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Windsor Safari Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Map sources for Windsor Safari Park at grid reference SU938747
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Windsor Safari Park was a popular family attraction built on St. Leonards Hill on the outskirts of the English town of Windsor in Berkshire; it has since been converted into the site of Legoland Windsor. Billed as "The African Adventure", the park included drive-through animal enclosures, aviaries, a dolphinarium and minor theme park rides.
The park's drive-through enclosures featured lions, tigers, bears, cheetahs and baboons. In addition, the park had a Serengeti zone (featuring camels, llamas, giraffes, zebras and buffalo), an elephant enclosure, a hippo lake, chimpanzees, birds of prey, parrots and butterflies.
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The park was founded in 1969 by Billy Smart's Circus. Built in the former grounds of Dodge Mansion (which still stands) to house the circus animals, the park became a popular drive-through zoo.
It grew significantly through the 1970s and '80s while the ownership changed several times. During this period the number and range of animals in the park greatly increased, incorporating many new, non-circus animals.
The park was bought by Themes International (also owner of The American Adventure in Derbyshire) in the 1980s, who had the intention of building up the theme-park side of the business; many African-themed rides were installed (such as the "African Queen Riverboat Ride") in addition to themed eateries and games.
One of Windsor Safari Park's key attractions was Seaworld, a dolphinarium complex housing dolphins, a killer whale, penguins and sea lions. The dolphins, sea lions and killer whale performed in acrobatic shows several times a day.
Windsor Safari Park was, however, proactive in dolphin research and conservation, employing a great many dolphin experts and academics. Research efforts included the development of a fishing net warning system for dolphins and the Dolphin Research Project aimed to raise funds for other research on sonar communication and behaviour.
In the early 1990s Themes International serious financial problems: specifically for Windsor Safari Park, traditional sources of funding had ceased and visitor numbers proved somewhat cool. The situation was exacerbated by the building of an expensive new Egyptian-themed entrance courtyard and similarly themed market streets.
The park entered receivership in January 1992 and closed shortly afterwards, the expensive new developments left largely unused. The park was purchased soon afterwards by the Lego Group, who intended to create a Legoland theme park similar to the existing Legoland in Billund, Denmark. The resulting Legoland Windsor opened in 1996.
The only attraction that remains from the Safari Park days (aside from the mansion) is the funicular railway, now known as the Legoland Hill Train, that links The Beginning area of the park with Wild Woods.
- The zoo footage (including the "crazy baboons" scene) in the motion picture The Omen (1976 version) was filmed at Windsor Safari Park.
Documents were allegedly taken from Roebuck farm, Hertfordshire in the 1986 by Central Animal Liberation League (CALL) that allegedly showed that primates were supplied for use in experiments by the park[1]