The Reasons For Sudden Closure Of London Trocadero
The Reasons For Sudden Closure Of London Trocadero
London Trocadero Main Entrance
London Trocadero, one of the top places to visit in London and main attraction of the west end, has an amazing journey through time with several redevelopments and new additions throughout the century. During this adventure of London Trocadero the place has garnered incredible amount of appraisal. From the beginning of 1850’s London Trocadero has hosted events relating to culture, music, art and theatrics until the start of 2014 which saw abrupt closure of London Trocadero. There were several reasons for this abrupt shut down and I have outlined them below.
1. SegaWorld Theme Park
Sega World London
Nick Leslau in 1994 closed a deal with Sega to launch a theme park in London Trocadero. On September 7, 1996 the park had a kick start and Sonic the Hedgehog was set as the mascot. SegaWorld was a hit among the Londoners at that time and has garnered positive reviews from the critics. But sadly this development failed to live upto its owner’s expectations. First day of SegaWorld opening saw people queuing for ages outside the rides because the deliverance was not upto the demand. In 1997 the lease for theme park was dropped after an annual loss of £2.4 million and Leslau changed the whole development into Funland.
2. Funland and Arcade Area
A glimpse to Funland and Arcade
After shutting down SegaWorld, Leslau re-established the whole development as a gaming arcade and named it Funland. The original arcade was in the basement of Trocadero, but later it moved to SegaWorld’s location.
The arcade was a constant hit among the gamers and has all the latest arcade games like DJMax Technika, Street Fighter IV, Pump it up Fiesta and Initial D Arcade Stage 4. Funland was under developments several time during its peak years and was shifted to different floors.
When the Rocket Launcher entrance of the SegaWorld was permanently removed, the area closed and a new Lower ground Funland was opened.
After a few years in May 2011, the development was shut down all together over some financial problems and rent disputes with the Landlord. This was the main strike in the demise of London Trocadero.
3. Souvenirs of Trocadero
London Trocadero was among the best entertainment centers in London and was the main attraction in west end for London Tourism.
The soul of the entertainment center, SegaWorld and Funland were closed years back and the plans for the development of a new hotel were underway. But not everything was lost. Some of the arcade hits of Funland were moved to Las Vegas in Soho gaming center and were distributed among other gaming centers.
Even in Trocadero a few places like Cineworld cinema and Ripley’s museum will still be intact for the tourists after the reformation of the building into London’s biggest accommodating and affordable hotel.