The Wicksteed Years
A visual history of the Double Pirate Ship at Wicksteed Park: installation, location, appearance and closure, as far as it can currently be documented.
How to read this page
- Verified
- Unresolved
- Awaiting confirmation
Photo album
No original Wicksteed-era photograph of the ride has been sourced for this project yet. These slots are held open, with the detail this archive would need once a licensed image becomes available.
The Double Pirate Ship in motion at Wicksteed Park.
- Date
- Date not yet verified
- Source
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Location
- Wicksteed Park, Kettering
- Rights
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Archive ref
- Not yet assigned
Research note: No original Wicksteed-era photograph has been sourced for this project yet.
Installation of the Double Pirate Ship at Wicksteed Park.
- Date
- Date not yet verified
- Source
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Location
- Wicksteed Park, Kettering
- Rights
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Archive ref
- Not yet assigned
Research note: Research note: the opening year itself is disputed between 1980 and 1982; see Timeline.
The original Union Jack livery on the Wicksteed-era gondolas.
- Date
- Date not yet verified
- Source
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Location
- Wicksteed Park, Kettering
- Rights
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Archive ref
- Not yet assigned
Research note: Would allow a direct side-by-side with the surviving Kosovo-era livery; see Then & Now.
The Fairground zone loading platform and queue line.
- Date
- Date not yet verified
- Source
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Location
- Wicksteed Park, Kettering
- Rights
- Image awaiting rights clearance
- Archive ref
- Not yet assigned
Research note: No original Wicksteed-era photograph has been sourced for this project yet.
Location within the park
The ride operated in Wicksteed Park’s Fairground zone, as a Double Pirate Ship (two gondolas sharing one structure) with a minimum rider height of 1.2m. See How It Worked for the twin-gondola arrangement itself.
Original appearance and later colour schemes
Research note Whether the ride was repainted during its time at Wicksteed is not yet documented here. What is documented is that Union Jack-style decoration was present, and that this artwork continued to be visible in early Kosovo-era footage after the ride left the park. See Then & Now for a direct comparison, and Evidence Room for how that comparison was made.
Memories from visitors
No visitor memories have been collected for this project yet. If you rode the Double Pirate Ship at Wicksteed Park, the Memories page has a preview of how submissions will work.
Final operating season, closure and sale
The ride operated at Wicksteed Park until the end of the 2016 season, after which it was removed, reportedly connected to the rising cost of maintenance and refurbishment. Contemporary accounts described a sale to a buyer abroad, often described as a Bulgarian businessman, though that account has not been independently confirmed as the ride’s actual final destination. See The Disappearance for the full claim-by-claim breakdown.