THE OVERALL EVENT…

WOO – Variety & Quality | WOO – Side Shows | BOO – Roaming Characters

Our evening at Thorpe Park started from 6pm, and we were introduced to the cast on the bridge as we made our way onto the island. From here, we headed to the Launch Pad area, where Rebel Ball has taken the stage as a new entertainment hub. There is some Halloween overlay to the area, with the stage themed with orange balls, and sponsors who were giving out Fanta and Chupa Chups lollies. After the introduction show to kick start our evening, we were free to roam the park and enjoy all of the Fright Nights goodies.

Fright Nights for sure has incredible variety in terms of mazes, scare zones, entertainment and rides. As a theme park, you cannot be bored riding some of the world class rides such as Hyperia, The Swarm and even Stealth in the dark. They have 5 mazes for you to experience, all different themes, all providing different intensity and interactions for your frightful evening. The quality is to theme park standard, with highly detailed sets, costumes and performances, as you would expect from one of the leading theme parks in the UK.

What lacked for us during our visit, and what we feel for the 2026 season, is the absent roaming characters. It seems all of the cast and characters can be found in their set zones, if that’s the devils outside Ghost Train or the new rebels in Launch Pad. It just feels more limited and lacks the atmosphere and chaos from previous seasons.

Our side show rating is perfect for theme parks, as there is plenty to do in terms of the rides and attractions, but they also had a pop up attraction in the Big Easy Boulevard area, sponsored by Chupa Chups. They also have the Conjuring 4D to experience in the cinema, as extra additions outside of the mazes, scare zones and shows.

Survival Games

WOO – Actor Performance | WOO – Actor Utilisation | BOO – Lighting & SFX

Survival Games returns for another season of scares and remains largely unchanged for 2026. Survival Games has gone through a few different versions over the years and now remains a pretty traditional maze, with a single set route on a slightly longer route than it would have had in its early renditions, themed around a game show where you must escape and survive as their terrifying test subjects. The actors inside are used greatly, with most of the cast having the chance to get you from many different angles and sides, even more so in the second half of the attraction. This does not go unnoticed, as it instantly feels like a larger cast when they can roam across multiple scenes. The lighting didn’t feel as great this year, and we are unsure if it was just overshadowed by other attractions, or if it just feels a little stale. The SFX seem limited inside, and outside some smoke and a chainsaw finale, it is limited compared to other attractions once more. That said, the actor performance inside Survival Games is the true highlight of this maze, providing intense scares, up close terror and energetic performance overall.

Trailers

WOO – Theming | WOO – Enjoyment | BOO – Actor Utilisation

Trailers is also a returning attraction, and this maze takes place in the SuperSparks Cinema, which is home to some very memorable scenes and history that may have happened at Thorpe Park over the years. This maze has scenes from the Buckwheats, the roaming hillbillies who once had their own saw mill before being kicked out. There are also the clowns from The Big Top, and new for 2026, we have new scenes, one of them being from My Bloody Valentine, a scare maze from the past also. The scene was simple but clear, and we love that they keep adding easter eggs inside Trailers, with it fitting the story and keeping surprises each year. With these different scenes, it does allow for the theming to be pretty high quality and keeps everything interesting. However, it does limit the actors’ movements, as the clowns can’t enter the Buckwheats scene and vice versa. All the scenes had at least 1-2 characters inside, meaning there is plenty to keep you occupied, scared and entertained, but we are sure during the peak season this may struggle. Trailers is always an enjoyable maze, with it having a great balance of scares, theming and interactions, scene to scene, year upon year.

Lucifers Lair SCARE ZONE

WOO – Costume & Makeup | WOO – Actor Performance | BOO – Audio

Lucifer’s Lair returns, but as a much more scaled back and smaller scare zone for 2026. Once a hellish playground for Lucifer and his minions, also home to a fire show and other circus acts on a large stage, this has been stripped back to just his cages and throne, making for a very lacklustre scare zone. Compared to other years, it feels like this has not been thought about as much and not given the care and love of the other attractions. The minions and Lucifer were as good as ever, with their detailed costumes and hell wings, as they caused chaos and destruction around the Ghost Train plaza area. However, with no audio and no atmosphere, it just felt like they had to work harder than ever to keep the screams going and keep guests in the area. The actors did just that. The bar in the area is still somewhere you can get a drink and take a seat, but you will be attacked by Lucifer’s crew, on top of the crows.

Purgatory Town

WOO – Actor Performance | WOO – Enjoyment | BOO – Audio

Purgatory Town returns to the Big Easy Boulevard in the dark once more. As the darkness falls, join the voodoo celebrations, and for 2026 new inhabitants have taken up home here, as they want you to keep them occupied for Fright Nights, maybe to never leave! This area is very simple, as it only has some small additions in terms of props that they add to create this scare zone. This is much more of a lighthearted scare zone, compared to the chaos of Lucifer’s and the intense scares of the Crows. Here you can find the spirits roaming around, maybe wanting to share some jokes, pose for a picture or maybe something more sinister if you’re unlucky. The actors are able to have more freedom, it feels, in Purgatory Town, which we love and creates a much more enjoyable zone to spend more time in. Again, audio is missing in this zone, which could easily be added, we feel, and would bring this area to life once more. Overall, the actors will keep you entertained, and we had brilliant interactions with the vampire and drunk pirate!