Former seaside theme park ride set to reopen in Iraq

A ride which was once popular with thrillseekers at a North East Lincolnshire theme park is to reopen in Iraq.

Hydromax was a familiar sight on the skyline at Pleasure Island in Cleethorpes for more than a decade.

But following the park's closure in 2016, the ride was one of thousands of items put up for sale.

Alfie Lugsden, 18, a Pleasure Island enthusiast, said the ride was now set to make a return at Basra Happyland, in southern Iraq.

Pleasure Island, which closed due to falling visitor numbers, was a fixture on the Lincolnshire coast for more than 20 years.

For a number of years, Mr Lugsden, from Roxby, North Lincolnshire, has been tracking where the rides from the park have ended up.

Among the other items put up for sale were a carousel ride dating back to 1904, which was moved to Dublin, and a rollercoaster, which now sits atop a rooftop shopping mall in Bali.

Mr Lugsden, who runs the Pleasure Island Archives on Facebook, said Hydromax was the final piece in the jigsaw.

"It took quite a while, but [it] was extremely worth it," he told the BBC.

In a recent post, he wrote: "An update on the Hydromax. I have been informed by the people that purchased and resold the ride that [it] will be reopening at Basra Happyland in Iraq."

Mr Lugsden, who has amassed hundreds of items from Pleasure Island, including original ride entry signs, said he had also managed to track down some of the old blueprints and artist's impressions of the rides before they were even built.

"That’s probably one of the most intriguing and rewarding parts of it all," he said.

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