Attraction Profile
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Doctor Who Experience London’s new sci-fi adventure
There’s a new tourist attraction in London, offering visitors an immersive out-of this-world adventure with a uniquely British twist.
Park World steps inside the Doctor Who Experience
The Doctor’s assistant
In the current Doctor Who TV series, the Doctor's assistant is Amy Pond (Karen Gillian). At the Doctor Who Experience, however, it was the creative design and AV specialist Sarner that was invited by BBC Worldwide to bring the attraction to life.
As well its experience with exhibitions, events, museums and other attractions, Sarner also boasts an impressive portfolio of theme park work. Recently it produced an immersive multimedia show for Ocean Park's Ocean Express funicular railway in Hong Kong, created a Pepper's Ghost effect for Adventure Island's Over The Hill dark ride in the UK and gave a makeover to Alton Towers' monorail. Other clients include Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Thorpe Park and Tusenfryd.
www.sarner.com Dalek Battle 24 P
roduced by the BBC, Doctor Who is the world’s longest running science fiction television series, following the adventures of an eccentric time traveller and his alien encounters. A key feature of the show is the Doctor’s TARDIS (Time And Relative Distance In Space), a time machine that takes on the appearance of a vintage police phone box, but which is much larger and more quirky on the inside than the outside. First screened in 1963, it was arguably the return of Doctor Who in 2005 – complete with 21st Century CGI and effects – that paved the way for the immersive walk- through adventure that is the Dr Who Experience. The new attraction, which runs at London’s Olympia Two exhibition centre until the end of this year, is operated BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC. “We believe that this will be the journey of a lifetime for children of all ages who have always dreamt of being part of the Doctor Who adventure,” says Philip Murphy, managing director for live events at BBC Worldwide. “Our research with fans told us the thing they wanted most of all was the chance to step inside
Matt Smith as the Doctor
the TARDIS. Sarner took all of the
fans’ comments on board and delivered us an amazing visitor attraction.”
During the one to two-hour experience, which comprises a 30-minute walk-through show and “free flow” exhibition area, guests encounter some of Doctor Who’s best-loved and scariest monsters, take centre stage at a space-age battle of the Daleks and experience a thrilling 3D finale. It’s a far cry from previous and perhaps more crudely executed Doctor Who exhibitions (visit
www.drwhoexhibitions.co.uk and you’ll see why). “When the TV series returned with Christopher Eccleston in 2005, I think the public’s perception of Doctor Who changed,” observes BBC Worldwide’s head of exhibitions and events, Paula Al-Lach. “We wanted to develop an immersive attraction to match these expectations, rather than just an exhibition of costumes and props.”
Dream Job
Based just outside London, Sarner was selected to create the Dr Who Experience last February after a competitive tendering process, and the complete install was handled in just three months. Since opening to the public just a few weeks ago (on February 21), large queues have been gathering at Olympia to experience
MARCH 2011
Star Ship UK
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