 | |
  Location within North Yorkshire | |
| Established | 1986 |
|---|---|
| Location | York, England |
| Coordinates | 53°57′24″N1°04′56″W / 53.95680°N 1.08216°W |
| Public transit access | York railway station |
| Website | www.thedungeons.com/york/en/ |
York Dungeon is a tourist attraction in York, England. York Dungeon depicts history of the dungeon using actor led shows, special effects and displays of models and objects.
The York Dungeons reopened in March 2013 after a period of closure due to severe flooding. [1]
York Dungeon was opened in 1986 at 12 Clifford Street, York, England. It was the second Dungeon attraction created, the first being the London Dungeon in 1975. Like the London Dungeon, it was designed as a live action interactive horror show loosely based on factual events throughout history.
As part of a £3.5 million investment across both Dungeons, a new feature opened in 1997 showcasing tales of the 'Lost Roman legion' in York. Further additions and expansions continued with a Plague section encounter in a Plague doctor's surgery. 2002 saw the opening of 'Gorvik' (the name a pun on 'Jorvik', the kings name for York), which detailed the Viking history of the City and brutal attacks from Viking forces. Other attractions included the Torture Chamber, The Gunpowder Plot, Dick Turpin, and the Courtroom. 2003 saw the arrival of the Witch Trials that detailed the witch trials in York through the use of a detailed set and animatronics. This area subsequently became the 'Ghosts of York' show in 2007.
Like London, over time, the Dungeon evolved from a museum to an actor led experience. The Dungeon remains the smallest of the dungeons chain.
The Dungeon has been subject to severe flooding numerous times, due to its close proximity to the River Ouse. This has occurred in 2001, 2004 and twice in 2012, leading to a complete refurbishment. Many exhibits were totally refurbished, particularly the torture chamber which as a result was drastically reduced in size, had most of the original exhibits removed, and script rewrites to focus on actor-guest interaction instead.
As with entire Dungeons brand, the York Dungeon received a rebranding in 2013 to coincide with the relocation of the London Dungeon. This included a new set of scripts and additional comedy elements to shows.
The dungeon operates on the basis of tours which start every 7 minutes and last between 1 and 1.5 hours. In these tours visitors are led around a sequence of shows and exhibitions which are loosely based on historical events and practices. [2]
The Great Plague show is set in 1551 in a recreation of a plague doctor's surgery, led by one of the recently deceased plague doctor's assistants. There is also a recreation of a York pub, The Golden Fleece Inn where visitors are told ghost stories. Other shows include the Judgement of Sinners where visitors are accused of various crimes and the Torture Chamber where visitors are shown demonstrations of torture devices. During the tour actors playing plague doctors' assistants, innkeepers, night watches, torturers, judges, executioners, stage coach guards and witch-burners tell visitors gruesome stories. Whilst the Dungeon does not have the space to accommodate any rides like its sister incarnations, the Dick Turpin section features 'drop benches' that give sudden movement to simulate a crashing stage coach and animatronics under the seat during a discussion of leeches to simulate their feel. [3]
The Christian community in York raised concerns in 2004 about a Christmas show at the dungeon called Satan's Grotto and asked the dungeon to stop the show. Reverend Roger Simpson of St Michael-le-Belfrey church said "There are real evil forces . . . We are concerned the attraction has the potential to do real pastoral harm." [4] A spokesman from York Dungeon's responded that it was "all tongue-in-cheek" and should not be taken seriously." [4]
York Dungeon offered free entry to people subject to anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) for the weekend of the 26 May and 27 May 2007. The dungeon was "widely condemned for a controversial decision" [5] with criticism coming from victims of crime, York Councillors and Hugh Bayley, the Member of Parliament for the City of York, who commented:
This is a publicity-seeking gimmick which goes too far. The public needs protection from anti-social behaviour and York Dungeon shouldn't be rewarding people who have been sentenced to an ASBO by the courts. [5]
The manager of York Dungeon said "I thought it might shock the ASBO offenders a little to see what would have happened to them a couple of hundred years ago", [6] but the Dungeon reported that no one took up their offer of free admission.
Pirates of the Caribbean is a dark ride at Disneyland, Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park at Disneyland Paris.
Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room is an attraction located in Disneyland at the Disneyland Resort and in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, and previously in Tokyo Disneyland at Tokyo Disney Resort. First opened on June 23, 1963 at the Disneyland Resort, the attraction is a pseudo-Polynesian musical Audio-Animatronic show drawing from American tiki culture.
Audio-Animatronics is the registered trademark for a form of robotics animation created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequently expanded on and used by other companies. The robots move and often synchronise with audio by the assistance of an external sound system on the stage.
The London Dungeon is a tourist attraction/haunted attraction along London's South Bank, England, which recreates various gory and macabre historical events in a gallows humour style. It uses a mixture of live actors, special effects and rides.
The Great Movie Ride was a dark ride located at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, United States. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering, the attraction employed the use of Audio-Animatronic figures, practical sets, live actors, special effects, and projections to recreate iconic scenes from twelve classic films throughout motion picture history. The attraction—which debuted with the park on May 1, 1989—was located inside the park's replica of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, one of Hollywood's most famous movie palaces.
Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln is a stage show featuring an Audio-Animatronic representation of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln. Originally created by Walt Disney for the State of Illinois pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair, the show opened at Disneyland Park in 1965. Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln has undergone several changes with advances in Audio-Animatronics technology and has been on a few hiatuses over the decades.
The Land is a pavilion located in the World Nature neighborhood of Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The pavilion is dedicated to human interaction with the Earth, focusing on agriculture, conservation, and travel. It opened on October 1, 1982, as part of the Phase I features for the grand opening of what was then known as EPCOT Center. It explores how humans can both use the land for their benefit, and how they can also destroy it. Future Technology in better preserving the land is also explored in the pavilion, along with a focus on the celebration of the land itself.
Shrek 4-D is an animated 4D film based on the Shrek franchise created by DreamWorks Animation, itself based on the book by William Steig. It also is a 4D simulator ride attraction with motion-based effects and water sprayers located at various theme parks around the world. It is currently shown at Universal Destinations & Experiences in Singapore, and previously in Universal Studios Florida, Hollywood, and Japan. The Hollywood location closed on August 14, 2017, to make way for the DreamWorks Theatre attraction, the Orlando location closed on January 10, 2022, to make way for Illumination's Villain-Con Minion Blast, and the Japan location closed on February 9, 2024. Outside the Universal parks, the movie was shown at Movie Park Germany in Germany from May 2008 until July 2011, and Warner Bros. Movie World in Australia from September 2005 until August 2010. A spin-off attraction titled Donkey's Photo Finish is located at the Florida venue while Meet Shrek and Donkey is located at the Hollywood venue. In Universal Studios Japan, the attraction is shown in the same theater as Sesame Street 4-D Movie Magic, with the Shrek 4-D film shown for the first 12 hours of the day, and the Sesame Street film shown for the next 12 hours of the day.
Madame Tussaud's Rock Circus was a walk-through exhibition celebrating the history of rock and pop music, featuring its major figures recreated in wax. It was located at the top four floors of the then-newly refurbished London Pavilion building at Piccadilly Circus, London. Predominantly British artists featured, but many American artists were also included. The attraction told the story of rock and pop from the 1950s to the then-present day by using videos, music, narration and audio-animatronic figures.
The Hall of Presidents is an attraction located in Liberty Square at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. The attraction is a multi-media presentation featuring Audio-Animatronic figures of all 45 individuals who have served as President of the United States. It opened on October 1, 1971, along with the rest of the Magic Kingdom, housed in a building resembling Philadelphia's Independence Hall. A short film is presented for the first portion of the show, with Abraham Lincoln reciting the Gettysburg Address. A stage presentation of all the presidents in Audio-Animatronic form follows the short film, with George Washington reciting a speech, before the incumbent president of the United States recites the oath of office. It was also the final project Disney Legend Ub Iwerks worked on.
The Amsterdam Dungeon, in the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands, follows a similar format to the London Dungeon, York Dungeon, Berlin Dungeon and Hamburg Dungeon which are owned and operated by UK-based Merlin Entertainments and attempts to show history through an interactive adventure. Live actors, a ride, shows and special effects simulate historical dark and bleak times, it was first opened in September 2005.
Mission to Mars was an attraction located in Tomorrowland at Disneyland and at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. It originally opened as Rocket to the Moon at Disneyland in 1955, and as Flight to the Moon in Walt Disney World on Christmas Eve 1971, before it was retooled to the Mars version in 1975. It then closed down in 1992 and 1993, respectively. The attraction simulated taking guests on a space trip to the Moon or Mars.
The Studio Tour is a ride attraction at the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park in Universal City, California near Los Angeles. Studio Tour is the theme park's signature attraction. It travels through a working film studio, with various film sets on the Universal Studios Lot. Guests sit on multi-car trams for the duration of the ride and looking behind the scenes of Universal Pictures. The tour lasts about 45–60 minutes and is led by an in-person "tram guide", with the aid of pre-recorded videos of Jimmy Fallon. It travels through the Front Lot, Backlot, and various attractions, passing sets and properties from movies along the way. The tour inspired a smaller but similar version at Universal Studios Florida, which was removed in 1995.
Snow White's Enchanted Wish is a dark ride at the Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris theme parks, and formerly at the Magic Kingdom. Located in Fantasyland, it is one of the few remaining attractions that was operational on Disneyland's opening day in 1955, although it has seen several different redesigns over its history. The ride's story is based on Disney's 1937 film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, their first animated feature film.
A haunted attraction is a form of live entertainment that simulates visiting haunted locations or experiencing horror scenarios. They usually feature fearsome sets and characters, especially demons, ghosts, skeletons, zombies, monsters, possessed people, witches, serial killers, and slashers. Humorous characters may also be included.
Built in 2000, the Hamburg Dungeon is a tourist attraction from a chain including the London Dungeon and Berlin Dungeon. It is the first of this brand to be built in mainland Europe. It provides a journey through Hamburg’s dark history in an actor led, interactive experience.
The London Bridge Experience is a tourist attraction in Southwark, London, England, on the south bank of the River Thames. Guests are led by actors on a tour through moments in London's history, including Boudicca's battles with the Romans, and The Great Fire of London.
Berlin Dungeon is a tourist attraction from a chain including the London Dungeon and Hamburg Dungeon. It provides a journey through Berlin's dark history in an actor led, interactive experience. There are both German and English shows and the actors speak German and English.
The San Francisco Dungeon was a tourist attraction that recreated historical events using 360° sets, special effects, and live actors. Visitors walked through the Dungeon, and were guided through each show by professional actors. The attraction also contained a dark boat ride.
The Edinburgh Dungeon is an underground tourist attraction in Edinburgh's city centre, on Market Street, which uses live actor shows and interactive rides to show various historical events from Scottish history in a scary fun style, with audience interaction and special effects, theatrical sets and performance. The shows are laced with tongue in cheek, gallows humour typical of the Dungeon brand.
