# American Adventure Theme Park, Ilkeston Derbyshire-April 08



## jon_nic

I decided to revisit American adventure theme park to see how decimated it was and whether it had been developed on yet. The place is definitely looking deserted and there is not a lot left of the place and it was very sad to see it like this as I had some fond memories of the park in its heyday when I was a child. 

Panoramic view of the site from Shipley country park







The pit head on approach to the park. 





The first entrance was closed for years, I always liked this entrance and I don’t know why they decided to only use the one at the bottom of the park. 










The car park at the bottom of the park looks a bit empty. Pitt lane entrance is blocked off so there is no entry by car here










A kestrel watches over the park and me from up high on the hill, don’t know if this was once a camera hut or was intended as a birds nest?





The security guard on his patrol across the other side of the lake















I waited for a train, but nothing came. The fact that most of the track has been ripped up probably didn’t help. 





The remains of the farm animal buildings





Crazy golf





Nightmare Niagara log flume – remains of.





The shop buildings still remain. Silver city has been completely demolished though















Looks like someone didn’t approve of the facilities.






Aztec kingdom and motion master buildings still remain
















The racing kart track was still intact 

















The remains of the water rapids are still evident. A lot of the concrete ‘track’ is filled in but some is still open.
















The carrousel for loading/unloading boats is still intact but without the wooden platform. All the wood from the queuing area has gone but it looks like they gave up on destroying the concrete sections. 








I didn’t have time to go and see the side where the twin looper and sky coaster used to be but it all looked flattened from a distance






for a comparison, here are maps from different years. notice that as the years go on there are fewer rides and the missile and nightmare niagra 'dissapear' in the later years.
1987





1989





1997





1999





2004?





A shame that the park had to end its life like this, but it was on its knees for years before it closed.
I hope Derbyshire council make good use of the land. The lake is very active with wildlife and so could be turned in to a nature reserve and be given to shipley country park which is only next door. But It will proberbly end up as a housing estate. only time will tell.


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## smileysal

These are sad pics. I knew they were going to demolish it all, but seeing it like this is really sad. Used to take my now 16 year old here regularly during the summer when she was little. Used to watch the stunt riders in the western show at Silver City. She used to love that. And feeding the animals in the small farm there. 

It started life as Britannia Park, then it went into major financial difficulties, and i think it was Derbyshire county council who took it on, Think it was Granada who has also owned it. Not sure who had it for the last few years tho. 

Used to use that entrance thats boarded up, then as you went through the turnstiles, on the left were all those little shops, that you've got pics of. Candle makers, gift shop, Cadbury's lol, soap makers, glass blowing, can't remember all the other shops that were there now. Memory is a little rusty.

Think Tims took pics of the place when it had first closed. Then a few more people got pics. Then during the auction, there were other pics put up (sorry guys, I can't remember who went there now  ).

Used to be a good theme park years ago, and they used to have the large rides as well as the smaller ones. then a few years ago, they got rid of most of the white knuckle ones, and started catering for the younger children. I think that was it's downfall.

With luck, it will be taken over again by Shipley Country Park. It would be a shame to stick more box size houses on it. 

Cheers jon_nic for these latest pics from AA. Welcome to Derelict Places, hope you enjoy it here. Excellent first post.

 Sal


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## drypulse

thats some good exploring, i like the panormaics. always nice to see theme parks. how big was it when it was open? it looks like it didn't have too many rides yet the car park is pretty big.


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## jon_nic

thanks, 
I used to go as a kid proberbly once a year in the late 80's. I was allways amazed at the stunt shows in silver city and in the arena area where they had stunt riders on horses and motobikes. For nostalgic reasons I paid a visit there about two years ago and they had gotten rid of all the big rides including nightmare niagra which was at one time the tallest drop log flume in europe apparently. this was the first sign i had that it was going down hill rapidly and half the site was cordend off to visitors. 

Trying to cater for only children was a big mistake and the ultimate downfall of the place. they could have attracted many more punters by simply adding another big coaster and had two sections of the lake, the big boys toys and the kiddy stuff so everyone would have been happy.

I am sure i have photos of the place in the 80's i will try and find them and scan them.

A great website dedicated to the history of AA with lots of pictures is here: http://www.theamericanadventure.moonfruit.com/


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## Goldie87

Its strange to see it like that. Have some fond memories of the place, though as far as theme parks go it was pretty crap really lol


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## fezzyben

yeah i used to love the place i went to take my cousin ages ago just before it shut and the woman on the gate was letting people in for free! tis a shame


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## tims

I did this a few days after it cloesed, My god its changed, Can you get in the buildings with the big heads? Were the buildings where they did the shoot out still there?


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## King Al

Great pics jon, Looks like that security guard is doing a good job


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## krela

There are notices all over this site to not include any details of access or security. Please don't in the future.


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## NobodyGirl

Just had my mom looking over my shoulder on this one. She used to take us there a lot, She wants to go on an explore now


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## underitall

I saw this derbyshire development opportunities ages ago, may be of some interest to peeps, and id to would love to have a bsah at investigatin the place>>>


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## johno23

Fond memories of hot summer days,getting wet through and going home filthy and knackered.Had some good days there when it was properly themed and active.That motion master cinema was really fierce and really threw you around.

Really sad to see it in this state,just hope they make "good"use of it and feature the lake as part of it.

Great report and photos


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## nursepayne

What a totally weird place!Love the 'photo point'


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## jon_nic

and here is one more map from 1998 - what a difference 10 years makes!


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## BrickMan

visited early 2007 before the auction.

took loads of shots, comparison report up soon enough! 


its just all out destruction thats occured there though! as they've removed every last scrap of everything to sell @ the auction. 

I don't ever remember going specifically, but when I was little (about 10-12) i went to a theme park with a mate and his family, and when I was walking around AAL I recognised a few things here and there, so can only reckon it must have been here 

anyway, pic's up soon! they were on 28dl, but the thread got deleted way back as people were making a mess out of it :icon_evil


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## sassyk

Great explore, i went there when i was younger, think the last time was about 1996, its really sad to see it like this.


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## Frazer1991

it's a shame that , was their few months back and it look like it had more stuff , watch out for the German Shepherd guard dogs.


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## Mr Sam

shame its gone so quick i went to the auction as my mum never did take me when i was a nipper


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## borntobemild

It's strange too see something relatively new becoming derelict. 

Photos look really eerie - like an old set for the Avengers or something.

Visited with the kids about 2002 i reckon and had a great time. It's a shame it has closed - think they tried to be all things to all people.


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## Foxylady

Wow, what a difference the site is now to when Tims first took photos. I don't have any attachments to when it was open or anything, and from the point of view of exploring, I have to say I find it very interesting. There's something incredibly peacefully weird about it, if that makes sense!  I love the pics of the pier and the water rapids remains. Good stuff, jon-nic.


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## WillPS

Thanks, although it's nice to know that (something!) remains, it's upsetting to see so much has gone, a lot of really quality theming has been destroyed. Surely somebody could have taken it on?

What remains now is (more or less) what's left of what was built for Britannia Park back in 1985. For those who are interested, I wrote an article documenting the parks history a couple of years ago. You can read it here.

A lot of my childhood memories lay in those ruins


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## Neosea

WillPS said:


> A lot of my childhood memories lay in those ruins



But on the other hand, your childhood memories keep the place alive for you


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## jon_nic

Neosea said:


> But on the other hand, your childhood memories keep the place alive for you




Very true, look on the positive side of life! American Adventure (for those who loved it) lives on in our hearts!!!


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## jon_nic

*openmike article*



WillPS said:


> For those who are interested, I wrote an article documenting the parks history a couple of years ago. You can read it here.




The openmike article was a great read, thankyou WillPS for sharing the link. It seems the AA had a grey cloud hanging over it from the start due to all the politics and re-ownerships.


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## BrickMan

yeah, it was basically trying to compete with alton + thorpe park + guilivers all of whic lay within an hours drive or so. so people would rather drive to alton!

so instead of putting up big white knuckle rides they tore them down to sell so they could make it into more of a kiddies theme park, however, this was teh wrong desicion, as gullivers pretty much already did that an isn't 10mins down the road! infact from top of the loop coaster you could probably SEE guillivers kingdom!!!

in this day and age how it failed and shut is beyond me, the management must have been blind, or ill informed


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## theoss

BrickMan said:


> yeah, it was basically trying to compete with alton + thorpe park + guilivers all of whic lay within an hours drive or so. so people would rather drive to alton!
> 
> so instead of putting up big white knuckle rides they tore them down to sell so they could make it into more of a kiddies theme park, however, this was teh wrong desicion, as gullivers pretty much already did that an isn't 10mins down the road! infact from top of the loop coaster you could probably SEE guillivers kingdom!!!
> 
> in this day and age how it failed and shut is beyond me, the management must have been blind, or ill informed



A very different site to the one I visited about a year ago.

I got caught by someone who has an interest in the site around January. The lack of development at AA seemed to be as much about politics as it did finance. There was apparantly a few planning ideas refused.

Anyway, he seemed to think the site would be turned into a sort of country persuits thing- fishing, equestrian, maybe go karts. The kinds of things he thought people would spend money on.


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## underitall

I abso dont agree with you BrickMan, sorry. AA had HUGE potential, and still has. Its very close to the main road/motorway, and deserves respect, if it wasnt for the lot that say people would rather go to Alton...it wouldv stayed, and expanded, id rather go to AA than Alton, even now, Alton is soo overrated. (Coming from an Euorpean Coaster Club member)


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## Gunny

As no one seems to have posted it,here is the link to a Forum about AA,some ex employees on it.

http://www.towerstimesforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=9072


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## BrickMan

meh, tis just my view, I wasn't on the committee, I wasn't runing it, don't even live local, that view was just based on what I know/knew about it.


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## WillPS

If you ask me, the problem with AA was severalfold...

The development was originally a way for the National Coal Board to say "look, we care", but Britannia Park did nothing but annoy residents, and that created a lot of ill feeling towards the place. Additionally, some of the work done by KLF (the owners of Britannia Park) and the NCB was shoddy, and resulted in subsidence (part of the reason for the closure of the wonderful top entrance, the other part being John Broome's desire for a one-level park).

Then there's the issue of advertising - the park never advertised itself very well, particularly in the mid-90s. This meant the park's target audience rarely expanded beyond the East Midlands. Seeing as Granada (now ITV plc.) owned them at that time, that really shouldn't have been the case!

The whole Adventure World thing in the late 90s was pure fantasy aswell... turn the place into Islands of Adventure (Universal Studios Complex, Florida) - that would have been amazing but with UK planning laws that could never have happened. A huge inverted rollercoaster (think Nemesis), a woodie to rival anything else in the UK - brilliant ideas but didn't even reach the council's planning board!

The real clincher though, was Ventureworld/THG (park's last owners) lack of foresight. They quickly realised that with minimal input the same relatively mediorce audience would return over and over... and then they realised that they realised that taking away a large chunk of their maintenance budget wouldn't have any immediate effect either... in the long term this absolutely devastated the park. It got to the point where 3 key rides (Rapids, Missile and Nightmare Niagara log flume) were unreliable and unlikely to pass their annual safety check. All three would have needed a sizable chunk of investment just to get them running for 2005... and THG didn't see the need.

So the park was literally forced to throw away Nightmare Niagara - probably the most popular attraction the park had during the summer. I literally cried when I saw them taking that thing apart. She really was on her last legs and was very poorly treated by the end - sizable hole's in her channel had been patched with something that looked suspiciously like Polyfilla. 

The Missile also went; the park disposed of the one thing they would need to succeed again - their planning wedge. Any objections could have been met with "but it's not as tall/loud as The Missile" - with that gone they were at the planner's mercy.

The Shipley Lakeside site is _perfect_ for a theme park, and the basic infrastructure laid down by Britannia Park was very good. But with the Leisure industry the way it is and Merlin's (who own Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Legoland etc.) dominance over the theme park sector... I can't see it happening. Perhaps Cedar Fair will come over and rescue it. Perhaps I should keep dreaming .


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## underitall

Six Flags England!!!

Bring in the Six Flags chain, and let them fish it up, but thatll be slightly off topic, so ill shut up now.


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## jon_nic

just saw this article from Ripley local paper. 
money being well spent on "security" then! 

http://www.ripleyandheanornews.co.uk/news/90000-to-bulldoze-the-last.3753872.jp


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## BraddFarny

Heya
This place will hold memories for me
Im now 15 years old and the first time I went here was for my 10th birthday were i went with my best freind who moved to blackpool
I went here again when i was 12 with my friend who moved to america
I live down the road and it takes 20minutes on foot
Ive allways wanted to dive under the fence for a loook around but my dad would kill me if the coppers where to bring me home for trespassing
I went for the auction which they held to auction things off. I dived under some rope and walked around the log flume station before my mum told me to get out as security was on the way
Sadly my computer fuked up and i lost me precious last pictures of the walk around. I never went through the old blue and red entrance, so when i went to the auction in ocotber i wet myself as i walked through the old entrance, looked around the shops and went down the blue and white stairs with the stars on
But like i said, my computer broke and i have lost them pictures 
Now all i have is my memories


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## james.s

*American Adventure Feb 2009*

I visited a few days ago, nearly everything is gone now, the old entrance remains and so does "Aztec Corner" All that is left of most of the major parts is now rubble, but the remaining buildings seem to be in good condition. I will hopefully post some of my pictures soon.
I never went to the park when it was open (I am 15 too) and I never saw a soul on my way around when I went the other day.


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## jon_nic

would be good to see some pictures then, even if they are just of rubble..


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## smileysal

Yes please, the last time me, Mendo and Fairygirl went during the summer last year, we just ventured to the bottom end of the lake to feed the ducks. Although we could see 3 uniformed people where the buildings are, no one came to the side we were on to move us on, just left us to it. 

Still think Derbyshire County Council should own it again (if they don't already) and incorporate it back into Shipley Country Park, with the addition of rides again. And rebuild it back up, but with the entrance from the country park side instead. 

Looking forward to seeing any pics from here.

 Sal

ps, the breakfast presenter on Mansfield 103.2 used to be in the western cast, and regularly used to drop from a balcony above the saloon.


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## james.s

I will post the pics sometime today then. Most of the site is rubble, but there are still small details which give clues as to what was there. They stopped using the old entrance due to mining subsidence. If you go inside it, some parts are held up with scaffolding.


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## T-bar

an old topic I know but brings back great memories


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## littlelaura

Don't know if these are any help to anyone but its how it used to look back when i visited in 1996, 
good times.
Good explore by the way, nice shots of whats left. I'm surprised it still standing at all..







Log Flume.


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## jon_nic

nice shots Laura
reminds me of the olden days!

I think it is all gone now (except the lake) as this was done a year ago. Dont think derbyshire council know what to do with the place.


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## Locksley

lol, I remember I nearly s*** myself on that log flume, was reyt scary. I was like 5 at the time though! Certainly brings back memories!


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## james.s

The only real trace of that flume now is some of the concrete ducts and channels, all of those are now full of rubble. It's a shame to lose this place, but it was a real economic disaster.


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## Anthillmob74

i must walk around with my eyes are ears closed, i didnt even know this place was shut. how long has it been gone?

looks so strange seeing an empty theme park.


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## Mr Solo

*American Adventure*

It's been gone about 2 years now.

I'm thinking of paying the site a vist soon, any advice or areas to avoid welcome.

Happy to meet up with others to explore together.


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## james.s

PM sent


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## mineme

*fire*

several fires have been reported at this site on todays this is derbyshire not shore how mutch dammage has been done though.


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## tbkscott

Wow the memories of this place, went there many times when i was younger - does anyone remember panning for 'gold' use to be near the log flume area i think. Great site will have to take a look soon before its totaly gone.


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## Marley85

I went there when I was 14 its a shame to see it like that.


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## jon_nic

tbkscott, I remember the panning for gold. still got the "gold" medal somewhere. it was a bit of a con really as no matter how many nuggets you got you just recieved a plastic medal.
Prior to that I remember that area being used for a photo machine that made it look like you were surfing, think it was just a green screen behind and the sea was projected behind, then you paid for a photo of it.
Long distant memorys of my childhood.


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## tbkscott

Tell me about it, remember it well mate, its a great shame to see it like this now.


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