David Walliams "never thought" 'Gangsta Granny' would be made into a ride.
David Walliams
The 49-year-old comedian and author still can't believe his 2011 children's book has been turned into a ride at Alton Towers, but he has enjoyed working closely with the theme park's design team to make it a reality.
He said: "After working closely with the design team from Alton Towers, what I really wanted was for the ride to be truthful to the book and the characters. I'm thrilled there's going to be a Gangsta Granny ride at Alton Towers. I mean, I never thought that would happen. I didn't sit down writing the book and think one day, it'll be a ride. I can't reveal it all yet but all will be revealed very soon!"
David's voice also features in the ride, something which Merlin Creative Lead, John Burton, thinks will be a great "surprise" for the book's fans.
He added: "All the way from starting working with David from the very start, right through to now, everyone's really come together to bring this attraction to life. David's voice features within the attraction as various different characters, which is going to be a great surprise for guests when they experience this."John has revealed it has been a "big challenge" recreating the book's scenes.
In a behind-the-scenes video, he said: "This scene is brought to life through projection mapping, lighting and we've also got clever audio built into the ride vehicle that will really help make you feel like you are there with Ben and Granny and you're about to go on the heist of a lifetime. This is the biggest challenge we have in this scene as it incorporates so many different elements that we've never incorporated in one attraction for one scene ever before and I'm excited to see how this turns out. There's an army of experts working on this - from builders who are making incredible sets, to people who are making beautiful lighting and animators making animations that we can project all around the ride."
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