The London Bridge Experience
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Until Aug 31 2010
- The London Bridge Experience and London Tombs, 2-4 Tooley St, London, SE1 2SY
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Rating:
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© www.londonbridgeexperience.com
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By Ronnie Haydon
Posted: Tue Mar 18 2008
- The experience is a split-level one. The first stage is a fun-for-all-the-family history lesson that takes the choicest cuts from the crossing’s 2,000-year past. The second takes you underground to tombs and catacombs and frightens the pants off you. The kind of people who queue outside the London Dungeon up the road will love that second bit, which is not recommended for young children or nervous types. The first was exciting enough for me. In it, visitors are invited to meet all the dead souls trapped forever within the haunted bridge’s foundations. Actors appear at every turn and in a number of settings. In a cobwebbed replica of a Victorian study, we meet the ghostly portrait of Sir John Rennie, who designed the 1831 bridge. His ravings are interpreted by a dusty old butler. Through heavy doors and along dank passages, we’re taken through the sacking of London by Boudicca, described by a bloodied Roman soldier surrounded by disembowelled dummies.
Then there’s the Russell Crowe-like Viking warrior, who entreats his guests to help pull down the bridge’s wooden piers. After that, we’re treated to William Wallace’s ghost, and a chamber of gore frequented by the chap in charge of heads on sticks. Each period involves interaction with the key players in both human and flat-screen form. Characters who put in an appearance also include Charles Dickens’ companion, a garrulous lighterman’s widow, the American who bought the bridge in 1970 and the disconcertingly unplummy Queen, on screen, introduced by a beefeater. It’s all splendidly kitsch and entertaining, with little shocks and horrors – plasticised gore, statues coming alive – to add a thrill. Those who want no more than that can go straight to the small museum (exhibits provided by the estate of London historian Peter Jackson), but shortening the visit thus makes the admission charge hard to swallow. So down to the London Tombs you go, to be subjected to pestilential passages peopled by crazed zombies, animatronic torture victims and severed heads. I nearly had a cardiac arrest.
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- The London Bridge Experience and London Tombs,2-4 Tooley St, London, SE1 2SY
- Category: Museums & Attractions
- Travel: London Bridge
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21 comments
Over priced & over hyped is how I would describe this.
To be honest I was more entertained by the bloke outside who pursuaded us to give it a try.
Be aware that once you've paid your money they then take you around the corner to join the conveniently hidden queue!
As previously stated the "experience" is split into two parts, the first part is pretty much awful & consists of a number of different areas that are hosted by some very poor actors. The fat bloke dressed as a friar is particularly annoying & seems to think that entertainment is all about bellowing rude remarks at everyone. (I wouldn't be surprised if he got a smack in the mouth every now and again!)
The second part is an improvement, having to manoeuvre your way around the "tombs" whilst avoiding hanging heads & other body parts in the dark. There are various things here to make you jump & this tends to liven things up before you reach the end.
To be honest this is little more than a small step up from a fairground attraction & is not worth the entrance money.
This is a great way to spend an afternoon or evening. I took my kids who are a bit older and they really enjoyed themselves. I was impressed with the history and actors in the first part of the attraction and the tombs were a great thrill! My kids had loads of fun in the tombs and, although quite scary, they came out laughing. I highly recommend this to everybody and would even go back for a second time!
I went to the London Bridge Experience with a couple friends and we loved it! It was a great way to spend a couple hours during the weekend. The tombs were our favorite part and the actors were great throughout. I definitely reccommend this attraction to anybody. We had lots of great laughs and great scares!
we went yesterday,it was ok,particularly as we had 2for1 vouchers to use so it worked out at £10ish each.First bit was a bit lame,some of the props were a bit naff although the history side of things made up for that in an entertaining way. The second part is where the fun starts - lots of strobe lighting and gory bodies with real people jumping out on you in the dark.Certainly made our party of 4 adults jump! All in all it was ok but if I'd paid the £20 entrance fee per person i would have been well disappointed.
London Bridge Experience is a great place for a scare and learn some great history behind the bridge. Not suitable for very young children, but anybody above 11 years would love this! Actors are great as well! Hope to be back for another visit!
The Spirits of Christmas Past show was fantastic and such a better alternative to the same old same old pantomime. Educational and entertaining- the kids loved it!!
Organising the trip for my cadets. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. It was very educational but in a fun and interactive way and the tombs were a nice finishing touch to the experience as it gave the cadets a chance to scare and be scared for a bit. They are still raving about it every time I see them.
I think the easist way I could describe why people should give this so called scary attraction a miss is this; Take a look at the makeup of the people outside trying to lure you in. If this is the amount of bother they go to for the people selling the place how much bother do you think they go to inside. The Haunted Attractions site which claimed it was "The scariest attraction in London" has 2 reviews. One awful one when it first opened and then another glowing one months later. My experience this halloween was very similar to the awful review. I can only think one of two things have happened. Either they knew the haunted attractions people were coming in and upped the ante or they improved after the first bad review but have lapsed back into their old ways. A very unsatisfying experience. To be honest "London's scariest attraction" doesn't really mean much anyway. Apart from London Dungeon and Madam Tussads chamber of horrors what other scary attractions are there? It's not much to be proud of. In short, save your money.
What a laugh. This place is on the money! Just get the outside sorted and they are gonna be made this time next year.
About time the other mob had a bit of competition!!
I went to the London Tombs as part of the Fear of the Dark experience and was very disappointed.
It quickly became apparent the main ‘affect’ were actors in toys’R’us facepaint leaping at you, shouting and then running away again ….or in the case of some of the more bored actors, strolling away. The animatronics and fake bodies looked like they had been scavenged from a ghost train recycling centre.
To be fair, a couple of women in the group were screaming and laughing and seemed to be having a good time, but I think they were the exception.
In an age where many people don’t even blink at torture films and other media shocks, the creators of this place where always going to struggle. But I can’t hep think they’ve missed the chance to do something original.
OH MY GOD LBE is sooo SCARY. We went here on Halloween. What a scary place LBE is.
We had planned our halloween for sometime and were all dressed up to enjoy a SCARY time at The London Dungeons on 31st October. Well what an anti climax that was.
After that horrible 4 wait and shuffle round a crap set at The London Dungeons we stumbled accross this place.
It was the BUSINESS. We will defo be coming back here for Halloween next year. ***** 5 STAR and SCARY
We went to the halloween Fear in the Dark attraction and it was awfully lame. As we were leaving a man and his 3 sons were complaining to the management on how unscary it was. It was no worse than a fairground ghosttrain. The actors looked bored at times once they "scared" you they switched off and walked away like normal people.
Also, I've seen the vaults under london bridge and they are massive. This could have been set in any building anywhere and seemed tiny.
All in all a very disappointing experience. Perhaps people who scare very easily will enjoy it but don't believe the hype.
I went with a few friends yesterday (we are all 16) and we thought it was brilliant! Especially since the student price was £10.98.
The London Bridge Experience was less scary obviously, but all these people moaning about the history of it or whatever should go to a museum or something; its not supposed to be educational.
The actors in there were ok, it was more funny than scary in the first part.
The tombs was so scarily good! At the time i was bricking it, but when we came out all i wanted to do was go again, and i can't wait to go back for the fright night halloween thing!
The safety talk man said that the actor-y people in there would intimidate you and scare you but not touch you - well they did touch me! One of them was rubbing my back and whispereing in my ear and one point i actually felt their lips on my ear! A little unnerving cause i was at the back of our group for most of it and the same person was really freaking me out...he followed me the entire time we were in there :S
I definately recommend it to people our age - it was so much fun :) worth every penny.
The people outside with the leaflets by the station were funny too, go and have a chat with 'em :)
Went yesterday, also came out without voices. Was full of hilariousities. Pretty AMAZINNNGG considering we only paid £10.95 :D
anyone moaning about a lack of info should go to a freaking museam. its FUNNNNNN okayyy? ;D
Advice: dont go in if you have a heart condition or want loads of info about the bridge. (:
Also, love the guys outside with the leaflets could've chatted to them all day, never met such nice dead people :D
xx
all i can say about my visit was i learned a little bit of history to start with ( at times you have to let go of inhibitions and get into the spirit of things, please do this because it makes it all much more fun, and you probably will never see the other visitors again so it wont matter if you look like a fool), which set the atmosphere for the tombs where i laughed so much that i couldnt walk until i was leapt upon by a ????(dont know what coz i closed my eyes immediately and then i ran like ?.... there is a word but its not ladylike) into the path of another ??? (screaming at the top of my voice) at the end of the experience my heart was pumping hard and endorphines running round my body. id say its well worth the money if you allow yourself to experience the experience!