The Big Sheep

The Big Sheep is an amusement farm park located in Abbotsham, Devon, England.

The Big Sheep
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LocationAbbotsham, Bideford, England, United Kingdom
Coordinates51.015712°N 4.244019°W / 51.015712; -4.244019
Opened1988
Operating seasonApril - October (7 days)
November - March (weekends)
Attractions
Total7
Roller coasters1
Water rides1
Websitewww.thebigsheep.co.uk

The site was originally Barton Farm,[1] a busy sheep farm owned by six generations of the same family. Due to challenges in the farming community, owner Rick Turner decided to bring in more profits by turning the farm into an attraction in 1988. The site started with an animal park and restaurant. After its initial focus on agriculture yielded disappointing returns, the park began to add entertainment attractions as well.[2] The park gained attention for it daily sheep races.[3][4] The park suffered substantial losses in the 2001 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.[5] In 2012 the park drew attention when Turner claimed that "needlessly pessimistic" weather forecasts by the Met Office were unnecessarily driving tourists away from local attractions.[6][7] It also gained more exposure in March 2016 when it launched its new roller coaster but erected signs to state no screaming after complaints were made by local residents during the planning process.[8]

Attractions

The Big Sheep features an indoor playground, animal shows, brewery, gin distillery, animal barn, Battlefield Live laser tag, outdoor playground, shops and 2 restaurants. There are also currently 8 rides including a roller coaster, farm safari ride, train ride, twister ride, piggy pull along, swan pedalos, tractor school, carousel and pony rides.

During the first few months of the roller coaster's operation in 2016, it was named "The Big One". It is now named "Rampage". The roller coaster was made by Zierer and was formerly located at Metroland, the defunct indoor amusement park of the MetroCentre shopping centre in Gateshead.[9][10][11]

Throughout the year the park also hosts many live events.

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References
  1. http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/the-big-sheep-bideford
  2. "The Big Sheep Celebrates 25 Years", North Devon Journal, 1 August 2013  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required) .
  3. Perrott Phillips, "Ghostly goings-on that stir among the cream teas", The Herald, 5 January 1998  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required) .
  4. Dymphna Byrne, "Animal Crackers: Dymphna Byrne Discovers Sheep Racing and an Alligator Swamp on Some Wild Family Days Out", The Mail on Sunday, 22 August 2004  – via Questia Online Library (subscription required) .
  5. "One year on: 'We were losing £3,000 a day'", BBC News, 19 February 2002.
  6. Richard Smith, "Miserable Weather Forecasts Have Left Me In Sheep Depression: Theme Park Boss to Sue Met Office", The Mirror, 4 October 2012  – via Questia Online Library (subscription required) .
  7. Ryan Hooper, "Tourist attraction boss considers suing Met Office over 'pessimistic' weather forecasts", The Independent, 3 October 2012.
  8. "No screaming on Rollecoaster says Devon Park Big Sheep", BBC, 30 March 2016.
  9. Hodgson, Barbara. "Metroland ride gets rolling again - and North East fans can enjoy a free ride in DEVON". Newcastle Chronicle. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  10. "Devon's Biggest Coaster at The Big Sheep". ThemeParks-UK. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  11. https://www.thebigsheep.co.uk/plan-your-day/things-to-do/our-rides/
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