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Post by burrunjor on Dec 12, 2021 0:02:41 GMT
My favourite Christmas song. What a tragic loss George Michael was. Such a great singer song writer and such a nice man too. He was one of these Roger Moore, Peter Cushing types that I always heard great things about from those who worked with him, and he had such a brilliant sense of humour and could laugh at himself. He is missed. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 12, 2021 15:10:03 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Dec 12, 2021 15:15:33 GMT
I never hear Fairytale of New York on the radio anymore. Just because the word "fag*ot" is used doesn't mean they should ban it like Radio 1 did. Again, listening to songs from over thirty years ago and expecting it to have modern day sensibilities is silly. Also, they play songs about sex and clubbing with "big booty hoes" but not this.
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Post by burrunjor on Dec 12, 2021 16:29:56 GMT
This Christmas I've started to get a bit nostalgic about Santa Claus Land.
Did anyone here ever go to it? I doubt that any did, as most here are English and I think the few Scots here like Clockwork and Maxil are too young. Zarius may have been about the right age I don't know, but anyway Santa Claus Land was mental.
It was a theme park in the Highland town of Aviemore that ran all year round with a Christmas theme! It had a Santa's grotto where you could meet old saint nick played by an actor, a north pole (which consisted of a frozen lake, with a big ice stick at the center, that somehow stayed cold all year around.) A Reindeer section and a Christmas themed play house, as well as Christmas music blasting all year round. One girl that worked there, who we knew quite well said after she stopped working there that if she ever heard Wizard's Christmas Every Day again she'd have PTSD flashbacks LOL.
There were a few non Christmas parts of the park however, including a Zoo, a James Bond ride, mini golf, and best of all. A Dino Ride!
The Dino Ride was the highlight for me. It was awesome. You'd get driven through several dark corridors, where there would be glowing Dinosaurs on the wall. There was a giant Raptor with feathers on its head, a huge green glowing Tyrannosaurus Rex with blood on its jaws, a Triceratops, a Brontosaurus, a Pteranodon etc. As your drove past them, you'd hear their roars and screams. I fokking loved it! It terrified me as a five year old, but I still couldn't get enough of it as I honestly felt like I was actually seeing real life Dinosaurs.
Apparently the Dino Ride was originally a western themed bit of the park in the 70s (when Santa Claus Land first opened.) Back then it was to cash in on the Spagehti Western craze, but in the 90s (when I went there as a nipper) Dino Mania had caught on thanks to Jurassic Park, and so they replaced it with the Dinosaur ride. Pretty much every review of the park agrees that the Dino Ride was the highlight. If they'd made it a Dinosaur park instead of a Santa one it might still be running today. Though at the same time had Santa Claus land survived into the 2020s, the Dino ride would probably be replaced with a superhero ride, such is the fickle nature of fame LOL.
Sadly Santa Claus land came to an end in 2002 and was shut down. What was even more strange though was that it was just left to rot.
At least until 2017 anyway. It was just abandoned and lots of people went exploring the old ruins, where you could see the remains of the Dino ride, the James Bond swing set, the play house. They even posted pictures of it online. It was really creepy, but quite cool to see an area that had seemed so magical and full of life as a child just left to decay.
I heard there were plans to build a hotel or something over the ruins of the park in 2018. I don't know if they went through or not.
Anyone else have any memories of this surreal place of Cowboys, Dinosaurs, James Bond and Santa?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2021 12:30:51 GMT
Asked for the Beneath the Surface trilogy for Christmas. I bought Warriors individually a year or so ago, but since I've warmed to the Pertwee era I would like to own The Silurians and The Sea Devils as well.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2021 12:33:15 GMT
This Christmas I've started to get a bit nostalgic about Santa Claus Land. Did anyone here ever go to it? I doubt that any did, as most here are English and I think the few Scots here like Clockwork and Maxil are too young. Zarius may have been about the right age I don't know, but anyway Santa Claus Land was mental. It was a theme park in the Highland town of Aviemore that ran all year round with a Christmas theme! It had a Santa's grotto where you could meet old saint nick played by an actor, a north pole (which consisted of a frozen lake, with a big ice stick at the center, that somehow stayed cold all year around.) A Reindeer section and a Christmas themed play house, as well as Christmas music blasting all year round. One girl that worked there, who we knew quite well said after she stopped working there that if she ever heard Wizard's Christmas Every Day again she'd have PTSD flashbacks LOL. There were a few non Christmas parts of the park however, including a Zoo, a James Bond ride, mini golf, and best of all. A Dino Ride! The Dino Ride was the highlight for me. It was awesome. You'd get driven through several dark corridors, where there would be glowing Dinosaurs on the wall. There was a giant Raptor with feathers on its head, a huge green glowing Tyrannosaurus Rex with blood on its jaws, a Triceratops, a Brontosaurus, a Pteranodon etc. As your drove past them, you'd hear their roars and screams. I fokking loved it! It terrified me as a five year old, but I still couldn't get enough of it as I honestly felt like I was actually seeing real life Dinosaurs. Apparently the Dino Ride was originally a western themed bit of the park in the 70s (when Santa Claus Land first opened.) Back then it was to cash in on the Spagehti Western craze, but in the 90s (when I went there as a nipper) Dino Mania had caught on thanks to Jurassic Park, and so they replaced it with the Dinosaur ride. Pretty much every review of the park agrees that the Dino Ride was the highlight. If they'd made it a Dinosaur park instead of a Santa one it might still be running today. Though at the same time had Santa Claus land survived into the 2020s, the Dino ride would probably be replaced with a superhero ride, such is the fickle nature of fame LOL. Sadly Santa Claus land came to an end in 2002 and was shut down. What was even more strange though was that it was just left to rot. At least until 2017 anyway. It was just abandoned and lots of people went exploring the old ruins, where you could see the remains of the Dino ride, the James Bond swing set, the play house. They even posted pictures of it online. It was really creepy, but quite cool to see an area that had seemed so magical and full of life as a child just left to decay. I heard there were plans to build a hotel or something over the ruins of the park in 2018. I don't know if they went through or not. Anyone else have any memories of this surreal place of Cowboys, Dinosaurs, James Bond and Santa? "I think the few Scots here like Clockwork and Maxil are too young." I'm half Scottish on my mother's side, but I was born in England and have lived here all of my life. I've not heard of it before but it sounds like it was a lot of fun. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2021 15:04:37 GMT
Got all the presents and the tree is going up this weekend.
It’s our first Christmas as a married couple, as well as our first in our new home.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2021 16:43:13 GMT
Got all the presents and the tree is going up this weekend. It’s our first Christmas as a married couple, as well as our first in our new home. I hope you have a good one. |
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Post by burrunjor on Dec 15, 2021 22:48:48 GMT
Got all the presents and the tree is going up this weekend. It’s our first Christmas as a married couple, as well as our first in our new home. Awww hope you have a great Christmas. |
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Post by zarius on Dec 16, 2021 15:48:02 GMT
Got all the presents and the tree is going up this weekend. It’s our first Christmas as a married couple, as well as our first in our new home. Here's to festive wedded bliss |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2021 13:55:32 GMT
I never knew the Pet Shop Boys did a Christmas song. I think it's great!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 24, 2021 12:27:31 GMT
Have a great Christmas eve, guys.
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Post by burrunjor on Dec 24, 2021 12:45:32 GMT
My favourite Christmas song is Mariah Carey's All I Want For Christmas Is You. She is just so stunningly beautiful. She's got the real Ronnette look to her in this video, beehive, black eyeliner. I like that look a lot you may have noticed LOL.
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Post by iank on Dec 24, 2021 20:48:14 GMT
Merry Xmas (for what it is). Made this back in February lol (good thing, really, as I wouldn't have felt like making one this month):
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Post by zarius on Dec 25, 2021 17:47:32 GMT
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