Unique Retro Attraction opens near Wigan

The attraction was created by Wigan man, Darren Hesketh, and is a celebration of amusements and mechanical entertainment from a bygone era. Inside the unique NOVELTY-ORIUM is a fabulous collection of restored vintage automatons, mechanical puppet shows, novelty entertainment machines and a variety of "Olde-Tyme" seaside amusements - including many one-off exhibits which cannot be seen anywhere else. Also featured is a small optical illusion gallery which includes push-button illusions, holograms, perplexing puzzles and distorting mirrors. The attraction is fun for all ages and is certainly a unique experience in itself.

Wigan born Darren, started restoring mechanical amusement exhibits in his youth over 30 years ago as a hobby, and first put machines on public display at visitor attraction sites a little over 20 years ago. His book "Penny-in-the-Slot Automata and the Working Model" was published back in 2005 and details a large variety of surviving machines from all over the world.

Darren also has machines on display at the Anderton Boat Lift Visitor Centre in Northwich, Cheshire and at the National Waterways Museum in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire. He has previously had displays at other venues including most notably at the now closed Botany Bay family visitor attraction in Chorley and also at Bygone Times in Eccleston, Chorley.

A huge amount of time is spent in the restoration of the exhibits - both mechanically and cosmetically, in order to give the machines a new lease of life for future generations to enjoy. Occasionally, modern technology will also be utilized in order to improve a machine's reliability for when back in use.

Together with the tremendous fun to be had playing on the exhibits, there's also an educational aspect - in relation to such topics as social history, mechanical engineering, science & technology, art & design etc... A great way to learn and have fun at the same time!

Darren had been considering setting up an attraction within a shopping centre for some time, especially as many indoor centres seemed to be actively seeking more leisure based activities alongside retail. It seemed like the right time to give it a go and offer visitors to the centre a unique experience - with shopping bags in hand!

Darren's interest in these machines started as a child in the 1970's during numerous family holidays in England and Wales. He was particularly fond of the mechanical animated scenes, often found in the arcades on the piers, which would display a short scene of either a comical or ghostly nature at the drop of a coin - with such titles as "The Haunted House" and "The Drunkard's Dream"! By the time Darren was a teenager, the more modern video games had more appeal to him and he remembers spending considerable amounts of those big old 10p's playing the latest video games in the local arcades etc... Gorf and Moon Cresta he recalls were particular favourites! However, he would always be drawn back to those old mechanical machines he remembered as a child.

Decimalisation in 1971 to the smaller penny meant that many of the older mechanical machines (which mostly operated on the large old penny) couldn't be easily or quickly converted to the new smaller coin - thus rendering many of the older machines redundant overnight. This also coincided with the introduction of the more modern electro-mechanical machines of the 60's and 70's, which were soon followed by the video games of the late 1970's, making the old mechanical machines appear a little out of fashion with the times. Once "Space Invaders" arrived in 1978 many arcades would change their floors quite dramatically, replacing the older machines with swathes of the new and more modern video games during the late 70's and early 80's.

The interest and appeal in recent years of those older vintage exhibits likely stems from the sheer variety of designs built over the many decades by some amazingly talented inventors, artists, craftsmen and engineers. No doubt the sheer simplicity of the gameplay in the older machines would also be a strong factor in their appeal in these fast moving days of high tech and computer screens.

Some of the machines on display at the NOVELTY-ORIUM include:

The Disney "Film and TV Studio"

This is the largest machine on display and was commissioned by Walt Disney in the late 1930's for Billy Butlin (of Butlins holiday camps) to be displayed at one of the first Butlins camps in the UK. The machine was built to entertain visitors in the main entrance hall and also to promote the earliest Disney characters to a wider public audience here in the UK. The comical automaton features Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto and Goofy. You can also watch the interior mechanism of cams and levers at work behind a viewing window on the lower section of the machine. 4 of these machines were built for Billy Butlin - all featuring totally different themes.

Mechanical Puppet Shows

A selection of restored vintage puppet shows are on display and in use featuring such popular characters as Noddy, Mr Men, Sooty, Pinky & Perky and Bozo - the up/down bobbing clown! Also on display and in use is a giant animated Pelham Puppet diorama.

Working Models (animated scenes)

Various animated scenes are on display including 2 restored Haunted House machines plus the comical "X-RAY" - revealing the complexities of the human body in layman's terms!

Grand Prix

This game from 1968 is a great one for any video game enthusiasts. A rare and unusual 2-player game built within a "cocktail style" table - very similar to the video game tables popular in the late 1970's/early 80's - often seen in hotels, pubs and arcades at the time. The machine is a simple push-button game, with 2 players racing around the track.

Pinball

Two small countertop coin-operated pinball machines are on display. These are very basic and simple games yet always prove to be popular with the public.

Competitive Games

For the more competitive visitor there's a variety of the 2-player hockey style games to choose from. And not forgetting "The Twins" (aka, the racing babies) - a machine for 2 players to see which baby can drink their bottle of milk first!

Fortune Tellers

You can have your fortune told by the Gypsy Fortune Teller machine OR by the huge and imposing "Illusion-O - The Amazing Fortune Telling Robot!" The only one of his kind in the world!

Animated Vending Machines

A unique collection of restored "prize every time" animated vendors from the 1960's through to the 1980's.

Working Model Fairground

A beautifully built working model fairground from around the 1950's era - on display and in use.

Auto-Gift

A fully restored vintage 3 player "Auto-Gift" vending machine, with the small prizes contained within miniature cardboard boxes - just as they were at the fair all those years ago! These particular machines had a very hard working life at the travelling fairs and very few appear to have survived. The large colourful window display on this machine has been retained during its restoration as it still features a large selection of the original prizes from the period when it was last in use! This machine is believed to be the only surviving example of its type on public display and in use in the country!

Mutoscopes & Viewers

For any cinema buffs there's also a varied selection of vintage mutoscopes and viewers - the precursor to the cinema show we know today. At the drop a coin the viewer can see the latest "real movies" or view a fantastic (or weird!) 3D scene!

Optical Illusions

A unique selection of classic push-button optical illusion exhibits and retro holograms are also on display in the small vintage "Illusion Sideshow" section!

The NOVELTY-ORIUM is located on the first floor of the Concourse Shopping Centre in Skelmersdale, West Lancashire.

Open 5 days a week (Wed to Sun) - closed Mon/Tues

Easily accessible transport links via the bus service. Theattraction is only an approximately 45 second walk from the shopping centre bus station to the NOVELTY-ORIUM entrance!

If travelling by car just follow the signs for the town centre to reach the Concourse Shopping Centre.

FREE PARKING at the Concourse Shopping Centre for up to 5 hours (at time of writing) - payable thereafter.

Admission fee payable on entry to the NOVELTY-ORIUM.

For current opening hours and admission fees please see the NOVELTY-ORIUM website: www.vintagenoveltyamusements.co.uk