We’re abandoned & left to rot on hellhole estate after catastrophic plans for £2.6bn ‘Dartford Disneyland’ fell apart
We’re abandoned & left to rot on hellhole estate after catastrophic plans for £2.6bn ‘Dartford Disneyland’ fell apart
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THE size of 136 Wembley Stadiums, it was to be the UK’s answer to Disneyland and three times larger than any other theme park in the country. Artist’s impressions promised at least six roller coasters, themed fantasy lands and even a giant fairytale-style castle, all squeezed onto a peninsular jutting into the Thames Estuary near Dartford, Kent.
![[Illustration of the London Resort theme park.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/new-futuristic-images-reveal-london-545848528_e99651.jpg?strip=all&w=810)
It was to be surrounded by 3,500 rooms in plush hotels, swanky restaurants, and even two brand new ferry terminals, bringing hope that the project could sustain 33,000 local jobs. To say that the £2.5billion plans were ambitious would be an understatement.
![[A muddy, empty lot with puddles, security cameras, and a distant industrial area.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-plans-huge-2-5bn-966061695_c4558d.jpg)
But after being announced in 2012, the theme park became bogged down in a planning and legal quagmire that dragged on for thirteen years. And despite the magical promises from CGI mockups and developers, for people in the area the saga has been anything but a fairytale.
![[Man standing in front of his snack bar.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-plans-huge-2-5bn-966061440_5e57ca.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
With no desire to invest in much-needed improvements only for them to get bulldozed, businesses under its shadow feel they have been “left to rot” in favour of a proposal that could barely get its feet off the ground. Even the Kuwaiti businessman behind the scheme, Dr Abdulla Al-Humaidi, said the park had “destroyed” his life.
![[Illustration of a London resort with a large castle, rollercoasters, and fireworks.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/impossible-star-trek-italian-job-501298340.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
This week, “Dartford Disneyland” - as it was dubbed by some locals - was finally pronounced dead after the company behind it was ordered into insolvency by the High Court. And much of the blame for the project's demise lies with the discovery of a tiny rare spider just 1cm long.
![[Aerial view of an industrial estate, showing buildings, vehicles, and equipment.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-plans-huge-2-5bn-966061721_d40b16.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
