End of an era for Rhyl’s Ocean Beach Fun Fair
Well after been threatened with closure for a number years its finally happened Ocean Beach fun fair closed it gates for the last time yesterday (Sunday 2nd September 2007).
I wasnt suprised to see the park busy for its final day as press the mayor and a lot of local residents came to give the park a good send of.
Ive visited Rhyl since I was a little child perhaps 30 years or more and have fond memories of visiting the park with my family over the summer holidays.
After operating in the area since 1954 the fun fair become one of North Wales most visited tourist attractions. The park has suffered over the last few years though with the only recent addition been the Pepsi-Cola Looping coaster a Pinfari ZL42.
It was a sad day for me yesterday as I have visited Ocean Beach for the last 30+ years and I have some great memories as a child. None of them are very vivid mainly the smell of donuts, toffee apples and chips. But it was a place that kept my family visiting a number of times every summer. To many residents in the north west of england Rhyl, Towyn and Colwyn Bay were always somewhere we looked forward to visiting at summer. Looking back now we never had much money but we always spent the full day on the fair and come home with a belly full of fast food and sugar filled snacks.
The park has been on its last legs for a number of years though and after our visit last year and the year before I was suprised the park could open for another summer the visitor numbers were rock bottom and that was in the middle of summer.
What attractions were left in the end.
All of the attractions that were open at the start of the season were operational yesterday, heres some pictures of the fair on its last day. The weather was really bad yesterday and I don’t think it stopped raining during the duration of our visit.
Waltzers.
Giant Slide.
Ghost Train.
Twister ride.
My two children enjoying the twister.
Juvenille Big Wheel.
Fun House.
Ski Jump.
Dodgems.
Star wars ride.
Nessie Kiddie coaster.
Terminator 3.
Jetstar Coaster.
Pepsi-Cola Looping coaster.
Water Chute.
Selection of Juvenille rides.
And finally some general views of the park.
Heres some comments about the fair from a reader Juliet and her family.
I spent lots of time there as a kid with my older sisters. They were usually getting chatted up by the ride operators..I got quite a few free rides just to keep me out of the way! I remember very fondly the Speedway, Caterpiller, The Roter (I never went on it…but it was my cousins favourite). I also remember from when I was little a Big Wheel, a large wooden Rollercoaster, A beautiful set of Gallopers (which seemed to vanish about 5 years ago!!). The Waltzer i spent many happy hours on burned down (can’t recall when) but thankfully the replacement was just as good..its the one we rode on yesterday. The Helterskelter appears to be the same one its always been. The Twister I remember was an older, wooden model which was near the entrance to the park.
When I was in my early teens, me and my friends would get the train from Abergele into Rhyl to go shopping…usually spending our money on records. In the summer months (even after school!) we would take our new tunes to the fairground and ask the ops to play them for us while we were on the rides!
Happy times.
Happy memories.
I had a quick look on youtube and found a couple of Ocean beach videos.
The Water chute taken by David Ellis.
Jetstream Coaster taken by David Ellis.
Pepsi Cola looping coaster taken by David Ellis.
A video shot in 1982 and published by furiekins.
A nicely put together video by serialdownloader.
So whats happening to Ocean Beach.
As part of a 50 million pound regeneration plan the developers Modus based in Manchester have called the new development Ocean Plaza. It includes an 85,000 sq ft Asda supermarket, 40,000 sq ft of leisure space likely to be used as a fitness suite and bingo hall, offices, 60-bedroom hotel, bars, restaurants and cafes, 1,000 car park spaces and 180 apartments.
Heres a proposed view of how the site will look taken from Modus website.
I don’t want to get really nostalgic about this but im really going to miss this park. I wish Rhyl Council good luck with the regeneration. 
If you have any comments or memories about this fair id love to hear from you.
Related articles and websites.
A Closer look at Rhyl’s waterchute.
Closed Park archive on Ridemad.
Thanks to Juliet and David Ellis for the use of the materials.
If you want to use any photographs on this blog please get in touch paul@ridemad.com im quite happy to share and have high resolution copies of everything used, to see the complete gallery visit the Ridemad Gallery
Thanks for Reading.
They dont have it anymore, you may need a trip further south to pick it up ;-) 
hi there im going to buy the black hole from alton towers when i work for them. 
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Trackback by blog on 29 October 2007:
hello…
wonderful post…
Comment by david houghton on 26 July 2008:
will be sorry to see it go
Comment by Billy Kennedy on 27 August 2008:
Thanks for posting these marvellous pictures. I was never at Ocean Beach
but I’m always a little sad when any well loved site closes down.
Comment by adam on 4 September 2008:
when these themeparks in seaside towns close down. e.g frontierland morcambe they always end up building supermarkets, like they have enough of them. Its so anoying and upseting loosing these amusement parks, that people have fond memories of. What next Blackpool pleasure beach
SAVE THE SEASIDE THEMEPARKS.
Comment by Sally Megg on 27 September 2008:
I’m so sad that the Ocean Beach Fun Fair has gone. From when I was knee high to a grass hopper ’till my middle teen years mom and dad took us to Rhyl for our holidays. What a wonderfull and exiting time we always had. Everything was so magical, but the fun fair was the most magical place of all.
Comment by Tam on 2 October 2008:
Being a welsh lass I used to go to Rhyl Fun Fair all the time. The Pepsi Cola Loop was my first ever rollercoaster.
I can’t believe they have got rid of it. It just lookes odd now
Some great pictures!
Comment by G on 22 November 2008:
My family worked there and I grew up there, how sad that its gone.
Comment by Jon Marshall on 31 December 2008:
Great pics – if anyone has any memories of any sideshows at Rhyl (The Walk and Pleasure Land) in the late 1950s/early 1960s especially Miranda, entombed in two tons of water; the Butterfly Girl; The Living Half Lady; Vampire’s Cave; Midget Land and the names Jon Gresham, J C Ellis and Bob Denzar – please get in touch –
Jon Marshall jon@sideshowillusions.com
http://www.sideshowillusions.com
Comment by Steve Jeffries on 31 January 2009:
Great pictures and videos. I worked on Ocean beach fun fair from 1978 to 1982 each summer. I worked on the Waltzer that was previous to the one show above. The video of the Cyclone Twist is a particular favourite to see as this ride was owned by Ronnie Weston and lovingly maintained by him and his son Brandon. They were a true showman family who looked after their rides and kept them in wonderful condition. That twist was overhauled every winter. They also owed and operated the Paratrooper which isn’t shown above and a miniature waltzer.
The ride show here as Star Wars started out life as the Wave Singer and was operated by Benny Sedgewick originally and the Dodgems which look the same were operated by the Robinson brothers. Ilias Robinson used to run the speedway ride.
I think I probably worked at the fair during the latter part of its hay day. They are memories I will cherish always and I thank you for talking me for a walk down memory lane.
Comment by dan on 4 February 2009:
i am nuff sad that this fair has closed down
we used to go there every year for our jols and now it just wont be the same
Comment by dilli on 3 June 2009:
i work at a fi=unfair in newcastle co down ni i drive the twist and just wanna say ours is better haha its fast and way more power full and it reveres in full speed glad 2 c it go
Comment by Nick Teague on 18 June 2009:
Hi can anyone remember the ghost train from the 1970′s, it had a little rollar coaster built into it. cant find any thing about it anywhere. It broke down when i went on it on my own for the first time just stopped well scarey
What happened to the monorail on the seafront?
The rotor ride is hard to find as well. I had my foot sucked into the rising floor and my older sister was screaming for them to stop the ride. I got some money to by a new pair of Gola trainers and a cup of tea. What would i get now, i wonder!!!!!!
Comment by Admin on 18 June 2009:
Thanks for the comments Nick, i dont remember the Ghost train with the roller coaster, but i may be getting confused with the one at Pleasure beach. I found a blog with a writer asking about the monorail he even has a photograph he has managed to find Source : http://barryhensey.com/blog/?p=1768
Gola Trainers lol, i was a puma man
Comment by Anne on 27 July 2009:
Really sad to see it all gone when I last visited. End of an era. I used to go there every year with my mum and dad and always enjoyed the fair. Nice post and it was great to look at your pics.
Comment by Admin on 28 July 2009:
Thanks for the comments Anne, like you I was a regular visitor to Rhyl Ocean Beach with my parents, going back some 30+ years
Comment by Samaira Shah on 3 August 2009:
I loved going there as a child. I once lost my flip flops on one of the rides and had to walk around in my bare feet!
Comment by Karen on 2 November 2009:
Does anyone know the lad carl who worked on the fair 1988-1990! he had a brother??
I used to go every august bank hol with my family… loved it but then I was only 18!! feel old 38 now…
Comment by lesley on 7 November 2009:
thanks for the lovely memories on this sight i couldnt belive that it had all closed im from scotland and we used too go and stay in a boarding house in st asaph street every year for 15 years and went too ocean beach all the time i was however on the sun centre sight its nice too see at least that is still open and operational…..
Pingback by Rhyl Water Chute Video. : Ridemad.com on 20 November 2009:
[...] thanks for the lovely memories on this sight i couldnt belive that it had all closed im from scotland and …lesley | 7Nov09 | More [...]
Comment by chris on 12 December 2009:
Comment by Karen on 2 November 2009:
Does anyone know the lad carl who worked on the fair 1988-1990! he had a brother??
I used to go every august bank hol with my family… loved it but then I was only 18!! feel old 38 now…
carl roberts you may be looking for worked on rhyl fair for quite some time. its my niece’s dad….
Comment by chris on 12 December 2009:
i grew up in rhyl born there in 1979. joined the army in 1996 still go back every so often such a shame now how it is. the development up to now has still not started its all just borded of such a shame i used to love the fair and arcades and the ten pin bowling before the fire. i had cousins that owned some of the fair in rhyl. i did not really know them much but they lived near the marine lake. the skelleys i think were there surnames. so great to see some pics how i remember good old sunny rhyl. even now when i tell people where i am from most say 2 things oh wow rhyl fair and oh the suncentre i have been there. graet site many thanks.
Comment by Admin on 12 December 2009:
Thanks for the comments Chris, I appreciate it
Comment by John on 6 June 2010:
Hmmmm…..Modus. Went bust leaving a lot of projects in the air.
Comment by Jane on 8 July 2010:
Shocked to find out this funfair has been pulled down, I’m from Stoke and went for a week in August 1990 age 18, with a friend and had a very fun filled week with 2 lads that worked there (Graham from Liverpool & Richie from Wales), not been back since but very very fond memories, a;ways make me smile !!
Comment by phil irlam on 14 July 2010:
Thank you so very much for the photos
Our family used to have our holidays in Rhyl in the 1960,s
I have fond memories OF the fair as a young kid, there used to be an electric go kart ring which was my favorite.
I still have memories going around the fair with my mum and dad and younger brother, I remember some of the side shows, miniature lady and similar, I loved that fair so much, a real shame its gone.
Many Thanks for the memories.
Phil Irlam
Comment by donny m on 29 July 2010:
shame now when you go along the rubble and ruins of the old site,so much for the proposesd new frontal arcadia,its so sad to see memories from your childhood just sat on empty ground,but what it has done is make towyns Tir prince park the place to go,not the same as the ocean beach.but will always remember fondly my first kiss at 7 with a rhyl girl behind the water chute lol
Comment by Neil Farnworth on 8 October 2010:
The site still sits empty after all this time…”IT’S NOT FAIR”…
Comment by nicky on 18 November 2010:
im absolutely gutted no sorry devostasted im from rhyl and was at that fair ground every single day even wen it was shut coz my dad worked on the boats and we wud go to the pub nxt door the schooner wiv the playroom up the spiral stairs i have soooo many memorys ov this place its wrong wot theyve dne im gutted .
Comment by rafferty on 27 December 2010:
hi
great photos used to love that fair in the late 50,s and 60,s , the place is full of ghosts now . came to Rhyl last summer , it was awfull the local council in the last 30 years has destroyed the resort
Comment by Gene Bailey on 24 January 2011:
In its heyday, the pleasure beach stretched all the way from the promenade to the Marine Lake, where there was another fun fair which included the Tunnel of Love, and the wooden Roller Coaster, plus the minuture steam railway around the lake. Betweeen the Ocean Beach and Marine Lake were side-shows with all sorts of oddities on display for a small charge (6d). A feature of the Ocean Beach were two ferris wheels and the Mad Mouse roller coaster. My favourite ride, though, was the Rotor. I have never seen such a ride anywhere other than Rhyl. Was it unique, I wonder?
Comment by sue from crewe on 27 April 2011:
Hi it was so great to see the fun fair in rhyl it brought back so meny memorries of my friends and holidays spent with my mum and step dad . who have sadly gone now lost my mum three years ago and enjoyed thinking back to those happy day thanks for reminding me .
Comment by Admin on 27 April 2011:
Hi Sue,
Thanks for getting in touch, I enjoyed reading your comments I too have lost my mum and like you I have many fond memories of visiting Rhyl, Southport and Blackpool as a child.
Thanks again for the comments.
Paul
Comment by Alan Gill on 30 June 2011:
Just browsing Rhyl and saw the sad demolition of ocean beach, I live in Canada now but lived in North wales for many years and my sons loved the amusements at ocean beach, a sad day especially for the children.
Comment by Chanel on 16 August 2011:
Oh my :l. I cant belive this fair has shut down, i thought it would some day but why so soon:/?. I’m 14 now and i used to go here with my family every year, not been for 5 years and i remember this fair and always being scared of the coaster!, was looking forward to giving it a try and just found out its closed. I really hope theres more fantastic ones round there because im going in 11 days. Cant wait!.
Comment by george furber on 5 September 2011:
any rhyl fair lads from the late 70,s please get in touch i worked the jet stream
Comment by Lynn on 14 November 2011:
Hello George Furber, I remember you! I worked for First Leisure in the late 70s/early 80s. Can’t remember my job title, but I worked the ticket booth rota on the Jetstream, WaterChute, Astroglide, Cinema 180, hall of mirrors and that weird thing on the prom next to the Dixie. The Jetstream was always my favourite.
I still visit Rhyl a few times a year. It’s so sad to see the fairground site all boarded up. What a fiasco. No sign of the promised redevelopment.
Comment by Colin on 28 December 2011:
I lived in Chester as a kid & we always used to head up the coast to the Rhyl & Prestatyn area at weekends throughout the year. So sad to see the decline of the area & the demise of the fair & other attractions. My memories include – The 77 cafe/fish & chips, The Windsor pub ( or something like that) in the town – I remember it was run by friends of my parents. I also remember buying pin badges off some of the shops/stalls along the sea-front. It was early 80′s so I used to but Madness/Specials badges for about 20p each! The big yellow rollercoaster, and I am sure somebody will correct me but I am sure there were indoor or undergound markets selling all sorts of stuff like clothes, toys, rugs, souvenirs. I also remember in the late 70′s/early 80′s a big blue van parked on the front advertising wrestling shows in the theatre.
Hazy & dreamy memories of nearly 30 years ago – kids these days do not know they are born!
We also used to go to Frith beach with its go-karts!
here’s hoping Rhyl has a better future.
Comment by Rob on 28 December 2011:
Sorry to this this go, i have very fond memeries of Rhyl, and the Robin Hood camp, childrens Holiday camp, great views and the front was ace going towards Ocean Beach, its a shame that these fronted theme parks are being trashed, these should be saved for our Childrens, children, great post, love Wales.