Room on the Broom - A Magical Journey

‘Room on the Broom – A Magical Journey’ inherited the space of a previous attraction, ‘Hocus Pocus Hall’, inside an old mansion on site that has stood there for centuries. Key elements of the ‘Hocus Pocus Hall’ were so loved by guests that it was decided that they would be kept for the new attraction, which provided some unusual challenges to overcome. Merlin Entertainments turned to Sarner to undertake AV and show design, using its technical magic and a touch of spatial imagination to get the compact rooms within this historic building to work in a way that was both practical and maintained an element of immersion on a tight budget.

The brief was to to create a magical adventure where the story that is read to children is physically experienced, where families can play and learn together and take their time to enjoy their surroundings and interactive activities, whilst meeting the wonderful characters and creating that emotional connection.

To bring a fantastical tale to life, we undertook creative and technical design, including the design, integration and programming of complex projection mapping, immersive multi-channel audio, theatrical lighting and surprise special effects such as scent, wind and fog/smoke, as well as full show control design featuring audience triggers, operator controls and automatic performance monitoring. The install took a total of three and a half months, completed on time and on budget. 

As one of Chessington World of Adventures’ most popular new attractions, ‘Room on the broom’ is visited by thousands of adults and children each day.