Universal Great Britain

[TheUniC6]

IK that Theme Parks have a limited number of lands and all the talk of new stuff in this Park may have made people dismiss it a bit, but I’m surprised to not see a new Nintendo area mentioned a lot given just how much of a success it’s been for Universal everywhere, and there’s a lot you could still do with even just the Marioverse

Maybe there is some Nintendo rep planned for UGB, it's just no where near close to be finalized.

But at the same time, there seems to be some cooling over the Nintendo and Universal relationship with Legend of Zelda for IOA hitting a wall in terms of development and once solid rumors of Pokemon replacing Simpsons not being as certain as they were before.

 

[havaska]

The size of the area that Universal own is easily big enough for two gates though. So we very well could eventually see two parks (and potentially a water park - indoors of course) on this site. There’s also plenty of land around that Universal already have options on, but do not yet own.

I do think we’ll eventually see a resort on the scale of Disneyland Paris because that’s who Universal will want to compete with.

 

[Jerroddragon]

Maybe there is some Nintendo rep planned for UGB, it's just no where near close to be finalized.

But at the same time, there seems to be some cooling over the Nintendo and Universal relationship with Legend of Zelda for IOA hitting a wall in terms of development and once solid rumors of Pokemon replacing Simpsons not being as certain as they were before.

I just want to know why......maybe its on the other side but the Pokemon one I wont get

Look at the Costo and mcdonalds mayhem now and like tell me you don't want it where customers are coming in and buying all all your merch..thats like a dream for companies

 

[ProjectUniversal]

They have had a digger on site clearing the growth probably because it's not nesting season. This has not been done for 20 years or more so it begs the question why now?

I think we all know the answer.

 

[Rhian]

It is clear from an administrative standpoint things are moving forward. I think for the general public a formal announcement of it coming could be delayed for much longer. It's not like the park would open any sooner if they announced it tomorrow.

They have had a digger on site clearing the growth probably because it's not nesting season. This has not been done for 20 years or more so it begs the question why now?

I think we all know the answer.

Are we sure? I'm not familiar with the nesting habits of diggers.

 

[yepthatguy]

I think if Birds create nests and lay eggs then they can’t be touched, so they are politely stopping that from happening in case it did.

I’m hoping for an official announcement within a couple weeks! Fingers crossed.

 

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

I doubt this is how the company operates, and they may not have a choice if they’re working with local governments. With Epic opening though it’d be a fun tease to be something like “Oh, and we aren’t done building new theme parks…..” and drop a logo for USGB. No further details needed.

 

[JT01]

The size of the area that Universal own is easily big enough for two gates though. So we very well could eventually see two parks (and potentially a water park - indoors of course) on this site. There’s also plenty of land around that Universal already have options on, but do not yet own.

I do think we’ll eventually see a resort on the scale of Disneyland Paris because that’s who Universal will want to compete with.

What other land would be available other than that parcel of land they said they could purchase linking the slip road to the park resort?

also were would a second park be located on this land? the north section is quite narrow due to the lakes, that section of land lends itself more towards hotel resorts etc.

 

[xtpower]

What other land would be available other than that parcel of land they said they could purchase linking the slip road to the park resort?

also were would a second park be located on this land? the north section is quite narrow due to the lakes, that section of land lends itself more towards hotel resorts etc.

That North section is gigantic though, yea it looks narrow but that's a giant parcel of land and the lakes and nature aspect would probably make for a very unique park if done right.

 

[JT01]

That North section is gigantic though, yea it looks narrow but that's a giant parcel of land and the lakes and nature aspect would probably make for a very unique park if done right.

"I suppose if they were creative with the design, it could work, but when you look at most park layouts, they're typically quite square or rectangular. The northern section, in particular, seems like a great spot for multiple resorts—maybe even a larger lake with boat transport to a city walk.

I'm actually surprised there haven’t been any fan-made block plans or resort layouts for the area, showing how people think the space could be utilized.

 

[rob@rar]

Nice credit today to @Alicia by a columnist at the Bedford Independent for first breaking the news that Universal were planning a theme park in Bedford. Not sure who else is claiming credit, but I think it’s important to recognise the efforts that are being made to dig out snippets of info to piece together the bigger picture so us fans can stay excited about the future of theme parks in the UK.

 

[Lost Meerkat]

This is the Financial Times today. Apparently Universal has the codename "Mandarin" within the Government.

Officials are working on a range of projects — some with fruit-related code names — to get investment into Britain.

One relates to a massive new Universal theme park being proposed for a site near Bedford, with officials close to talks between the company and Treasury saying that they are “progressing well”.

Backers of the project claim it could generate as much as £50bn in economic value in its first 20 years. The Treasury has been asked to provide financial support, including for the upgrading of an M1 motorway junction and the building of a new station.

One official briefed on the talks, dubbed Project Mandarin, said they were nearly complete: “It’s one of those negotiations you could conclude if you wanted to.” Another person briefed on the talks added: “It’s very close. It’s almost there, but not there yet.”

Officials said the package of support focused mainly on guaranteeing infrastructure investments and improvements, which will be critical to carrying the thousands of people travelling to visit the 500 acre site.

Executives at Comcast — whose Universal Destinations & Experiences is behind the scheme — have in the past told the FT that they wanted to build “one of the greatest theme parks in the world”.

Universal Destinations & Experiences said: “We continue to have productive discussions with the UK government.”

 

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

Obviously it’s been rumored for over a year now so this isn’t a hot take…….. but this is so happening

 

[Altonsky]

That North section is gigantic though, yea it looks narrow but that's a giant parcel of land and the lakes and nature aspect would probably make for a very unique park if done right.

They don’t own the lakes though do they?

 

[bedfordmassive]

They own the view of the lake!

 

[Altonsky]

They own the view of the lake!

True, I presume ownership of the lake itself may be on the agenda if possible. Otherwise those who own the lake could effectively do whatever they wanted, boozy boat parties

 

[xtpower]

The Wandering Northerner has posted two images over on Towers Street, that shows they are doing a bit more than just clearing trees/bushes.

Link - Potential New Universal UK Park

On the second image, the rectangle beyond the clearing shown on @ProjectUniversal 's recent YT video is now lined with concrete blocks and also looks like it's been cleared. Not just the couple of trees but the majority of the grass that was in the section. It truly looks like they are readying that area for construction buildings or to house materials/vehicles.

 

[masekwm]

Been back today to take a closer look at that concrete pad, it has been fully cleared. Can see in the photo linked above that the digger had been through the gap.

 

[yepthatguy]

Been back today to take a closer look at that concrete pad, it has been fully cleared. Can see in the photo linked above that the digger had been through the gap.

I like your YouTube videos by the way. Thanks for posting here too.

At the site, we’ll know we’re in business when a Portaloo arrives!

On a more serious note though, on page 15 of the PDF on the official project site, it outlines pretty much this area as “indicative location of construction compound” in yellow. Also shows a roundabout that isn’t there now where the Kempston Hardwick station is.. I know they’ve planned a bridge and have been testing the ground even again recently.

Based on that, this could be where the first site stuff happens maybe…

Exciting stuff!

 

[ProjectUniversal]

They might be backtracking on the bridge now, we find out more detail in the next week or so.