When fun turned to tragedy

The BBC website has a report about the 'forgotten' rollercoaster disaster of Battersea Fun Fair.

On 30 May 1972 the Big Dipper at Battersea Park in south-west London crashed, killing five children and injuring 13 others.

I certainly haven’t forgotten it.

In the Sixties my aunt took me to Battersea Fun Fair several times. I have very fond memories of it and remember watching news of the disaster with horror.

I don’t remember going on the Big Dipper though which suggests I didn’t. Perhaps I was too young or perhaps my aunt didn’t fancy it.

I remember going on the Ghost Train and that was scary enough.

Sadly the disaster marked the beginning of the end of the fun fair, a permanent attraction that had opened in May 1951 as part of the Festival of Britain.

There have been fun fairs in the park since then but only temporary.

Arguably the most famous permanent fun fair in Britain is in Blackpool. I’ve driven past it several times but the only time I actually went in was in 1979, I think, when a friend and I spent a few days in Blackpool during our summer holiday.

There were two rollercoasters, the Big Dipper and the Grand National, but I was unaware (until we set off) that the Grand National was a rollercoaster.

When we boarded the carriage the ride was hidden from view because we were under a canopy but as soon as we started getting cranked up a steep slope I feared the worse, and I wasn’t disappointed.

It was called the Grand National because unlike the Big Dipper, which has a single train of carriages, the Grand National had two trains running alongside one another which meant you felt like you were in a race as one, then the other, sneaked ahead, pulled by gravity.

The worst moment was when we were streaking downhill and seemingly about to hit a wall when, at the last moment, we suddenly dipped under it, chased by the other carriage which had the effect of making you think you were going faster than you were, and that was quite fast enough.

It was hell, but strangely exhilarating.

I never wanted to go on it again however and I’ve avoided similar ‘thrills’ ever since which I feel a bit guilty about because it meant I selfishly denied my children similar experiences, at least when they were young and had to be accompanied by an adult.

For what it's worth though I still think the waltzer is the best fairground ride by far.

PS. The history of Battersea Fun Fair is quite interesting:

Festival mastermind Gerald Barry felt the ideas being developed for the South Bank rather too clinical for his tastes, accusing architects and scientists of “running away with it”.

See South London Memories: Battersea Fun Fair the fairground attraction that turned into a disaster.

According to the BBC report there is nothing in Battersea Park to remind people that a fun fair ever existed, nor a memorial to those who died in the disaster.

I think that’s a mistake because, for 20 years, Battersea Fun Fair was a hugely popular attraction for residents and visitors alike.

It ended in tragedy and while that shouldn’t completely overshadow the pleasure it brought to millions of people in the post-war era, it’s another reason why it shouldn’t be forgotten.