Little Monsters

The Little Monsters School Bus ride was released by Jolly Roger Amusement Rides in 1998.


2000 Jolly Roger Catalogue

According to the Jolly Roger catalogue, the bus measured 60" x 30" x 57" and, as of the 2002 price list, cost £3,295.00 to purchase.


Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach Gardens, April 2017. Sadly, this unit had been heavily refurbished and altered.  It ran on a single 50p coin with the start button activation having been bypassed.  Neither button produced any sound effect, and it also gave a disappointingly short ride!  Alas, I have yet to find a better example to film!  The audio heard on this unit was later used on Jolly Roger's Vending Bus and Jollytown School Bus, among others.

I can remember riding one of these at the Galleria Shopping Centre in Hatfield back when it was new in 1998.  I could have sworn that unit played the Little Monster theme tune but, apparently, the generic engine sounds heard in the video above were more commonly used on this ride, so I am presuming there are two official versions.

Flounder

 Manufactured by RG Mitchell, Flounder was released in 1998.  Flounder was a big yellow fish with large blue eyes and red lips.  There was space for two riders inside the fish, and special features included an interactive game and digital sound effects.


2001 RG Mitchell Catalogue

The ride measured 69" x 36" x 67" and weighed 330lbs.  As of the 2001 price list, it cost £2,895.00 to purchase.


Sadly, this ride is so incredibly rare nowadays that, although this is only a POV (and in Hungarian at that!), I was very excited when I received this video!  Many thanks to the anonymous member of the ride community who donated this video to us!

Beach Buggy

 Using the same mould as their earlier Alpha Ted car (minus the bear character), RG Mitchell's Beach Buggy ride was released in 1998.


2000 RG Mitchell Catalogue

The car came in a variety of different colours and had a "rolling road" display screen inside along with two push buttons for horns and screeching brake sound effects.


Blackpool Pleasure Beach, August 2018

The ride was part of Mitchell's Classic Rides range, and production was discontinued around 2001.

School Bus

 Released by RG Mitchell in 1998, the School Bus was sold in either red or yellow.  The panel on the side of the bus could be personalised with a business name.  I remember these were particularly popular with Adams clothes shops at the time.


2002 RG Mitchell Catalogue

Special features included a "rolling road" display screen and sound effects which incorporate educational road safety messages.


Mr P's Classic Amusements, Bognor Regis, August 2020

According to old RG Mitchell catalogues, the bus measured 49" x 24" x 49" and weighed 165lbs.  As of the 2001 price list, it cost £2,045.00 to purchase.

Tiger

 I know very little about this unusual two-seater "carousel tiger" ride.  I first ran across him at Claremont Pier, Lowestoft in 1998 and he looked relatively new then so I'd estimate he dates from the early-mid 1990s.  (Having said that, he hadn't aged too badly when I went back and filmed him 14 years later so who knows how old he could actually be?!)


Claremont Pier, Lowestoft, September 2012

There was also a matching lion ride on the pier at the time, and another identical lion at Joyland in Great Yarmouth.  These were the only examples of these rides that I ever saw.

As they were all on the Suffolk and Norfolk coast, I'm inclined to think they may have been made by JM Kiddie Rides or Glass Fibre Products.  Having said that, I don't recall ever having seen a manufacturer's name on them and those companies usually did mark all of their rides.

Another interesting fixture is the carousel pole at the front of the saddle.  I have seen some of these on juvenile toy sets so maybe that was their original intended purpose?

The ones I've seen have Stamar timers installed and play nursery rhymes when in motion, although of course I don't know if these are original.

Lion

 I know very little about this unusual two-seater "carousel lion" ride.  As a child, I only ever saw two of them; one in Great Yarmouth and the other in Lowestoft.  I first came across them in 1998, at which point they looked relatively new so I'd estimate they date from the early-mid 1990s.

As they were both on the Suffolk and Norfolk coast, I'm inclined to guess they may have been made by JM Kiddie Rides or Glass Fibre Products.  Having said that, I don't recall ever having seen a manufacturer's name on them and those companies usually did mark all of their rides.

The ride seems to have been made in two versions with a carousel pole at the front of his saddle, or regular handlebars in front of both seats.  The latter version is probably far more practical even if it doesn't look so nice or ornate!

The ones I've seen have Stamar timers installed and play nursery rhymes when in motion, although of course I don't know if these are original.

Double handlebar version - Joyland, Great Yarmouth, September 2012

Little Funny Taxi Car

 Manufactured by Subsino of Taiwan, I believe the Little Funny Taxi Car ride was released in the mid-1990s.  It features an interactive driving game.


Folly Farm Adventure Park, June 2019