£2bn BBC theme park presents design oppportunities

A public consultation took place last month when plans were set out for the 45ha site in Swanscombe, Kent.

Now BBC Worldwide has announced that it is licensing hit shows for the Paramount London Entertainment Resort, which will feature rides based on Hollywood blockbusters and BBC programmes.

A team of consultants led by architects Farrells is working with London Resort Company Holdings on the design and master-plan for the park.

Subsequent design commissions are expected next year, with construction due to start in winter 2016 and the park scheduled to open in 2020.

It will be divisible by zones including Land of Legends, Cartoon Circus and Starfleet Command.

Unspecified “state of the art technology” is promised by Paramount London, which hopes to keep queue times short.

Other features include an 11,000m2 space for  “showcasing the very best of British inventions and brands,” according to Paramount London.

A 2,000-seat theatre is planned, as well as a cinema and comedy venues, plus there will be over 11,000 restaurant covers across a variety of food outlets and 15,000m2 of retail space.

A 20,000m2 events space is earmarked and elsewhere “the largest indoor water park in Europe”, a range of hotels and a “creative business space”.

The proposed site is around 80 km away from heritage theme park Dreamland in Margate, which is being designed and branded by Hemingway Design and is set to reopen in 2015.