Universal Great Britain - Speculation & Rumors

[ProjectUniversal]

Or counting Drones

Probably some kind of surveying or checking though. Private car, no logo on it.

They are surveyors. Same one that got stuck in the mud on the transport hub the day before. They are not doing anything exciting.

 

[rob@rar]

A meeting of the full Bedford Council took place last night and they gave final approval to the current plan to develop the railway station at Wixams. In the introduction to the item the relevant councillor mentioned that there was an "exceptionally good chance" that the requirement of the council to part-fund the station would be removed if Universal's proposal went ahead, in which case planning permission for the theme park would be via an Act of Parliament and the funding for a much bigger station would be provided by central government. No new information from what we already know, but useful confirmation that the Council considers that the Universal proposal is still on track and there is an exceptionally good chance that it will be approved.

 

[Luke Hutchinson]

A meeting of the full Bedford Council took place last night and they approved the current plan to develop the railway station at Wixams. In the introduction to the item the relevant councillor mentioned that there was an "exceptionally good chance" that the requirement of the council to part-fund the station would be removed if Universal's proposal went ahead, in which case planning permission for the theme park would be via an Act of Parliament and the funding for a much bigger station would be provided by central government. No new information from what we already know, but useful confirmation that the Council considers that the Universal proposal is still on track and there is an exceptionally good chance that it will be approved.

Sounds pretty positive, Are these meetings held monthly?

 

[rob@rar]

Sounds pretty positive, Are these meetings held monthly?

Most months, but I don't think there is one scheduled for August. To a certain extent the full Council meetings are a bit of a rubber-stamping exercise. The majority of the work and the main decision-making body seems to be the Executive Committee (a small subset of the full Council) or the elected mayor. In terms of the Council's interest in the Universal proposal, the majority of the work and the negotiations seem to have taken place in private outside of the formal committees, which they did for months and months without a whisper of it reaching the public domain. Quite remarkable secret-keeping!

 

[ZeroSight]

Eurostar looking at growing max capacity at London St Pancras from 19m passengers a year, to 30m by 2030.

HS1 Ltd commissions study to expand St Pancras International Station | New Civil Engineer

Agency Active Thinking has been appointed by High Speed 1 Ltd (HS1 Ltd) to carry out an in-depth study into expanding capacity at St Pancras International

www.newcivilengineer.com

This is the international rail station in London that will then go direct to Bedford/Wixams Station. More evidence of companies seeing the opportunity to grow and increase revenue due to Universal's potential investment.

 

[rob@rar]

Eurostar looking at growing max capacity at London St Pancras from 19m passengers a year, to 30m by 2030.

…

This is the international rail station in London that will then go direct to Bedford/Wixams Station. More evidence of companies seeing the opportunity to grow and increase revenue due to Universal's potential investment.

Hope they find a way of increasing the capacity at St Pancras, for incoming and outgoing visitors. It’s a real problem currently, with Eurostar having to cut back or entirely scrap some routes. More people arriving at St Pancras from France, Belgium and elsewhere can only be good for Universal’s ambitions at Bedford.

 

[rob@rar]

Well, this is interesting:

Director, Operations - New Ventures – Universal Destinations & Experiences – 614005 -

Search jobs at Universal Parks & Resorts, Universal Orlando, Universal Studios Hollywood, or Universal Creative. Apply today!

jobs.universalparks.com

Scroll all the way down to Additional Information

 

[Luke Hutchinson]

Well, this is interesting:

Director, Operations - New Ventures – Universal Destinations & Experiences – 614005 -

Search jobs at Universal Parks & Resorts, Universal Orlando, Universal Studios Hollywood, or Universal Creative. Apply today!

jobs.universalparks.com

Scroll all the way down to Additional Information

Does this mean Page Thompson is leaving? Also are you referring to the Domestic & International Travel?

 

[rob@rar]

Does this mean Page Thompson is leaving? Also are you referring to the Domestic & International Travel?

As a guess, I’d say it’s a senior member of staff who would report to Page Thompson who will continue to be the head of New Ventures. It might be a replacement, or it might be a new post.

As I understand it , Universal’s current New Ventures are located in Las Vegas; Frisco, Texas; and Bedford. If this job description states that international travel is included, perhaps it will have some responsibility for the UK new venture?

 

[ProjectUniversal]

Yes, I'd say director is a position under Page Thompson who is President.

I've been past site this weekend and there are new flags out that surveyors have put up and also another installation has happened but I'll cover that on Wednesday in a video that I filmed but haven't yet edited. That should raise some questions.

On a slightly different topic I've never mention here before but I post a fair bit of stuff on my Facebook page if you search Project Universal UK on FB you'll find it. I've settled on using YouTube for video and Facebook for everything else. Some stuff does auto post to Insta and Twitter but FB and YT will be my mains.

Project Universal UK

Project Universal UK. 482 likes · 264 talking about this. Follow the construction of Universal Studios Great Britain right here on Facebook.

www.facebook.com

 

[Alicia]

As I understand it , Universal’s current New Ventures are located in Las Vegas; Frisco, Texas; and Bedford. If this job description states that international travel is included, perhaps it will have some responsibility for the UK new venture?

That’s the thing about new ventures, they’re always looking for what’s new. So that may only be what we know about currently.

 

[rob@rar]

That’s the thing about new ventures, they’re always looking for what’s new. So that may only be what we know about currently.

Yes, that’s a good point. I’m sure there are some people who hope Universal are looking in Spain…

 

[Alicia]

Yes, that’s a good point. I’m sure there are some people who hope Universal are looking in Spain…

Horror Unleashed and Universal Kids may be in search of future locations right now. Then if first ones succeed they can move forward elsewhere and already secured spots around the world.

For example.

 

[extrobeiuf]

I know it's not directly related, but the French park operator Puy du Fou has announced plans for a new park in the UK, less than an hour away from the Universal site.

Puy du Fou £300m theme park planned for Oxfordshire

It's an 'experience' park rather than having any rides, so don't think Universal would see them as a competitor, but suspect it actually supports Puy du Fou's plans given that Universal would ensure the right target audience is already in the region.

 

[Doug88]

I hope Gareth Southgate doesn't put his name down for the new managers job.

 

[Altonsky]

Horror Unleashed and Universal Kids may be in search of future locations right now. Then if first ones succeed they can move forward elsewhere and already secured spots around the world.

For example.

Weren’t there rumours about there being a horror unleashed site in London that’s open before this potential park in Bedford?

 

[Alicia]

Weren’t there rumours about there being a horror unleashed site in London that’s open before this potential park in Bedford?

I don’t know when but yes, I believe the rumor is that city could be on the short list. A trademark for the name has been filed locally as well, (although that doesn’t always mean anything).

 

[rob@rar]

On a slightly different topic I've never mention here before but I post a fair bit of stuff on my Facebook page if you search Project Universal UK on FB you'll find it. I've settled on using YouTube for video and Facebook for everything else.

Just watched your latest video from the site and thought I'd reply here to some of your speculation regarding why Bedford Council is proceeding with a 2-platform station at their own expense, rather than allowing the Government or Universal to proceed with a 4-platform station which will save the Council £60M+. The reason is quite simple, a large chunk of that £60M+ is due to come from the property developers who built much of the housing at Wixams. This so-called Section 106 agreement sets out what financial contributions will be paid to the council by the developer for the construction of local amenities (such as transport, education facilities, etc). In order to make use of that S106 money the Council was against a deadline of the end of July 2024 to reach the S106 agreement otherwise it would have timed-out and the property developers would no longer be required to pay the Council that money. As you probably know, the housing development at Wixams took place a long time ago and the issue of the train station has been kicking around for more than a decade, which is why the Council was up against that final deadline. I don't think there is any undisclosed reason why the Council has signed that S106 agreement, it's simply a case of if they didn't sign it the council potentially would have missed out on several £million contribution from property developers. It seems prudent to cover all the possibilities, even if they (like most of us) are very confident that Universal's proposal will go ahead.

As the Council has made clear, they have included clauses in the contract for the 2-platform train station that if Universal's project goes ahead that contract will be voided, to be replaced with the construction of the 4-platform station. In doing so it would save the Council a huge amount of money so I'm sure that's just one of the reasons why they want the theme park to be constructed!

 

[yepthatguy]

That’s pretty decent for people living in Wixams in my view. It means they get a train station even if Universal do not go ahead.

 

[rob@rar]

Maybe something, maybe nothing, but Moira Oliver, the Head of Talent Acquisition for Universal Creative, recently commented on a recruitment process for a major new role currently being advertised for Universal Creative:

This is a big one! Really big! I can think of maybe only one or two other times I've posted a role like this in my 8+ years with Universal. So here we go!

We have a brand new opportunity - Director, Creative Direction - available in Orlando. This is an executive level role with the main responsibilities of driving the design and overall creative intent for a major project. This role is a leader of leaders. And it is truly the chance of a lifetime.

The team is looking for someone who has an extensive career in theme park design, and specifically someone who has led all aspects of the design process - from initial ideation to final installation in the field. Multiple Creative Directors and Art Directors will directly or indirectly report up to this person, so previous experience in those or similar roles, in world-class themed entertainment attraction design, is required.

I've added the bold emphasis to the phrase that interests me most. I wonder what the "major project" might be...