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A new British theme park, likely to have rides based on blockbuster films such as Jaws and Jurassic Park, will attract an estimated 8.5 million visitors a year when it opens in 2031, bosses have said.
The Universal Studio theme park, which will open in Bedford, will have some of the tallest rides in Europe, with some as high as 377ft, planning documents released show.
Split into story-themed lands, the attraction will take visitors on a themed journey with live entertainment, rides, storytellers and cinemas.
There will be at least 7,106 parking spaces, 100 coach spaces and 250 cycle spaces, along with new roads and an expanded railway station. A hotel will be built with at least 500 rooms will offer many the chance to stay over.
The details were released in planning documents submitted in July. Bosses are seeking permission to build the attraction in time to open for 2031.
In the foreword to the plans, Universal Studios wrote: “Our guests will experience blockbuster attractions, adrenaline-pumping coasters, and mind-blowing spectaculars. They’ll come face-to-face with incredible creatures, heroes, and villains.
“This place will be a playground of imagination that brings together everything Universal has for their guests – iconic characters, iconic places, iconic experiences, and fan-favourites that span generations of fans.”
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Sir Keir Starmer and chancellor Rachel Reeves view plans for the park during a visit to Bedford in April (John Sibley/PA Wire)
It added: “This growth and development will always respond to our guests’ needs and fulfil their wishes, providing the world-class services and experiences that define us across recreation, lodging, dining, entertainment, and themed environments alike,”
Here are five key takeaways about the theme park made in the documents:
8.5 million visitors a year
The “entertainment resort complex” will be designed to accommodate 8.5 million visitors a year with 55,000 visitors on peak days.
It will cover 32.37 hectares, excluding parking, with an emphasis on “highly immersive storytelling and theming”. There will be at least 500 hotel rooms.
Theatres and cinemas
Attractions will include theatres and cinemas – though it’s not stated how many.
Designers also promise: indoor and outdoor sport, recreation, leisure and spa facilities; venues with conference and/or convention spaces; shops, music and dance venues, nightclubs, hot-food takeaways, restaurants, licensed premises, shops, cafes and tattoo parlours; cultural facilities, including exhibition spaces, art galleries, museums and prayer rooms. Even vehicle showrooms are mentioned.
Story-themed lands like film sets
Bosses describe the park as having “different lands” like film sets that comprise a “distinctive blend of landscape, hardscape and architectural character seamlessly woven together to tell a story and transport guests to imaginative worlds”.
The lands will, they say, “create the emotional connection to each story but also include occasional long-range vistas across the park and attraction components that punctuate the skyline”.
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What the new Universal theme park in Bedford is expected to look like (Universal/PA)
Expanded railway station
Universal is proposing an expanded railway station on the Thameslink/Midland Main Line at Wixams Railway Station and new A421 road junction.
The proposal also “safeguards land for a potential new railway station on the proposed EWR Bletchley to Bedford line, should this come forward in the future”.
Job creation
The plan includes the creation of 8,050 jobs in the first full year of operation, 81 per cent of which are “anticipated to be taken by people living in Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes”.
The theme park would support 5,380 construction jobs at its peak in winter 2029, with many more total construction jobs supported overall.