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Location: Brean Leisure Park, Coast Road, Brean Sands, Somerset TA8 2QY. Report by Graham Lundegaard
I have a holiday caravan at Brean in Somerset. Imagine my delight when a new pinball arcade opened at Brean Leisure Park!
The arcade features 16 classic '70s EM pinball machines and a few old shooter machines. They include such classics as Fireball, Doodle Bug, Nip-It, Spanish Eyes, Space Time and Kick Off. Each machine has been very well restored.
Replay levels are achievable and certainly I managed to get a few. Most of the machines I tried worked very well but a couple had sticky flippers etc.
I spoke to the attendant and he said he would get the machines fixed straight away. Sadly the arcade did not seem to be doing a great deal of trade, but time will tell. Younger people looked perplexed by the machines and some that tried obviously had little idea how they worked!
While the pinhead can spend hours playing the machines, the rest of the family can explore the park with its many rides etc. Brean also has a seven mile long beach, one of the longest in the UK. The sea is tidal, so if you want a swim its best to check the tide tables first or you might find the sea is not there when you arrive!
Since writing this I have managed to speak to the proud owner the machines Richard Cadell and I have had a sneak preview of dozens of other machines that he hopes to be able to open up to the public, but this depends on what the demand proves to be. Fun City at Brean Leisure Park has undergone a refurbishment over the winter months and now features several new rides and attractions including a new dark roller coaster (opening July).
Director Richard Cadell said “Owning a funfair was always my childhood dream and one that has come true for me. I started off with the ghost train (still my favourite ride) many years ago and built up the theme park from there”.
Of interest to us pinball fanatics is that the park now boosts not one but two classic pinball arcades.
As well as a superb collection of EM pinballs the arcades include some modern classics such as Doctor Who, Elvira and the excellent Theatre of Magic. There is also a nice collection of shooting games which is one of Richard’s passions.
Richard says “ I have a huge collection of old machines and only room for a few at home. Most end up in storage where they can deteriorate. Rather than have them hidden away it is far better to have them on display where people can enjoy playing them or even just looking at them . I get a kick from people telling me they have not seen a particular machine since their childhood.”
Richard continued, "The machines don’t make much money and they are high maintenance, but money is not the issue. I am passionate about these lovely old pinballs and I love being able to put them on display for others to appreciate.” © Pinball News 2011 |
