- Start
- Mar 20, 201890% CONFIDENCEfrom the source
Great Coasters International Opens Wicker Man at Alton Towers
- Alton Towers' Wicker Man, a GBP 16 million wooden coaster by Great Coasters International, opened on 20 March 2018 after a weather delay (Wikipedia); Blooloop gives an official launch of 24 March after a media preview[2][3]
- It is the UK's first new wooden coaster in 22 years (the previous was Megafobia at Oakwood in 1996) and Alton Towers' 10th coaster[2][3]
- Planning was approved 25 August 2016, construction began 28 November 2016 and the first timber arrived 4 May 2017; it replaced The Flume, which closed in October 2015[2]
- About 795 m of track, 22 m tall with a triple-down first drop, three passes through the 15.55 m Wicker Man, and speeds of 68-70 km/h; three 24-seat trains give roughly 950-1,000 riders an hour[2][3]
- Theming by Studios North tells the story of the Beornen community and features real flames; it is not based on the 1973 film[3]
- It was evacuated after smoke from a foreign object on 26 July 2024 and reopened on 17 August 2024, and ranked fifth for best new ride 2018 in the Golden Ticket Awards[2]
References 387% CONFIDENCE
The first entry is always the pin's source. Overall confidence is a weighted average of how firmly each reference supports the start and end times used above; a reference counts half as much for every 180 days older than the newest.
- [1]90%youtube.com/watch?v=qcjXGecrtbQyoutube.com· Posted Sep 15, 2026· Starts Mar 20, 2018 ✓· 33% of score
Contemporaneous coverage (Blooloop[3], Coaster Critic) dates Wicker Man's public opening at Alton Towers to 20 March 2018.
- [2]85%Wicker Man (roller coaster)en.wikipedia.org· Added Sep 19, 2026· 34% of score
States the GCI-built Wicker Man opened at Alton Towers on 20 March 2018.[1]
- [3]85%Wicker Man – the creation of Alton Towers' hot new roller coasterblooloop.com· Added Sep 15, 2026· Starts Mar 20, 2018· 33% of score
Blooloop's account of the build reports Wicker Man's opening date of 20 March 2018 and the UK's-first-in-22-years and fire-effect milestones.
Suggest a correction
Something missing or wrong? Say it in your own words: a link that backs this pin up, a different start or end date and why, or a fact it lacks or gets wrong. The AI checks it against this pin's sources, searches for better ones, and adds any page that backs you up. The pin's own sources still count most.
