Construction fencing and other deliveries are now being taken on-site in Bedford on the land acquired by Universal as they are mere weeks away from getting the green light to construct a Universal Studios theme park here in the UK.
The final go-ahead is just around the corner as only the Treasury is left to sign off on financial arrangements which will see this full-scale Florida-style resort (but more similar in size to Universal Studios Hollywood) come to Bedford.
A four-zone park, 500 room hotel and adequate transport hubs which include a new train station have all been confirmed.
This 480-acre plot of land will create thousands of jobs during construction and is planned to bring in billions to the UK economy, £50 billion to be exact.
It is unknown which IPs will be brought to Universal Studios but with the park having such IPs as Jurassic Park, Harry Potter and even Marvel-themed rides. There is no hesitation in saying that you can expect to see a handful of these come to the UK in line with other Universal parks around the world.
It’s an ambitious forward-thinking project that will change the UK theme park industry forever.
It’s a perfect time for Universal as Merlin Entertainments, the biggest operator of theme parks in the UK has recently announced massive cuts across their departments to slimline their business approach.
Having a park such as Universal coming to London is a major threat to Merlin and would certainly be an interesting battle for domination between the two.
The only people who benefit in these situations are the guests as we have two titans battling it out for the lion’s share of attendance or in some cases it can work beautifully such as Disney and Universal in Florida as they compete to out-do each other and in turn provide better experiences for guests more regularly.
Universal Studios UK will take around 6 years to build but with activity on site already construction work could begin almost immediately after project sign-off.
Page Thompson, the company’s president in charge of new venture told Sky News back in June 2024:
I can tell you it’s going to be a world-class park with all experiences that people will love based upon the most popular films, video games and stories that people have enjoyed for decades.
We’ve spent the last decade looking all over Europe and the United Kingdom for locations, and we think this is the best location we’ve ever seen.
Our phase one plans consist of a theme park, a 500-room hotel and a dining area that people can come to even if they don’t have a theme park ticket.
Over time, I would expect the number of hotels to grow. Our intention is that this park would be open 365 days a year, just like all of our other major theme parks.
We have a whole series of special events, like our Halloween Horror Nights and carnival parties… and it just allows us to attract people throughout this time.
This is certainly a massive statement for the UK and the tourism it will bring to this country is exciting. The UK theme park industry has been miles behind its European counterparts for many years and a project like this could very much change the entire scene.
Having a Citywalk that is free for guests to roam around and soak up all things Universal is one thing but bringing such events as Halloween Horror Nights in the UK would shake up not just the theme park industry but the scare industry too as there is NOTHING in the UK that can compete in terms of quality.
One of the most exciting projects to ever land on our news desk and we cannot wait to update you all when this project eventually gets the green light.
