John Wardley facts for kids

John Richard Wardley (born 6 June 1950) is a super creative person from England. He designs amazing rides for theme parks! He's like a wizard of fun, making special effects, cool dark rides, and thrilling roller coasters. You might know his work from famous parks like Alton Towers and Chessington World of Adventures. He's designed some of the most exciting rides in the UK and Europe!

John Wardley's Amazing Career

Starting Out

John Wardley began his career in theater. He worked backstage at the Theatre Royal in Windsor. Later, he moved into the film industry. He helped create special effects for several James Bond movies!

His skills in designing moving figures (called animatronics) and rides caught the eye of the Tussauds Group. They hired him to work on an exhibition called 'Royalty and Empire' in Windsor. He helped bring the figures to life there.

Creating Theme Parks

After that, the Tussauds Group gave John a big job. They wanted him to change the old Chessington Zoo into a brand-new theme park. This became Chessington World of Adventures in London.

At Chessington, John helped create many exciting attractions. These included The Vampire roller coaster, which hangs from above, and the Tiger Rock log flume. He also worked with another designer, Keith Sparks. Together, they made the popular Prof. Burp's Bubble Works water ride in 1990. In 1992, they created The Haunted House at Alton Towers.

Designing Famous Roller Coasters

John continued to be a top designer for the Tussauds Group. He designed some of the most famous roller coasters at Alton Towers. These include Nemesis, Oblivion, and Air (which is now called Galactica).

He also designed several rides at Thorpe Park. This happened after Tussauds bought Thorpe Park in 1998.

Retirement and Consulting

John Wardley left Tussauds in 2002. But in 2007, Merlin Entertainments took over the company. They asked John to come back as a special consultant for ride design.

Since then, he has helped with many more roller coaster projects. These include SAW - The Ride and The Swarm at Thorpe Park. He also worked on TH13TEEN and The Smiler at Alton Towers. And he helped with Raptor at Gardaland in Italy.

John announced his retirement on 22 January 2013. In April 2013, he wrote a book about his life called Creating My Own Nemesis.

Even after retiring, he still helps design rides! He consulted on Flug Der Dämonen at Heide Park in 2014. He also helped with the Wicker Man at Alton Towers in 2017. As of 2025, he continues to consult for Alton Towers Resort.

Video Games

John Wardley has also shared his knowledge for video games:

• RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 – He gave advice for this game.
• NoLimits Coaster 2 – He was a technical adviser.

Books by John Wardley

John Wardley has written books about his amazing career:

• Creating My Own Nemesis – This book came out in print in April 2013.
• Creating My Own Nemesis – An audiobook version was released in December 2017. John also narrated it!
• Life After Nemesis – This print edition was published in April 2024.

Rides and Attractions Designed by John Wardley