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Attempting to sneak into Drayton Manor theme park (and how we managed it back in 2007)
🕑 Added 2024-10-09 15:51:59 +0000 UTCIn 2007 a young GeoWizard and an even younger Welsh Greg set off from Aldridge and headed East. Same old story right? not quite. Excitement levels had waned slightly of late, so we hatched a magnificent plan: we were going to sneak into the 5th biggest theme park in the country, using our blossoming missioning skills and our beloved Footherley brook as a secret entry point. Thanks to a very early version of Google Earth (the first instance where I used it to plan a mischievous mission but certainly not the last) and a slice of luck, the mission was a success. After an arduous wade up the thigh deep brook we had entered the theme park through an old brick tunnel. Although we were spotted by staff, we managed to flee the scene, change our shirts and hideaway in the splash canyon queue, emerging to the sight of gaggles of agitated security personnel.
Fast forward 17 years and I decided it was high time that I recreated this classic mission. At 33 years old being caught there was an added layer of embarrassment attached to being caught, but there was also no guarantee that our tunnel would still be crawlable...
Next up on the $4 Tier:
-Strava Segment Hunter #2 (filming next week)
-Exploring the Lichfield to Walsall abandoned railway (filming the week after)
Have a great week everyone!
Comments
Falcon
fyi if you try sneak into Alton Towers and you are caught you will be banned from all merlin parks for life (Thorpe Park, Chessington, LegoLand and possibly all SeaLife centres). They have cameras EVERYWHERE with facial recognition. So if you ever plan on going to a merlin attraction again I wouldn't risk it.
Jake Wilkinson
Oakwood 👀
Joss
I'd blummin love that
LordLard
Brilliant :-). 1000% yes to Alton Towers!
Huw Ramsay
You should sneak into more places, I’ve seen a few people do Glastonbury online but I think yours would be more entertaining. Just a thought.
Bill W
Thanks for the adventure. You never fail to put a smile on my face. :)
Hannah Samuels-Lyons
Yes I understand the latest is taking a very long time but will be worth the wait
Alex Danckaarts
Great stuff Tom! I've noticed it's easier to get away with cheeky stuff like this when you get older, as people don't suspect a 30-year-old as easily. Love these kinds of videos, keep it up! Greetings from Finland!
James M Errington
Or actually you could go explore the remains of the American Adventure Theme Park, maybe a little before your time.
James M Errington
Nice! Lots of great memories of Drayton Manor. You could sneak into the West Midlands Safari Park next, probably not such a great idea though.
Daniel
Daniel Reid here, thank you so much for finding my grandparents in your newest GeoDetective . They were born around the late 30s early 40s so chances are the pic was more around the late 50s early 60s. Sad to see the hotel demolished but cracking work nonetheless. Cheers
a_ndy
one of my favorite videos in a while
Saad Siddique
Is the Geodetective still in works?
Laurie
Another great vid, thanks! Followed all this while and never knew we had the same birthday. Happy birthday for Sunday!
W dJ
Geowizard and Draynor Manor
tom davies
Will do Tal !
tom davies
Haha thanks Stu. Not much creativity involved in that line, just a lot of pent up school humor. Alton Towers next for sure! maybe I'll sneak in at Halloween...
Hannah Samuels-Lyons
Back of rackhams
tom davies
Cheers Ash!
tom davies
2002 was the glory days for me too. Klondike, Skyflier, Apocalypse. Great times. Not quite sure how someone met their end on those rapids! Cheers Alex!
tom davies
Cheers mate! more rollercoaster sneak ins to come then!
tom davies
Cheers Fergus!
tom davies
I knew that.... ;)
tom davies
Thank you Hannah! glad you enjoyed. Yeah you're right. I mean they were just throw away jokes really, but as you say simply mentioning your age makes a thing out of it that needn't be there. Rest assured I don't intend on slowing down!
tom davies
I was walking round there the other day. tall barbed wire fence and the odd camera, but I reckon it's doable!
tom davies
haha we're bound to bump into each other one of these days then!
tom davies
haha im sure it would thrill them more than any ride!
Tal
definitely sneak into the towers!
Stuart Duncan
You’ve got a boner. Best line in a cracking video. You are so creative. Now we just have to wait another 16 years to see you relive it again. What a way to see out your 40s. Love to see an Alton Towers one. That and Thorpe Park were the only major ones I visited as a kid.
exploring with ashley
A cool fun video
Alex Callaghan
This is perfect: I remember coming here on a local Youth Group holiday circa. 2002 back when Shockwave was the UK’s first stand up rollercoaster or some tosh. Then that G Force rollercoaster was built the next year and the queues were brummie and wild. And all the while the rubber dingy rapids weren’t lethal. Now all I’ve got are my kindred Villa cousins. Lovely vid
Whitchit
Bloody brilliant! Definitely not too old (Happy birthday for Sunday btw). This sort of thing is utterly fantastic!! And the fact you sill bought a ticket really made me happy - it shows you were just doing it for the hell of it, and not to save money.
Craig Cooper
Yeah Alton Towers next for sure. Loads of fun. And you bought a ticket so no harm no foul I say.
Fergus Roberts
again another great vid tom
Craig Cooper
*Mussels 😅
Hannah Samuels-Lyons
Right. Get ready for my rambling. I absolutely LOVED that. It was so damn exciting. It was a bit sad for me to see you unsure of yourself because of your age. Never ever deny yourself an adventure or a rollercoaster. The second you start telling yourself you’re too old, you’ll make yourself old. Keep doing what is exciting to you because I felt every second of that like I was right there with you. I would fully support a second video of this if you felt up to it, maybe even a series. You should consider a series of sneaking into UK theme parks. That would be biblical. Thanks for the great watch, and Happy Birthday for Sunday. All the best and many happy returns 🍺
J Hutch
Alton Towers would be crazy, but there's plenty of service roads connected to it - good luck if you make the attempt!
Sam Boden
Cheeeers
Matthew Blabey
I keep forgetting how local you are to me, immediately recognized hopwas at the start and turning right into plantation lane lol
Justin Langley
No way. We’re heading to Drayton Manor for the first time this Friday. Might not try and smuggle the kids through a tunnel though.
Jack Mingle
I honestly read the title as "Sneaking into Draynor Manor" I always look forward to your videos especially the different in between adventures like tenner in the pocket, or exploring the urban areas and canals and this one.
tom davies
Can't recommend a big bike trip enough Wesley! cheers mate
Wesley Burgoyne
Just finished your London to Budapest series after looking through some of the older stuff on here, and it was one of the most captivating and inspiring series I've watched, gonna definitely do something like that in the next 1-2 years, being a similar age to what you were back then. Now gonna watch this, great timing! Thanks Tom you're a legend!
Michael Durkin
Thanks Tom
