Animatronic beast display will take over centre of park for over a month

Images from the publicity material for the event

More details have emerged of the planned animatronics experience which is set to take over much of Gunnersbury Park this month and attract up to 6,000 visitors a day.

The organisers have had to submit further details of the Ice Age: The Lost Kingdom event which will see the installation of 40 installations of animated life-sized beasts in an enclosed area of the park as part of their application for planning permission for a temporary change of use for the park.

The event will take over much of the central area of the park which used to form the pitch and putt. The documentation appears to indicate that access will be retained to the café and museum and areas around the perimeter of the park.

The organisers anticipate that up to 6,000 people a day will attend the event which is aimed at a family audiences. Tickets will be sold for hourly slots so it is not anticipated that all the attendees will arrive all at once. Only 800 tickets will be sold for each hour for the experience which lasts around 45 minutes. The event will open daily from 10am to 6pm with last entry at 5pm. Tickets are available from their website and a ticket kiosk on site where you will be asked to select an hourly time slot from 10am to 5pm.

Visitors will come face to face with huge Ice Age beasts including the Woolly Mammoth, Smilodon (Sabre Toothed Tiger), Cave Lion, Woolly Rhinoceros, Mastodon (giant elephants), Megatherium (Giant Sloth), Short Faced Bear, Giant Beaver and many more. They will be bought to life through animatronics, which include moving arms, tails swaying side-to-side, heads moving up and down, eyes blinking and jaws opening wide with roaring sound effects.

The organisers are Weli Cultural Alliance, a London based company believed to be Chinese owned, which organised the Magic Lantern Festival in Chiswick House Grounds for several years. Chiswick ward councillors have warned Gunnersbury Park’s management team, and the park’s event planner, about the alleged failure of the organisers to clear up after events in Chiswick House.

Map showing the areas of Gunnersbury Park covered by the event

Expected peak times based on previous events are between 10.00am – 1.00pm. Overall anticipated attendance is no more than 1000 people in any two hours, less after 2.00pm at all times with weekdays less busy.

The organisers say they will make in plain in any publicity that there is no parking at the event although their Traffic Management plan does not specify whether the existing car park at Gunnersbury Park will remain open and the organisers have not yet responded to our request for clarification on this point. They have estimated the number of additional vehicles in the area on busy days (when more than 6,000 tickets are sold for the 5 hours of opening) is approximately 200/300 based on previous experience. The peak arrival of these vehicles is early morning – around 100 extra vehicles per hour in the surrounding streets. In addition to this increase of traffic in the area, there is will be an increase in taxis pulling into the front of the site or setting down in surrounding roads.

The set-up for the event will begin on 25 March and opens to the public on 6 April until 28 April with the site being cleared on 2 May.

Tickets when bought online cost £16.22 for adults (16+) and £14.06 for concessions including children. Family tickets are available for four with all tickets at the concession price. It looks as if you can get a 20% discount if you enter the code EARLYBIRD20 when ordering although we haven’t been able to verify this. Tickets on the door cost £16 for adults and £14 for concessions.

We have asked the organisers if they are confident that their planning application will be approved in time for the event and what is their contingency if it is not granted in time.

A spokesperson replied, "The organisers of the event are currently liaising with the council regarding the plans, so we cannot confirm any details at this stage."

If you wish to comment on the application the reference on the Hounslow Council planning portal is P/2019/0503.

March 1, 2019