Pinky

7 : Miffy

8 : Gazza

9 : Jerry

10 : Squeeky

[Fry]

^Hahaha, I always end up in Pinky, which is fine by me!

 

I thought this October it was running amazingly! Obviously rode it a lot, hehe! I still stand by the fact it's the best coaster at Blackpool. Although it did nearly kill me... I shouldn't ride it with two people in a car because the airtime pushes my head very close to some wooden beams, lol.

 

So, nothing has changed at all in terms of ride, it just looks a lot better. So, yay!

[dr.gumbo]

At first I didn't think of posting this here but since there's been a lot of talk about the 'decline in the park and management' for a while, I thought I'd post it here.

 

www.tbppbguideforums.info/bpb/

 

From that they say, I think its a disgrace that they've driven 'loyal' fans to closing down they're site. It just goes to show how dark business can be.

 

However, I don't know full details so I can't really pass an opinion.

[Mike Austin]

but due to some idiots in management at pb this has come to an end

 

I don't get it...

How can the management of a theme park close down a fansite???

[larrygator]

I can not give my perspective on this as I don't have all the details of what BPB objected to on the website.

 

A corporation has a right to protect its business from statements that or untrue and malicious. I don't know what the website owners said that would incur legal action from BPB's lawyers.

 

I'm not sure of the technicality of laws in the UK, but in the US laws can not be broken under the guise of "I can do whatever I want on my website or in cyberspace"?

 

Were the lawyers heavy-handed? Possibly, as it is hard to fight a corporation's lawyers as an individual without legal resources.

 

However, I'm not going to jump to conclusions and condone one side or the other without knowing the facts.

[mcjaco]

I'm blocked at work for the following reason:

 

Your organization's Internet use policy restricts access to this web page at this time.

 

Reason:

The Websense category "Malicious Web Sites" is filtered.

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

URL:

http://www.tbppbguideforums.info/bpb/

[robbalvey]

Hmm...I don't know anything about this site so I can't really comment on any of the history. All I have is the final post by the site's creator to go from. Now, if this is *all* you know about the site, IMO, it doesn't sound very professional especially if they are trying to be the "un-official guide" and are the third site that comes up on Google behind the park's main site. (It goes official site, YouTube videos, BPB Guide)

 

Let me post what is on that site. As you can see it's filled with grammar and spelling errors and sounds like it was written by a "kid":

 

Sadly the time as come for me to announce the End of the BPB Guide.

 

Its really been a difficult decision to come to this, after 5 yrs of trying to make an enjoyable community for the fans of the BPB Guide.

 

The reason for this decision Is due to the attitude i continue to get from the Pleasure Beach.

 

The Pleasure Beach are really starting to spit there dummy out when it comes to topics that they dont like, And i just havent got the heart any more to put up with there legal action.

 

It finally came when from one simple mistake on prices, They once AGAIN send a dirty email to me.

 

The fact is THE PARK DONT DESERVE A FAN SITE!

 

I know this announcement will upset alot of people, And i know that it will make some directors at the park happy.

 

I hope you will respect my decision.

 

I would like to thank ALOT of people on this site, Past and old, who put this site on the map.

 

I would like to thank Rick Condona, Who with his excellent Infusion updates, Put this site on the map with Infusion construction.

 

Thanks to WARDL895 who helped me at the very start to construct the guide.

 

Stuart Mulcrow, Who sadly left the team last year, Hes a great friend.

 

Graham Walton, A friend that ive called my best friend, Great company, Always there to listen, And helped towards the guide.

 

Peter Mowbray, All his Trip reports and updates, Thanks peter Wish you and your family all the best.

 

Wayne Walker, I can still remember when i spoke to you on the phone, And you got your dad to take you the park to get pictures of traumatizers track on the car park

 

All the dedicated members that have stuck with us from the start, Thankyou, And im sorry.

 

And finally my side kick Scott Bickerton, Who has been with me from neally the start, Who has stuck with me thru thick and thin thanks Scott

 

And at the Pleasure Beach there is nobody to thank, Because there was not any help from there end.

 

All i can say to you is this, If you think well the guide has gone im going start a fan site, DONT!

 

You will be wasteing your time and money, Because after 5 yrs of putting my work into this site, All i get in return is legal emails.

 

Like ive already put, THEY DON'T DESERVE A FAN SITE!

 

I have spoke and speak to alot of BPB fans, And 80% of them are really drifting away from the park.

 

Is this the end of me ??? NO!

 

After a few weeks speaking to a few people, I am working on a BRAND NEW website experience on a UK Theme Park.

 

Ive learnt from my mistakes, And i know with my new knowledge that the NEW website experience will be a success.

 

All i can say is THANKYOU to everyone, THANKYOU for your support, and i wish you and all your familys all the best and good health.....

 

Now before i actually start crying, Because im not ashamed to tell ya, Im going to leave it here.

 

So everyone can say there goodbyes and best wishes, The guide will close its doors on Saturday 17th January

 

 

XXXXXXXXXX THANKYOU XXXXXXXXXXX GOODBYE XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Lea.

 

If you were Blackpool Pleasure Beach would YOU want people reading a site that sounds like a grade school project to get information about your business? And from that post it sounds like the site is less of a "guide" and more of a "complaints forum."

 

Compare this site with some of the Disney unofficial guides like All Ears Net or MiceAge and I think you can see why Blackpool wouldn't want this site representing the park in any way.

 

Again, I don't know any of the people on the site or anything about the site, I'm just basing my opinions on that one post. Which seems like a fairly important post if they are trying to drum up any kind of support.

 

What stood out to me in that poorly written rant was this:

It finally came when from one simple mistake on prices, They once AGAIN send a dirty email to me.

What this tells me is that the site has made mistakes in the past by posting incorrect data on important information and the park has repeatedly had to send them emails to fix their mistakes because guests will come to the park having read the mistakes on the site and now all of a sudden it's become a guest relations problem for BPB.

 

It seems very probable to me that many people would find this site and think it's the park's real site. (Heck, I still get emails from people thinking that TPR is a park and want to know our operating hours!) And based on that post and repeated information errors I can totally see why Blackpool would want that site gone.

 

--Robb

[dr.gumbo]

^ Fair point, by no means did I think the site was perfect and maybe they could have 'cleaned' the place up a bit but I still think 'legal action' is a bit too far (If they tried reasoning with them, fair enough).

[jedimaster1227]

^From what I could get form the owner's last post, the site contacted him multiple times before in an effort to make his site work with proper information and a decent association with the park itself (not official, but at least something they wouldn't be embarassed to be associated with).

 

In my opinion, if a park has attempted to fix issues which plague a fansite dedicated to their park and the site does not make a concerned effort to adjust, then the park has every right to take action. Really, if a park finds fault (and has the legal standing to take action), then they have every right to do so... But that is just my opinion.

[MrSkyWhirl]

Am I the only one who assumed that the original poster IS the owner of that site that was taken d0wn!!11!!!!!1!!!?

[larrygator]

^No, the original poster's grammar is much better.

[Ed]

Well this either falls down to two things:

 

a) the website was poorly run with bad information that wasn't true, therefore defacing the "image" of BPB.

 

b) Blackpool are just being arsey.

 

Quite honestly I can see it being a mixture of the both, with the recent changes being made at the Pleasure Beach it's becoming less of an attractive destination.

[ginzo]

This BPB site shutting down represents a big win in the war against illiteracy.

[dandaman]

It seems very probable to me that many people would find this site and think it's the park's real site. (Heck, I still get emails from people thinking that TPR is a park and want to know our operating hours!)

 

There should be some sorta chat transcript for those types of calls...

 

Robb at 5 a.m. PST: Hello?

 

Caller at 8 a.m. EST: Yeah, what time are you guys open?

 

Robb: Future World opens at 9, World Showcase at 11.

 

Caller: What? Isn't this Cedar Point?

 

Robb: No, and it's not Epcot, either. Have a magical day. *click*

 

----------

 

Caller: Yeah, I'd like to speak to a manager.

 

Robb: Please hold.

 

*15 minutes pass*

 

Robb (different voice): Hello, you asked for a janitor?

 

Aah, so many possibilities... anyway, the whole thing just sounds like a cross between an Oscar speech and a reverse "Leave Britney Al-ooooone!", though I'd never thought about parks having to deal directly with poorly-maintained unofficial sites. I'm just curious because if they were apparently poorly-maintained, how had it become the #1 unofficial BPB site (for Google hits, anyway)?

 

Dan "Better yet, just pretend you own some park then yell 'BUFFEEEEEEEET' about 20 seconds in" Smith

[Shavethewhales]

Most kids just don't realize the legal responsibilities that come with being any kind of representative of the park, even a stated "unofficial" one. Most operators will be quite happy to see a fan site start up around their attraction, but once your site becomes prominent and you post erroneous information like incorrect prices, you're harming the park's operational directly. It falls squarely under the definition of legal slander.

 

I've run a semi-popular park fansite now for some time and my advice to all of you similar webmasters is this:

• 
  Always keep a positive tone - disappointment can be expressed, but you simply must watch yourself should you actually harm the park's reputation. Remember that damage to reputation is grounds for legal action. Always point out the sunny side of whatever situation.
   
  Don't even try to keep up with important data, such as park hours and prices. They change often, and having erroneous info can lead to big issues, as we've just seen. Stick to ride reviews and such.
   
  Don't allow forum members to run the park down too far. You are responsible for what goes on in your forum. Of course you want free speech, but its your responsibility to make sure the park's reputation isn't trashed and that erroneous information isn't passed off as official info.
  

 

That's actually all it takes. It's not hard, just use some common sense and be positive!

[dr.gumbo]

Am I the only one who assumed that the original poster IS the owner of that site that was taken d0wn!!11!!!!!1!!!?

 

No offence but I do find that quite insulting and more to the point, illogical. Maybe you should read things more thoroughly before you try and make presumptions like that.

 

After thinking about it for a bit, I think the site got a bit too much credibility for its own good. Not that I'm saying its a bad site or anything, I just think that the site shouldn't have attracted as much attention to itself and maybe they wouldn't have been pestered by the park.

[Fallen Heretic]

Well, Ive only visited the BPBGuide a few times, and here is what I got from it...

 

First time around it seemed a really childish community, so I didnt bother signing up for it. I had heard a couple of years later it had 'grown up' so i went back to see.

 

There were lots up to date pictures on construction, removals, rehabs and the like, which was good. There was also some good mature discussion to be found.

Unfortunately this seemed to be outnumbered by complaints and an apparent "we hate Amanda" theme (or the bitch as she seemed to be called alot). They dont seem to get that the woman is just trying to keep the park afloat in very difficult times. Seems everyone thought they could run it better.

Remember that Valhalla removal rumour a while ago? the one with the fake news story? I first saw that on BPBguide. Whether it originated there Im not sure, but they seemed to use it as an excuse to bash the management. At least places like Screamscape make it clear which stories are rumour and which are confimred.

 

Im probably making it sound worse than it actually is. That said, I got the impression that there was more nagative than positive on the site. Sure, its easy to be negative about BPB (or PBB, whatever) but there didnt seem to be enough people highlighting the positive things.

 

I can see why BPB would not be keen on that site. And I wonder if the letters sent really were that bad compared to some of the things that were posted on that site.

[Fry]

Remember that Valhalla removal rumour a while ago? the one with the fake news story? I first saw that on BPBguide. Whether it originated there Im not sure, but they seemed to use it as an excuse to bash the management.

 

Yeah, I'm 99% sure that rumor originated from BPBGuide. I would not doubt if that highly annoyed the management, because a lot of enthusiasts (including me) fell for it because it seemed so true. What about the GP that would/might have read that? If that was one of the issues BPB took up with the Guide, I really wouldn't judge the park for taking some form of action. Of course, up to this point my entire post has been speculation, lol.

 

Honestly, my thoughts on this site aren't the best because we've had 'run-ins' despite the fact I don't think I've ever posted on there because I didn't use to hold BPB in the highest opinion and voiced that on other forums, but, I won't entirely get into it. Regardless, I really don't blame BPB for having a problem with the way they represent the park. OK, maybe they're being a little harsh, but...

 

On the subject of Blackpool and the whole 'going downhill' thing, I'd like to say I thought the park was the best I'd seen it at last October and I had my best visit there, and most successful in terms of getting rides in (despite the fact it was the busiest I've seen it!). To compare, I hadn't visited since April 2006 since I thought the place was terrible back then, and it wasn't even my choice to go in October - glad I did, I thought the park had improved leaps and bounds! I've yet to find anyone who agrees with me though that Amanda has been a positive influence.

[dr.gumbo]

^ I agreed with you, although they do seem to be a little shifty as far as business is concerned (false claims ect.) I still think the parks a great place to go to. Besides, most of the complaints seem to be directed at the closure of Southport.

[Ccron10]

Most kids just don't realize the legal responsibilities that come with being any kind of representative of the park, even a stated "unofficial" one. Most operators will be quite happy to see a fan site start up around their attraction, but once your site becomes prominent and you post erroneous information like incorrect prices, you're harming the park's operational directly. It falls squarely under the definition of legal slander.

 

I've run a semi-popular park fansite now for some time and my advice to all of you similar webmasters is this:

• 
  Always keep a positive tone - disappointment can be expressed, but you simply must watch yourself should you actually harm the park's reputation. Remember that damage to reputation is grounds for legal action. Always point out the sunny side of whatever situation.
   
  Don't even try to keep up with important data, such as park hours and prices. They change often, and having erroneous info can lead to big issues, as we've just seen. Stick to ride reviews and such.
   
  Don't allow forum members to run the park down too far. You are responsible for what goes on in your forum. Of course you want free speech, but its your responsibility to make sure the park's reputation isn't trashed and that erroneous information isn't passed off as official info.
  

 

That's actually all it takes. It's not hard, just use some common sense and be positive!

That is great advice for fansites to learn from and for me since I plan on starting a fansite. Too bad that website didn't base their material off of that.

 

At first, the site looked like any normal fansite, but after looking at some of the forums and blog posts, it shows the lack of moderating in the site and following through with spelling and grammar.

[AstroDan]

Cripes... seems a bit of a harsh attack on BPB Guide here by some members!

 

The facts are, BPB is suffering major problems at the moment, there's a lot of concern over its long term future. Next season, many rides will SBNO including the 1933 Rollercoaster plus many others. In addition, staff continue to be a law-unto-themselves, with staff smoking during ride operation, swearing at guests and much more.

 

The site has a lot of content, and an active forum community made up of a mixture of members.

 

Whilst, I myself, am mostly found on the Alton Towers forum "Towers Times", I do have an account on the BPB Guide, and use it for park news.

 

TTF also held a joint meet-up at the Pleasure Beach in July 2007, and they're nothing more than a nice bunch, who genuinely care for what is one of the most historically important amusement parks in the world.

 

The Pleasure Beach can't do anything right it seems, at the moment.

 

NEW FOR 2009: "some fountains" and "ticket desks" following 2008's "RELOCATED TRAUMATIZER from SOUTHPORT"

 

[TheBannedKid]

It just seems to be an oxymoron to have a fan-site that bad mouths the park more often than not.

[robbalvey]

Cripes... seems a bit of a harsh attack on BPB Guide here by some members!

I don't think it's that harsh considering we know nothing about it other than the news release the posted about the site shutting down.

 

IMO, that's a very important piece of information that they are sharing and a lot can be derived from that.

 

Others that have posted are active on the site or at least have followed it over the years and voiced their thoughts.

 

I think the discussion has been pretty fair based on what little we have seen.

 

--Robb

[Kennyweird]

If BPB doesn't want to put up with a mistake-riddled fansite tarnishing their image, then they don't have to. It may seem unfair or a bit harsh, but the law is the law.

[robbalvey]

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