Interview with the owners of The Horror Crypt Blackpool
The Horror Crypt has been a staple attraction at Blackpool Pleasure Beach for nearly 40 years, but has always had a reputation for being a bit cheap and, dare we say it, naff! Roll on Spring 2017 when the venue is due to open under new managers Kurt and Lisa Walsh who have some unique ideas for this seaside attraction
ScareTOUR - Tell us a bit about yourselves. What’s your horror history?
Horror Crypt - Me & my wife Lisa have been big horror fans since we were little kids. I started performing under the name Kurt Dirt as a teenager playing punk and electro music and putting on gory horror inspired stage shows, from that I got in to making music videos and my own zero budget dark comedy splatter films such as “Life is Cheap”. I have composed music for Troma Entertainment’s “Return to Nuke em High” series and independent horrors such as “My Bloody Banjo” and “Dolly Deadly” and studied special FX at Bolton University. Day to day I work as a scare actor in Pasaje Del Terror chasing tourists with chainsaws and being asked if my sideburns are real. Also in our team is Vince Ripper from the Horror Rock duo Vince Ripper & The Rodent Show.
ScareTOUR - So what interested you in The Horror Crypt.and what’s the new deal ? Do you own it or is it a franchise from the Pleasure Beach?
Horror Crypt - I have great memories of going there as a kid. The Horror Crypt, The Ghost Train & Chamber of Horrors at Louis Tussauds were my fav places to go to every single birthday, plus it has quite a cool little history with it being used for part of BBC’s “Doctor Terrors Vault of Horror” which I loved. Tim Burton & Winona Ryder also filmed a music vid there for The Killers. I was pleasantly surprised to see it still existed when I moved over here & would pop in on my lunch breaks from Pasaje. I couldn’t help but mentally make notes about what could be moved around, what old props could be refurbished and what new ones would look cool. I got chatting with the manager of Ripley's Believe it or Not who ran the crypt at that time and she believed in our ideas enough to put us in touch with the Pleasure Beach and hand the lease over to us. We’ve had such a great experience dealing with the Pleasure Beach & Ripley's so we just hope we can do em’ proud!
ScareTOUR - What are you looking forward to changing the most?
Horror Crypt - Painting all the random blue walls black ha ha!. There was also a strange number of medieval/royal crests and décor around, from what I can gather it used to be a ride called “The Crown Jewels” at some point before it became the Haunted Crypt and then the Horror Crypt. We’re changing everything really and I’m excited about every new set. Our first order of business was to assess the space and see how we could put every inch to use. Originally the attraction had about 3 of those “peppers ghost” mirror illusions (where a figure would appear to fade away or change in to another figure) which were cool but two of them literally took up an entire room so they had to go.
ScareTOUR - With Pasaje del Terror nearly – are you looking to create another “scare attraction” or are you looking for a different vibe?
Horror Crypt - I think we’re kind of spoilt around here when it comes to actor driven scare attractions, Pasaje were one of the originals & are still going strong and Scare Kingdom, Houghton House of Horrors etc are doing some really exciting things. What we want to do differently is provide a “chamber of horrors” style experience where horror fans, crime buffs & the morbidly curious can explore, soak up the atmosphere and learn something. We have displays based on a wide array of movie monsters & psychopaths and if that wasn’t enough, we also have some real life fiends such as Ed Gein & Elizabeth Bathory. Also on display will be a selection of props from movies & TV shows such as Dog Soldiers & Penny Dreadful. We won’t be using live actors so if something moves I’d advise running to the exit as fast as you can!
ScareTOUR - Where have you sourced all the new props and sets from,? Will the attraction retain much of what was there before?
Horror Crypt -We’re like horror wombles, we don’t throw anything away. We’ve refurbished and found uses for a few of the props that were in the crypt but the majority of props & set pieces will be brand new. Some were created by myself or talented local artists and a few were rescued from old wax museums and attractions.
ScareTOUR - Do you have any plans to run super scary nights or different style events over Halloween?
Horror Crypt - We have been brainstorming this yes! We’d also like to do special events out of season such as movie nights and we also have plans to do a special FX exhibition with help from Mike Peel & our friends at Rogue Creations which will highlight all the hard work and artistry which goes in to practical FX.
ScareTOUR - Obviously there is a lot of time and effort and money going into the refurb, anything that you wish you could do but just won’t have the time or money to do this year?
Horror Crypt - So much yes haha, The thing is though we plan to change sets around at least every couple of seasons so we can include new monsters/ historical figures so we will eventually get to bring to life all the ideas we have that we currently don’t have time, space or money to do. I really have my heart set on creating Vlad the Impaler and his “forest of the impaled”
ScareTOUR - Finally – if you had to say one thing to get a new audience into an old attraction – what would it be?
Horror Crypt - We have your children! And if that doesn’t work then we can remind them that this is an attraction for horror fans by horror fans with an awesome store out front to boot.
ScareTOUR - Tell us a bit about yourselves. What’s your horror history?
Horror Crypt - Me & my wife Lisa have been big horror fans since we were little kids. I started performing under the name Kurt Dirt as a teenager playing punk and electro music and putting on gory horror inspired stage shows, from that I got in to making music videos and my own zero budget dark comedy splatter films such as “Life is Cheap”. I have composed music for Troma Entertainment’s “Return to Nuke em High” series and independent horrors such as “My Bloody Banjo” and “Dolly Deadly” and studied special FX at Bolton University. Day to day I work as a scare actor in Pasaje Del Terror chasing tourists with chainsaws and being asked if my sideburns are real. Also in our team is Vince Ripper from the Horror Rock duo Vince Ripper & The Rodent Show.
ScareTOUR - So what interested you in The Horror Crypt.and what’s the new deal ? Do you own it or is it a franchise from the Pleasure Beach?
Horror Crypt - I have great memories of going there as a kid. The Horror Crypt, The Ghost Train & Chamber of Horrors at Louis Tussauds were my fav places to go to every single birthday, plus it has quite a cool little history with it being used for part of BBC’s “Doctor Terrors Vault of Horror” which I loved. Tim Burton & Winona Ryder also filmed a music vid there for The Killers. I was pleasantly surprised to see it still existed when I moved over here & would pop in on my lunch breaks from Pasaje. I couldn’t help but mentally make notes about what could be moved around, what old props could be refurbished and what new ones would look cool. I got chatting with the manager of Ripley's Believe it or Not who ran the crypt at that time and she believed in our ideas enough to put us in touch with the Pleasure Beach and hand the lease over to us. We’ve had such a great experience dealing with the Pleasure Beach & Ripley's so we just hope we can do em’ proud!
ScareTOUR - What are you looking forward to changing the most?
Horror Crypt - Painting all the random blue walls black ha ha!. There was also a strange number of medieval/royal crests and décor around, from what I can gather it used to be a ride called “The Crown Jewels” at some point before it became the Haunted Crypt and then the Horror Crypt. We’re changing everything really and I’m excited about every new set. Our first order of business was to assess the space and see how we could put every inch to use. Originally the attraction had about 3 of those “peppers ghost” mirror illusions (where a figure would appear to fade away or change in to another figure) which were cool but two of them literally took up an entire room so they had to go.
ScareTOUR - With Pasaje del Terror nearly – are you looking to create another “scare attraction” or are you looking for a different vibe?
Horror Crypt - I think we’re kind of spoilt around here when it comes to actor driven scare attractions, Pasaje were one of the originals & are still going strong and Scare Kingdom, Houghton House of Horrors etc are doing some really exciting things. What we want to do differently is provide a “chamber of horrors” style experience where horror fans, crime buffs & the morbidly curious can explore, soak up the atmosphere and learn something. We have displays based on a wide array of movie monsters & psychopaths and if that wasn’t enough, we also have some real life fiends such as Ed Gein & Elizabeth Bathory. Also on display will be a selection of props from movies & TV shows such as Dog Soldiers & Penny Dreadful. We won’t be using live actors so if something moves I’d advise running to the exit as fast as you can!
ScareTOUR - Where have you sourced all the new props and sets from,? Will the attraction retain much of what was there before?
Horror Crypt -We’re like horror wombles, we don’t throw anything away. We’ve refurbished and found uses for a few of the props that were in the crypt but the majority of props & set pieces will be brand new. Some were created by myself or talented local artists and a few were rescued from old wax museums and attractions.
ScareTOUR - Do you have any plans to run super scary nights or different style events over Halloween?
Horror Crypt - We have been brainstorming this yes! We’d also like to do special events out of season such as movie nights and we also have plans to do a special FX exhibition with help from Mike Peel & our friends at Rogue Creations which will highlight all the hard work and artistry which goes in to practical FX.
ScareTOUR - Obviously there is a lot of time and effort and money going into the refurb, anything that you wish you could do but just won’t have the time or money to do this year?
Horror Crypt - So much yes haha, The thing is though we plan to change sets around at least every couple of seasons so we can include new monsters/ historical figures so we will eventually get to bring to life all the ideas we have that we currently don’t have time, space or money to do. I really have my heart set on creating Vlad the Impaler and his “forest of the impaled”
ScareTOUR - Finally – if you had to say one thing to get a new audience into an old attraction – what would it be?
Horror Crypt - We have your children! And if that doesn’t work then we can remind them that this is an attraction for horror fans by horror fans with an awesome store out front to boot.
|
|
Links
The Horror Crypt dont have an official website yet but you can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
You Review
Have you experienced The Horror Crypt in the past? - tell us what you thought here
For information about all attractions and reviews, visit us on Social Media!
All the latest news, stories, review and gossip can be found on the ScareTOUR Facebook page - the hottest facebook presence in the UK for Scare Attractions!
For the latest offers, exclusive discounts and more - Join the group!
For the latest offers, exclusive discounts and more - Join the group!