Dreamland Margate is an amusement park and entertainment centre based on a traditional English seaside funfair located in Margate, Kent, England. The site of the park was first used for amusement rides in 1880, although the Dreamland name was not used until 1920 when the park's Grade II* listed (particularly significant building of more than local interest) Scenic Railway wooden rollercoaster was opened.[1]
The number of amusements at the park increased during the 1960s and 1970s, and in 1981 the site was sold to the Dutch Bembom brothers, who renamed it "Bembom Brothers White Knuckle Theme Park".[2] The name remained until it reverted to Dreamland in 1990.
In the early 2000s, the park began to enter into decline, and a number of rides were sold to other theme parks. The park's owner, Jimmy Godden announced in 2003 that Dreamland would be closed and the site redeveloped, although the listing of the Scenic Railway meant it could not be moved.[1] The site was sold to Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company in 2005, and this company proposed a residential redevelopment. A number of local residents then launched a campaign to restore and reopen Dreamland instead, although final closure was later in the same year. The site then fell into a state of disrepair as objections were raised to redevelopment plans, and was subject to a series of arson attacks including one which significantly damaged the Scenic Railway.[3]
The public campaign to restore the park continued, and in September 2013, ownership passed to Thanet District Council after a compulsory purchase order was approved by a High Court judge.[4] In 2014 it was confirmed that the park would be redeveloped. It re-opened in June 2015 as a "Re-imagined Dreamland".[5] The operating company became insolvent in December 2015, but continued to operate under administration. A second refurbishment and relaunch took place in 2017, funded by the major creditor.
History
Origins
The Dreamland sign at the entrance to the park in 2009
The Dreamland site was a salt marsh known as the Mere that was inundated at high tide until 1809 when a causeway and seawall were built. In 1846 a railway terminus was built on the present Arlington site for the South Eastern Railway, followed in 1864 by a further terminus, for the rival London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) on the site of what is now Dreamland Cinema. The LCDR (under its subsidiary the Kent Coast Railway) completed this terminus in 1866, but no public service was ever offered. The junction faced Ramsgate, so a local Margate-Broadstairs-Ramsgate train service was envisaged.[6]
Dreamland's remote origins as an entertainment venue date from the same year, when London restaurateurs Spiers and Pond opened a restaurant and dance hall in the unused railway terminus on the Mere causeway.[7] Not being very successful, this 'Hall by the Sea' was bought by the Reeve family of Margate in 1870 for £3,750, who also gradually acquired the low-lying land at the rear of the Hall.
Frederick Savage's 'Sea-On-Land' carousel, where riders pitched up and down as if they were on the sea, was the first amusement ride installed in Margate in 1880.
In 1870, circus entrepreneur George Sanger went into partnership to run the 'Hall by the Sea' with Thomas Dalby Reeve, the then Mayor of Margate. After Reeve's death in 1875, Sanger became the sole proprietor of the Hall and the land behind it. This land behind the Hall, the former 'Mere', was turned into pleasure gardens with a mock ruined abbey, lake, statues and a menagerie – as well as sideshows and roundabouts. Animal cages and Gothic walls on the present Dreamland western and southern boundaries (now listed Grade II) date from this time. The main purpose of the menagerie was to act as a breeding and training centre for animals used in Sanger's travelling circus.
The first amusement rides were installed as early as 1880 when 'Sea on Land' machines were installed. Passengers sat in 'boats' that were made by a system of levers to pitch and roll as though at sea – a direct antecedent of the contemporary 'flight simulator' rides. In 1893 a large skating rink was built. Shortly after this, the park gained some notoriety as the venue for the murder of a sex-worker by the local circus strong man.[8]
Scenic Railway 1930s
Sanger died in 1911 during a scuffle arising from the attempted murder of a friend (although Sanger himself may have been the intended target),[9] and the park entered an uncertain period as part of the attraction was the charisma of the man himself. In the end, the site was purchased from his estate in 1919 for £40,000 by John Henry Iles, who had already set up theme parks all over the world, including at Cairo, Berlin, Petrograd (now St Petersburg) and Pittsburgh.
Inspired by Coney Island, which he had visited in 1906, Iles renamed the site 'Dreamland' and initiated work on the construction of the Scenic Railway rollercoaster in 1919, having purchased the European rights to the Scenic Railway design from inventor and patent holder LaMarcus Adna Thompson. The ride opened to the public in 1920 with great success, carrying half a million passengers in its first year.[8] Iles also brought to the park other rides common to the time including a smaller roller coaster, the Joy Wheel, Miniature Railway, The Whip, and the River Caves.
Expansion
A ballroom was constructed on the site of the skating rink in 1920, and in 1923 Iles built his variety cinema on the site. (In 1926, he was also responsible for the building of Margate's lido on the seafront.) Between 1920 and 1935 he invested over £500,000 in the site, constantly adding new rides and facilities and culminating in the construction of the Dreamland cinema complex in 1934.[10] Iles ceased to be a director in 1938 and the business was taken over by his son Eric.
Most of the Dreamland site was requisitioned by the Government during World War II, with the park reopening in June 1946. Eric Iles was manager. From 1947, it received investment from Butlins.
Three generations of the Iles family – John Henry, Eric, and John – controlled Dreamland from 1919 until its sale in 1968. The new owners, Associated Leisure, introduced many innovations to Dreamland, including squash courts and, in an echo of the Sanger era, an ice rink and zoo. Much of the planting of the pleasure gardens dating from the 1870s survived until the 1970s when the gardens were removed and the rides expanded. 1976 saw the debut of a revolutionary new ride, the 'Orbiter', unveiled by travelling showman and Dreamland lessee Henry Smith, a ride which went on to become highly successful in other amusement parks and travelling fairs around the world. Smith, himself a descendant of George Sanger, also had a Skid,[11] Waltzer,[12] Speedway, Tip Top,[13] and another Orbiter[14] up until the park's change of ownership in 1981.[15] 1980 saw the opening of a 240-seater 148ft high Big wheel.
Dreamland was purchased by the Dutch Bembom Brothers in 1981. They owned several other amusement parks in continental Europe and renamed the site Bembom Brothers White Knuckle Theme Park,[16] bringing in a new headline attraction in the form of the Anton Schwarzkopf-designed 'Looping Star' roller coaster. The name change lasted until 1990, when it reverted to Dreamland.[17] Other changes they made included ceasing evening hours and charging for admission, rather than per ride. They also introduced many new 'high-tech' rides that updated the park and made it, by the late 1980s, one of the top ten most visited tourist attractions in the United Kingdom.[citation needed]
Decline
In common with other traditional British seaside resorts, Margate's economic base depended on residential holidaymakers staying for several days, usually families holidaying for a week or more. This was supplemented by day-trippers on weekends and public holidays, when the resort could become very busy. With the rise of cheap package holidays abroad from the 1960s, however, the residential holiday trade progressively collapsed in the 1970s.[citation needed] This meant that footfall at entertainment venues in these resorts, such as Dreamland, declined sharply on summer weekdays while remaining relatively buoyant at weekends.
Day-tripper trade at Margate remained substantial, but the loss of holiday revenue meant that the town began to struggle to maintain its infrastructure.[citation needed] This, in turn, started to affect its attractiveness as a day destination. However, the investment by Bembom Brothers indicates that this was not regarded as an appreciable threat to Dreamland at the beginning of the 1980s.
More immediately serious was the opening of much larger amusement parks closer to London, on expansive sites and with ample vehicle parking. Thorpe Park opened in 1979, and Chessington World of Adventures in 1987. At this time, the fastest train journey from London to Margate was just under two hours, and Dreamland has never had any public on-site parking.
In 1996 the Bembom family sold the site to local entrepreneur Jimmy Godden, who had previously operated the Rotunda Amusement Park at Folkestone and Ramsgate Pleasure Park at Ramsgate. At this time, most of the rides they owned were relocated. The 'Looping Star (Great America)' went to an amusement park in Budapest together with the looping boat ride The Mary Rose. The Looping Star's sister ride made a brief appearance for two seasons at Margate (previously at Camelot Theme park) before leaving again for its current home, Loudon Castle theme park, where it is called the Twist 'n' Shout.
After his purchase of the park, Godden was able to secure European and regional grant aid to assist in an initial £3m redevelopment.[18] However, during Godden's tenure many of the rides were sold off, including the big wheel which had dominated the Margate skyline for two decades but was dismantled and sold to a park in Mexico.[19]
Closure
Part of the derelict Scenic Railway in 2013
In 2003, Godden announced that Dreamland would close down and the land would be redeveloped. A vocal section of public opinion supported continued use of the Dreamland site as an amusement park, along with a government report in 2004.[citation needed]
After the closure announcement, Dreamland was sold to Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company (MTCR) in 2005 for £20m. A number of local residents then formed the 'Save Dreamland Campaign'. The campaign proposed to turn Dreamland into a heritage amusement park, consisting of a number of vintage rides and attractions from other British amusement parks. Some rides were obtained by Save Dreamland and placed in storage.
Although it was initially announced that Dreamland would close in November 2003, it operated during 2004 and 2005. Definitive closure to the public was in 2005 and all of the rides apart from the Scenic Railway were then removed from the site. The Scenic Railway had been granted Grade-II listed status in 2002, and so could not be moved or dismantled.[1]
Part of the Scenic Railway was damaged by fire after an arson attack on 7 April 2008.[3] About 25% of the structure, boarding station, storage sheds, and trains were destroyed and had to be removed as irreparable. The physical security of the site was upgraded, and the surviving structure surveyed. Some of the surviving machinery and chassis from the cars were salvaged and stored on site. Another suspected arson attack was carried out on the site on 28 May 2014, but this was confined to a disused building near the Scenic Railway.[20]
On 25 April 2008 the Dreamland cinema's Listed building status increased from Grade II (buildings of special architectural or historic interest) to Grade II* (particularly significant buildings of more than local interest).[21] The cinema, which featured a Comptontheatre organ, was closed in 2007 following the opening of a new multiplex cinema at Westwood Cross. The buildings were placed under renovation and the Dreamland sign on the front tower has been refurbished with LED lighting and shines brightly at night.
The defunct cinema was sold by MTCR, by then renamed DreamlandLive Ltd. This was before the result of a court appeal by this company to stop Thanet District Council taking possession of the theme park under a compulsory purchase order, served in June 2011.[22] The CPO was approved in August 2012.[23]
Re-opening project
The success of the Save Dreamland Campaign in attracting public awareness led to the establishment of the Dreamland Trust, a registered charity, in 2007 to co-ordinate a re-opening project.
A total of £18m in public funding was subsequently awarded to the project, to restore, preserve and maintain the listed structures, which included the Scenic Railway, menagerie cages and some of the internal building spaces.[citation needed] This money was also used to purchase five heritage rides.
The Scenic Railway was regarded as being the focus of the rejuvenation of Dreamland as a heritage amusement park. Work began in September 2014, with a complete refurbishment of the track and new trains being built.[25]
Some historic rides from other parks were donated to the Dreamland Trust and put in storage for restoration at a later date.[citation needed] The majority of unique old rides at Pleasureland Southport were donated, which included the 1940s Caterpillar ride, King Solomon's Mines wooden roller-coaster (formerly of Frontierland, Morecambe and later moved to Pleasureland Southport), workings from the Ghost Train and River Caves, the Hall of Mirrors, Mistral, Haunted swing and the Skyride (Chairlift ride).[citation needed] The Junior Whip which stood at Blackpool Pleasure Beach was also donated.[citation needed]
Wayne Hemingway, his wife Gerardine, and the 'HemingwayDesign' team were appointed as designers of the envisaged new Dreamland in 2012. This includes the creative vision for re-imagination and branding.[26]
An additional £10m in private funding was invested in the re-opening of Dreamland by the commercial operators chosen to run it, Sands Heritage Ltd.[citation needed] These funds were used to introduce a collection of 17 additional rides to create the amusement park, as well as a Roller Disco & Diner, Amusement Arcade, Vintage Pin Ball Arcade, Dreamland Emporium and The Octopus's Garden. The running agreement between Sands Heritage and Thanet District Council involved the former taking out a 99-year lease of the freehold property owned by the council as a result of the CPO, while the council remained responsible for certain aspects of repair and maintenance including as regards the Scenic Railway.[citation needed] Part of the capital raised by Sands Heritage was a £600 000 short-term secured loan from Arrowgrass Master Fund, an investment company based in the Cayman Islands.[citation needed] This company also held 31% of the share capital of Sands Heritage.[citation needed]
Opening of Re-imagined Dreamland
The restored Scenic Railway in 2016
The park re-opened on 19 June 2015, garnering much media coverage.[27][28] BBC Radio Kent spent the opening day broadcasting live from Dreamland. There was a slight delay to the opening ceremony, and BBC Kent broadcasters Jo Burn and Zac Daunt-Jones spent 45 minutes entertaining the crowds, while live on-the-air. Additional rides opened in July.[29]
The park's centrepiece, the Scenic Railway, was still in the process of being rebuilt by Thanet District Council. It opened to the public only on 17 October 2015, owing to delays in rebuilding the train carriages. Member and press previews took place on 16 October 2015.[30] Sands Heritage put in a claim for lost revenue as a result of the delay, which was settled in November with a compensation payment by TDC to Sands Heritage after the delay to opening the Scenic Railway forced the company into administration.[citation needed]
Administration
On 8 December 2015, Sands Heritage were forced to apply to the High Court for a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in relation to a debt of £2.9m owed to Arrowgrass.[31] This amounted to the original £600 000 owed as a secured loan, plus unpaid compound interest and charges. At a meeting on 23 December 2015 the company's creditors agreed to accept the CVA, allowing the company more time to pay off its existing debts.[32] Sands Heritage representatives at the meeting promised that the debt to Arrowgrass would be repaid over five years - as a secured debt, this took priority over other debts. The insolvency administrators appointed in the CVA were Duff & Phelps.
The financial failure was attributed primarily to the number of visitors in the summer season of 2015 being half of what was predicted for the capital structuring of the project.[33] Media reports estimated the cash loss suffered by the company as being on the order of £5million. The major contributing factor for visitor shortfall was the delay of the Scenic Railway project and lack of communication from the management team of Thanet District Council to Sands Heritage, leading to a premature opening when preparatory works were incomplete. This led to an almost immediate closure of seventeen days to complete these, and the Scenic Railway was to take longer. Also, there were problems with running repairs to rides, leading to breakdowns. Despite popular belief, the admission price cited as discouraging visitors was not the reason for Sand Heritage's cash flow problems; however, the management team and the administrators, Duff & Phelps, abolished it to drive footfall when it became apparent the Scenic Railway would not work for a second summer season.[34]
In August 2016, the CEO of Dreamland, Eddie Kemsley, resigned.[35] A creditors' meeting held in August 2016 revealed that creditors were owed £8.34m, with Sands Heritage having an overall balance sheet shortfall of £14m (£10m of which reflected the investment made by Sands Heritage themselves). An auditors' report to Thanet District Council in December that year revealed that several of these creditors were small local businesses with little hope of any repayment.[36]
The administrators initially expressed their hope that Dreamland as a business could be sold as a going concern in March 2017, after the 2016 summer season. However, this was rendered improbable by their half-yearly report to creditors (December 2015 to June 2016) when they revealed that operating losses during the period were over £1m or about £41 000 per week. They warned that losses were continuing, factors cited being bad weather in early summer and the failure of the Scenic Railway in mid-June.[37]
The Scenic Railway had been restored by Thanet District Council following the arson attack. Unfortunately the right knowledge and expertise had not been available when it was rebuilt, and so it failed a safety test in June 2017. The ride is powered by cable haulage, nowadays a rare form of traction worldwide, and the wrong sort of cables was specified. When TDC tried to rectify the matter after the failure, it found that the skills concerned were so specialist that they were rare worldwide and sourcing them was only successful after the summer season was over. The administrators indicated their intention to seek compensation for the failure.[38]
Second relaunch
Arrowgrass covered the operating losses for the summer season of 2016 with a further loan of £1m, secured on the premises of 49–51 Marine Terrace.[citation needed] This was a former pub owned freehold by Sands Leisure (not part of the TDC lease), which had been called the Cinque Ports Arms before the later 20th century.[citation needed] An extension of the administration period was sought, and granted.
Then it was announced that the investment company had increased its lending to just under £10m, to allow for a re-vamp of the business. In February 2017 it was reported that a £25m private investment from Arrowgrass had been obtained.[33]
The new loan was used to re-landscape the site and to add some new rides, with refurbishment of the Cinque Ports pub. The premises had been used as the ticket office for Dreamland and the administrative centre of Sands Leisure, but a bar was opened in it by the administrators in the 2016 season and it was due to be restored to a complete pub for the 2017 re-launch.[citation needed]
The improved park was announced as reopening on 28 April 2017;[39] however this was later delayed to 26 May. The event attracted national media attention. The major new feature which was mentioned as adding to the viability of the business was a new music venue with a capacity of 15 000.[33][40]
Private investigation by a Thanet District councillor revealed that all the fixed assets of Sands Leisure had loans secured on them for repayment to Arrowgrass. These included the fairground rides owned by the company, as well as the 99-year lease from TDC and other properties owned freehold by the company. If the figure of indebtedness of £25m quoted by the national media was correct, in May 2017 Arrowgrass had almost complete control of the value of the assets of Dreamland. According to the terms of the security given for the loans, if repayment conditions were breached then Arrowgrass could apply for Sands Leisure to be liquidated and could then claim the equity of the lease of the property in lieu.[41]
In 2017, the park hosted 15,000 people at the Demon Dayz festival with Gorillaz. In October 2017 the park exited administration.[41][42]
There has been interest in redeveloping the Arlington House tower block, next door to Dreamland, which is owned by Thanet Council. In 2018, it was reported that any future deal for the redevelopment of Dreamland could include the Arlington House site.[43]
In 2019 the park reported experiencing its most successful year since reopening, with more than 700,000 visitors across the year, and announced a new programme of events for its 100th anniversary in 2020.[44] In August 2019, the park unveiled a seven metre inflatable sculpture of Tina Turner's head, created by Cool Shit, in celebration of the 2019 Turner Prize exhibition being hosted in Margate.
D.P.V. Rides "Brucomela" Roller Coaster. Relocated from Luna Park Sunny Beach, Bulgaria. Previously operated as "Counter Culture Caterpillar" before being re-themed by Ben Irwin.
Savage (1923), initially delivered to Harry Gray. Previously operated at the park from 1997-2005. Located at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood, Kent (2008-2012), before being refurbished by Littleboy's Vintage Restorations and redelivered to the park.
On 6 March 2017 Gorillaz announced the Demon Dayz festival to be held at Dreamland on 10 June 2017.[49][50] Tickets sold out in 32 minutes, at about 15,000 tickets in an hour.[51]
On 14 September 2018 the National Citizen Service hosted their graduation ceremony at Dreamland, at which 700 Kent and Sussex teens graduated from the employability programme. Each received a signed certificate from the Prime Minister.[52]
In popular culture
Dreamland was the subject of a 1953 documentary film, O Dreamland. It was also visited by characters in the 1989 Christmas special of the BBC Television sitcom Only Fools and Horses titled "The Jolly Boys' Outing".[53] Some of the rides seen in the sitcom were renamed and repainted at Loudoun Castle Theme Park in Scotland (now closed). The Mary Rose was renamed the Black Pearl and is now at Lightwater Valley in North Yorkshire. In an episode of British sitcom One Foot in the Grave titled "Dreamland", during a conversation with Victor, Margaret recalls the couple visiting Margate and Dreamland on their third anniversary.
The park was also the filming location for the 2007 film Exodus and featured prominently in the 2000 film Last Resort, about a young Russian immigrant seeking asylum in England.
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often featuring multiple areas with different themes. Unlike temporary and mobile funfairs and carnivals, amusement parks are stationary and built for long-lasting operation. They are more elaborate than city parks and playgrounds, usually providing attractions that cater to a variety of age groups. While amusement parks often contain themed areas, theme parks place a heavier focus with more intricately-designed themes that revolve around a particular subject or group of subjects.
Margate Football Club, originally called Margate Town, is an English football club based in the seaside resort of Margate, Kent. The club's first team play in the Isthmian League South East Division. The club was known during the 1980s as Thanet United.
A helter skelter, or helter-skelter lighthouse, is an amusement ride resembling a lighthouse with a spiral shaped slide built around the tower. Typically, fairgoers climb up a flight of stairs inside the tower and slide down the spiral on the outside using a coir mat. The ride is most prevalent in amusement parks and fairgrounds in the United Kingdom.
Margate is a seaside town in the Thanet District of Kent, England. It is located on the north coast of Kent and covers an area of 2 miles long, 16 miles north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay and Westbrook. In 2011 it had a population of 61,223.
The Scenic Railway is a wooden roller coaster located at the Dreamland Amusement Park in Margate, United Kingdom. It first opened in 1920 and is the oldest roller coaster in the UK. The ride is distinctive compared to modern-day roller coasters, as a brakeman is still required to travel with the train to control its speed, manually applying brakes when needed. It is also one of only eight scenic railways in the world, and the UK's English Heritage granted the roller coaster Grade II listed status in 2002 and Grade II* listed status in 2011. The Scenic Railway was non-operational from 2006 until 2015 amid park closure and restoration following an arson attack.
Thanet is a local government district in Kent, England. The council is based in Margate and the district also contains the towns of Broadstairs, Ramsgate and Westgate-on-Sea, along with several villages. It takes its name from the Isle of Thanet, a former island which gradually became connected to the mainland between the 12th and 16th centuries.
Luna Park Melbourne is a historic amusement park located on the foreshore of Port Phillip Bay in St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria. It opened on 13 December 1912, with a formal opening a week later, and has been operating almost continuously ever since.
Ramsgate railway station serves the town of Ramsgate in Thanet in Kent, England. The station lies on the Chatham Main Line, 79 miles 21 chains (127.6 km) down the line from London Victoria, the Kent Coast Line, and the Ashford to Ramsgate line. The station is managed by Southeastern, which operates all trains serving it.
Margate railway station serves the town of Margate in Thanet, Kent, England. It is 73 miles 69 chains (118.9 km) down the line from London Victoria. The station and all trains that serve the station are operated by Southeastern.
The Orbiter is a fairground ride, which involves a number of cars spun by a rotating axis. The ride was first presented to the public in the summer of 1976, at Margate Dreamland's Amusement Park.
Margate was a "limb" of Dover in the ancient confederation of the Cinque ports. It was added to the confederation in the 15th century.
The Pleasure Beach Great Yarmouth is an amusement park located in the seaside resort town of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, on the English east coast. It opened in 1909. The largest and most popular ride at the park is the wooden Roller Coaster which opened in 1932. There are also 25 other large rides at the park, as well as children's entertainment, amusement arcades, catering facilities, sweet shops and ice cream parlours.
Ramsgate Harbour railway station was a railway station in Ramsgate, in the Thanet district of Kent, England. Opened in 1863 as part of the Kent Coast Railway company's extension of its line from Herne Bay, it was conveniently situated for the seaside resort's beach, but it closed in 1926 after a reorganisation of railway lines in the Thanet area.
Loudoun Castle was a theme park set around the ruins of the 19th century Loudoun Castle near Galston, in the Loudoun area of Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom. The park opened in 1995, and closed at the end of the 2010 season. The park's mascot was Rory the Lion.
Arlington House is an 18-storey residential apartment and commercial block in the Brutalist style on the seafront of Margate, Kent, England, next to Margate railway station and Dreamland Margate. It was developed by Bernard Sunley and designed by Russel Diplock, and is known for every apartment having a sea view.
Margate Sands railway station served the town of Margate, Kent, England from 1846 to 1926 on the Kent Coast Line.
Tivoli railway station was a non-public timetable railway station operated by the South Eastern Railway (SER) between 1848 and c. 1867.
A scenic railway is an early roller coaster design that uses only road wheels. It usually requires a brakeman to ride on the train and slow it, if needed. Their name derives from the fact that they are often adorned with elaborate façades. The power and setup requirements of the travelling version resulted in special Showman's engines being built with an additional dynamo and a crane mounted on an enlarged coal bunker. The traveling versions of the Scenic railway were built between 1910 and 1925 with the last one being scrapped 1962. The space in the middle of the travelling version was most commonly filled with a waterfall and organ.
WGH LTD - Transportation Engineering Ltd was a British company that manufactured and supplied different types of amusement rides, funicular railways, inclined lift systems, and other transport systems over a 27 year period.
Jimmy Godden was one of the most high-profile businessmen in Kent, England prior to his death from cancer. He was famous for his involvement in a range of high-profile venues and projects including Dreamland Margate, the Rotunda Amusement Park in Folkestone, and Ramsgate Pleasure Park.
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