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Farms are becoming more than agricultural businesses. Farm shops, glamping, outdoor activities and unique countryside experiences are creating new opportunities for farmers to diversify their income and attract visitors. Recorded at the Land Leisure & Tourism Show in Birmingham, Andy Povey is joined by Lisa Hogan of Diddly Squat Farm and Wolfe Bentinck, co-founders of Only Farmers, to discuss...

In this Skip the Queue podcast episode, recorded live at the Land, Leisure & Tourism Show in the Speak Easy Lounge, Andy Povey is joined by Graham MacVoy, co founder & CEO, Wake the Tiger to discuss the creation of Absurd City, the company’s immersive experience at Westfield London. Graham shares the creative vision behind Wake the Tiger, exploring how art, storytelling and imagination com...

What happens when two theme park creatives take their work home with them at Halloween? In this Halloween episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by twins Jason and Gavin Fox, collectively known as the Flippers, Creative Directors in Framestore’s Immersive team and the people behind Death to the Flippers. By day, they’ve helped create major attractions for the likes of Disney, Universal, M...

Today, we’re looking at the world of virtual experiences, digital twins and immersive technology and asking a pretty interesting question: how far can technology take us when it comes to designing, experiencing and even operating attractions? Andy Povey is joined by Calum Smail from Voxel Studio, a company working at the intersection of 3D, technology and immersive experiences. Voxel Studio is doi...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by Cassie Poland, Joint Managing Director of Drusillas Park in East Sussex. Drusillas started life in the 1920s as a tea cottage where motorists could stop on their way through the Downs. A hundred years on it's a zoo and a ride park on the same ten-acre site, and it's been in the Smith family since Cassie's parents, Laurence and Christine, b...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Laura Baxter is joined by Richard Mancey, Owner and Managing Director of Paultons Park in Hampshire.  Paultons opened in 1983 as a country park and bird gardens, founded by Richard's parents John and Anne. Forty years on it covers 140 acres, and the introduction of the world’s first Peppa Pig World in 2011, changed everything. In May this year it opened Valg...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by Anna Warnecke, CEO of Kynren in Bishop Auckland - an attraction that doesn't really look like anything else in the UK. Kynren began in 2016 as an open-air night show telling 2,000 years of English history on a seven-and-a-half-acre stage, performed by a cast and crew of a thousand local volunteers, and built as part of a wider mission to r...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by Eddie Kemsley, CEO of Dreamland in Margate – one of the oldest surviving amusement park in the country, and one of the most reinvented. Dreamland dates back to 1880. It closed in 2003, and reopened in 2015 as a vintage amusement park. Since then it has become something harder to categorise: a park, a six-and-a-half-thousand capacity outdoo...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Laura Baxter is joined by Julie Dalton, managing director of Gulliver's Theme Park Resorts - and the head of what is, remarkably, the only multi-site theme park brand in this country that isn't owned by a corporate. Gulliver's began in 1978 as a model village on a fifteen-acre hillside above Matlock Bath, built by Julie's parents Ray and Hilary Phillips - Ray a b...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Laura Baxter is joined by Gary Smart, chairman of Harbour Park in Littlehampton and a man who has spent his entire working life in this industry. The park opened in 1932, built by Billy Butlin on the site of an old fort and windmill. In 1977 it was bought by the Billy Smart circus family, and in 1994 Gary led the redevelopment that turned Smart's Amusement Park i...

In this special episode of Skip the Queue, Laura Baxter is joined by our guest, Debs Griffin, Director of Sundown Adventureland in Rampton, Nottinghamshire. This year, BALPPA turns 90. Our guest today runs a park that turns 58. Between them, that’s close to a century and a half of British attractions, and neither got there by accident. Debs Griffin is a director of Sundown Adventureland, the theme...

To celebrate 90 years of BALPPA, Andy Povey and Laura Baxter are joined by Paul Kelly, Chief Executive of BALPPA, for a look at the organisation’s history, its role in the attractions industry today and what the next 90 years could look like. With more than 30 years working across the attractions sector and at the helm of BALPPA since 2012, Paul has a unique view of an industry that has changed dr...

For the next few weeks, we’re teaming up with BALPPA to celebrate a very special milestone - 90 years of the British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers and Attractions. To mark the occasion, we’re going behind the scenes with some of the people who have helped shape the UK attractions industry, hearing their stories, exploring how the sector has evolved and looking at what the future might hold....

In this special episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is back in Blackpool for the UK Theme Park Awards, speaking to some of the people and businesses recognised for delivering some of the best work in the UK attractions industry.  But this episode isn’t just about celebrating the winners.  Andy explores what it actually takes to create a great attraction and a memorable visitor experien...

This week, we’re bringing you a couple of very special episodes of Skip the Queue. We’re at the UK Theme Park Awards in Blackpool, celebrating some of the very best people, businesses and experiences in the attractions industry.  But before we get to the awards themselves, we wanted to ask a slightly different question:  What happens next?  We’re finding out, straight from some of t...

Andy Povey is joined by Stephen Reid, Director of Attraction Brand Consultants, to discuss whether suppliers are the backbone of the attractions industry. They explore operator-supplier relationships, innovation, AI, visitor expectations, human connection, and the future challenges facing museums, theme parks, zoos, and family attractions.   Topics Discussed Are suppliers the backbone of the attra...

How can museums increase revenue without charging mandatory admission? Andy Povey is joined by Andrew Given , CEO of Queer Britain, who shares how Queer Britain's Pay What You Can model generated more than three times the previous donation income while making the museum more accessible to visitors. The discussion covers fundraising strategies, donor psychology, visitor data, inclusive storytelling...

Andy Povey is joined by Lawrence Roots to discuss the UK Theme Park Awards, industry trends, and his Guinness World Record challenge to visit every nominated UK theme park. Plus, Josh Haywood from Crealy shares his excitement for this year's awards and the park's latest developments. Topics Discussed The growth and purpose of Theme Park Network How the UK Theme Park Awards recognise excellence New...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by Clive Morris, founder of CCM Consulting, to explore the financial realities facing visitor attractions. They discuss the recent UK VAT changes, why collecting the right operational and financial data matters, and how attractions can strengthen the case for future VAT reform. Clive also shares practical advice on connecting finance with day...

Dynamic pricing can be one of the most powerful tools available to visitor attractions but only when it's used well. Andy Povey is joined by pricing expert Adriaan Van Der Hek to discuss the practical realities of dynamic pricing, how it benefits both attractions and visitors, and why getting your pricing strategy right can drive higher revenue, better attendance and happier guests. Topics Discuss...

In this Summer Special of Skip the Queue, guest host and attractions industry journalist Owen Ralph is joined by three theme park operators for a closer look at their new offerings for 2026. Lawrence Mancey discusses Paultons Park’s £12 million themed area Valgard, the largest ever investment at the UK park, also home to Peppa Pig World. He explains how the viking theme was a ‘no-brainer’, why the...

In this episode, Matt Stubbs, Creative Director at Little Lion Entertainment, shares insights into the innovative world of immersive entertainment, from the origins of the Crystal Maze to the cutting-edge Arcade Arena concept. Discover how technology, storytelling, and experiential design are shaping the future of location-based entertainment. Topics Discussed The evolution of immersive experience...

In this episode, Andy Povey is joined by Duncan Phillips, Founder and Managing Director of DP Leisure and DP Associates, the team behind 360 Play. They discuss the potential impact of Universal's proposed UK resort, the opportunities it could create for attractions, and how operators can adapt to changing guest expectations. Duncan shares his thoughts on destination thinking, collaboration, compet...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, guest host Olly Reed from Navigate is joined by Rob Comley of Chester Zoo and Simon Townsend of the Eden Project to discuss the growing impact of weather forecasting apps on visitor attractions. They discuss how simple weather icons can influence consumer behaviour, with misleading rain forecasts causing significant drops in attendance even when poor weather neve...

In this episode of Skip the Queue, Andy Povey is joined by Bala McAlinn, Managing Director Complete Works to discuss how visitor attractions can balance technology with authentic human interaction. Bala shares how storytelling, performance techniques and well-trained frontline teams can transform guest experiences, increase revenue and encourage repeat visits, while exploring why technology should...