Opened in 1863, Ramsgate Harbour Station soon became a busy and well-used facility. But the station’s location, with trains having to drop down a steep slope through a damp tunnel, led to frequent incidents. In 1891, a tragic accident occurred when a train ran out of control, smashing through the station and killing a cockle seller and injuring two of his customers. Other runaways and collisions followed, prompting the decision to close the harbour line in 1926. A new station was built further inland at St Lawrence
After the railway station closed, the site was purchased by the local council, who cleared away the tracks, turntable, and platforms but retained the large station buildings. In 1927 the land was leased to a consortium with ambitious plans to open a new amusement park. The park opened in June of that year and included a roller coaster brought over from the Paris Exhibition of 1925. The huge 80-ton structure was shipped to Richborough docks in May 1927, as Ramsgate lacked the heavy electric cranes needed for unloading. Alongside the coaster, the park also featured a Belgian water chute, a miniature railway, and a selection of flat rides.
Later that year the site was raided by police and the owners and several stall holders were charged with 136 offences of running illegal betting operations. As gambling was strictly prohibited under the terms of the lease, the tenants were all kicked out, taking most of their rides and sideshows with them. For the next couple of years the council operated what remained of the park.
In 1931 a new tenant was found who agreed to rebuild and improve the park and to pay the council £10,000 a year in rent, which was later reduced to £7,500. The park was renamed Merrie England and buildings were erected in the style of an old English village with half-timbered cottages and red tiled roofs. The old station building was adapted to provide a vast undercover space, giving visitors somewhere to shelter during bad weather. In 1932 a new wooden roller coaster was built next to the cliff.
Unfortunately the company filed for bankruptcy in 1934, which resulted in yet another new tenant taking over. Known as Ramsgate Olympia Ltd, they finally gave the park some much needed stability and went on to operate it for the next 54 years
During the 1930s, Merrie England offered a range of eccentric sideshows to amuse its visitors. One such attraction featured Leslie, billed as “England’s fattest baby… playing in his nursery surrounded by pretty toys,” who reportedly weighed nearly 10 stone at just three years old. The park also boasted “the biggest monkey house in England,” home to up to 100 chimpanzees on display. These primates were not only exhibited for entertainment but were also offered for sale, either as pets or for medical research. In 1934, two of the chimps escaped and wreaked havoc across the town, toppling deckchairs, smashing stalls, and causing general mayhem. After several days of eluding capture, both animals were shot dead.
In December 1935 a rock fall from the adjacent cliff destroyed the ghost train and the following month an even bigger section, said to weigh 500 tons, destroyed the roller coaster, now known as the Alpine Coaster. It was not rebuilt and was replaced the following year with a new coaster which had operated at the previous year’s Brussels Expo where it was called The Slide for Life.
In 1936, the park’s owners revived part of the long-disused railway tunnel by installing a narrow-gauge electric railway inside. The line stretched three-quarters of a mile, linking the seafront to the nearby Dumpton Park greyhound stadium, and required the construction of an entirely new quarter-mile tunnel to complete the route. Just two years later, with the growing threat of war, Ramsgate’s tunnel system was vastly expanded to serve as a huge public air raid shelter. Designed to accommodate up to 60,000 people, the scheme added more than three miles of newly-dug tunnels, which were completed by June 1939.
In 1957 a park employee fatally stabbed an American airman at the main entrance in a fight over an unpaid debt.
In 1965 Ramsgate Olympia Ltd changed their name to Pleasurama Ltd. At the same time the park also took the Pleasurama name. Later that year the tunnel railway was closed due to low ridership and an accident earlier in the season.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Pleasurama Ltd grew aggressively to become a huge nationwide leisure operation with bars, ballrooms, casinos, restaurants and nightclubs. In 1968 they launched a failed bid to take over the Dreamland park in Margate. In 1971 they opened a dolphin show on London’s Oxford Street! I believe some of the dolphins were housed at Pleasurama in Ramsgate, but not on public display.
In 1988 the Pleasurama group was sold to Mecca Leisure for £745 million. Mecca had no interest in running the amusement park so the lease was taken over by local businessman Jimmy Godden. The following year he announced plans to turn the old railway tunnel into an interactive World War 2 museum called the ‘Blitz Experience’. But it all hinged on the council selling him the freehold, which they were reluctant to do. Godden was later caught trying to bribe a local councilor regarding the sale of this land and in March 1991 he received a 6 month jail term, suspended for two years, and a £25,000 fine. The Blitz development was scrapped.
In 1996 Godden was able to acquire the freehold of the amusement park site and soon announced plans to convert the original station buildings into a factory shopping outlet. Sadly it was all destroyed by fire in May 1998.
The following year plans were announced to rebuild the site with a mixture of retail and leisure facilities but it never happened. In 2001 the land was compulsory bought back by the council and after sitting abandoned for 15 years it was sold again in 2016 for £3.5 million and construction started on a new upmarket apartment development which, after various delays and financial issues, was finally opened in 2024 as Royal Sands.
The Ramsgate tunnel system is now a fascinating historical site. Opened to the public in 2014, the tunnels offer guided walking tours that explore the underground passages, showcasing their role during wartime and their transformation from a transport hub to a local landmark.
We’d love to hear your memories and stories of Merrie England and Pleasurama. Please feel free to leave a comment below
