THE OVERALL EVENT…

WOO – uniqueness | Boo – entertainment | Woo – Variety & Quality

The Nightmare Realm is an event we’ve heard so much about over the years and how well it was doing over in Ireland. For 2026 however, they’ve made the journey overseas to bring their unique attractions to a London audience for the first time ever. With over 17 years of experience behind them, we knew they would be bringing their A game for 2026.

The location is based in Avery Hill and we managed to get a tube nearby and then a short lift to the venue and park up. Once you’ve passed through security and ticket checks, you are free to explore. There are 2 mazes on the lineup but worth noting, that isn’t all there is to do. They have 5 unique experience hidden around which you can also take part in and enjoy however, they are a mystery to most of what’s hidden inside them. This links in with how unique the event is, as having 2 mazes and 5 experiences, it focuses more on the other entertainment than what most people are used to.

What they are lacking in its opening year definitely has to be the entertainment. There wasn’t much outside of the attractions, with no stage show or DJ or band. Whilst there is plenty to enjoy, we would love to see them take a look at this for next year for those not wanting to queue or wait for certain experiences and give the whole event another layer of enjoyment. That being said, with them having what they have, the variety is so different and the quality is up there too. Everything was built with purpose and detail, with every corner you turn there being theming, with some of it being so minor that most guests wouldn’t even recognise or appreciate.

Avery Hill Asylum

WOO – Storytelling | WOO – actor performance | BOO – Lighting & SFX

Avery Hill Asylum is a dark theme and fits the location the attraction is set in. Hosted in what looks to be an abandoned university building, you go through a number of corridors and rooms where the doctor Thorne is waiting for you to be his next experiment. It has a detailed introduction scene which sets the story about the doctor and it travels well across the rest of the maze. With some stop scene moments that keep growing that story throughout, it was definitely a top element in this attraction.

The weakest would have to be the effects. Whilst it did feature some effects, it just felt too spaced out and used more of the natural setting to do the heavy lifting. Therefore, the effects they did use were great but just let down by the lighting and natural environment picking it up where it fell short.

What makes Avery Hill Asylum has to be the cast, as they really did pull out all the stops to create this haunting maze. Bringing it to life by roaming the corridors, as failed experiments. Some moved along creepy and quietly whilst others screamed the corridors down. We had friendly chats to some whilst others didn’t want to let us go. The variation here really made it believable that you were in an asylum setup and with so many rooms and corridors, you really didn’t know where the next character would get you.