Magna Science And Adventure Park Rotherham reviews by real event-goers

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

This is my first time to the Cosplay and I must admit apart from some of the points mentioned earlier it was a great day made so by the people involved and the characters in costume who walked up and down the line. The points I think have already been made but I will mention them anyway. The Location of the venue was easy to get to by car which was our preferred way of travel. On arrival the security helped by letting people knowing there was a problem with parking and queuing which was great of them. The Parking was not really well controlled to begin with and this may have been an oversight maybe more volunteers are required on this so not left to security.
The venue queues was not correctly policed and this caused problems with the queue being longer and delayed more that it should but this could also be with the way the venue was set out. It did not seem large enough for the amount who attended and perhaps if it is to remain at this location, marquee may be required for certain events or side shows but the fact that characters walked up and down eased the queues. This is a great event and hopefully will continue it is always hard to know how many will turn up and therefore what to do on the night as it needs to be profitable in order to continue but more volunteers may help with traffic and queues.
Thanks for a great day and I hope to see you all next year
Neil

Yorkhire Cosplay 7

It's all been said by others, I just wanted to add another brick to the wall and get it off my chest.
What was good was great, what was bad was appalling.
I'd like to know how many people were in the Main Hall at it's fullest, and how many it's designed to safely contain. A fire alarm would have been a disaster, the people in costumes wouldn't have been able to move out of the Hall the way normally-dressed people could, it looks like no-one considered that. I know the FM game pretty well and there's NO WAY they're going to release any information like that up-front, so it would have to be by other means. Ideas welcomed.
The lighting was terrible, taking good pictures was difficult. Too few staff by far, the poor security staff must have felt like they'd been dumped on from on-high.
The event was moved due to it's popularity, yet it seemed to take the organisers (term used loosely) by surprise that about 3000 people might want to turn up.
I had a good time overall, but the venue was dire. I can't think of a single positiver thing to say about it. A great event marred by Magna (again, if you read about the Oktoberfest debacle).

Yorkhire Cosplay 7

This was our first time at the Cosplay convention with our disabled son in his wheelchair - what was the point of getting a fast track ticket when we had to wait over an hour to get in the building - plus with having our son in his wheelchair there was no staff helping - there should have been a disabled separate entrance. Once inside it was an absolute disgrace getting around, the stalls were too small for able bodied people, there was no contingency made for any disabled people to get around. People just totally ignored my son in his wheelchair, someone nearly sat on him at one point and even knocked his arm of his wheelchair arm - it was worse than doing the xmas supermarket run and due to this we won't be attending any more conventions. The only bright side was actually buying a couple of things for our son, one of them was a box where they burnt his name on - the lady on the stall said if we wanted to come back in 10 minutes and we said there is no way we are moving away to try and get back down to the stall and waited at the stall instead - which they were brilliant doing it while we waited. As for any emergencies that may happen in the hall with that number of people and the small spaces inbetween the stalls, if there was a fire in there, god forbid and especially with having a disabled child in a wheelchair, there would have been no way that we could have got out safely and in one piece. In fact when we did leave, it was like a cattle market getting back outside !!

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

Totally agree with most of the above comments re the crowds, we joined the queue just after 11.30 am and finally got our wristbands at 1.20pm, as for Mr Tomlinsons comments regarding people moaning about the queues perhaps he should try standing in the cold for almost 2 hours with a combination of Arthritis, Spondolitis, Heart Disease, Hypothyroidism and Diabetes. or has been mentioned above with small children etc, Yes the Cosplayers put a LOT of effort into making the day successful, it's just a shame the organisers chose such a venue that was grossly understaffed, and with the amount of money that must have been made on the day I'm sure Magna could have put a few more pennies in the electric meter and turned a few more lights on. Cosplayers 10/10 - Venue/Organisation 1/10

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

I was really excited and hyped to go to this event but returned home rather disappointed. The queuing was terrible. It took over an hour to get in despite the early bird ticket. There was no organisation and no one was there to help feed people though or control what was going on. I didn't see a single member of staff for the event until i got my ticket scanned then to get anywhere inside the venue you were stuck shoulder to shoulder it was a nightmare to get around. Consequently I barely had a chance to check out the stalls let alone buy anything. When it came to the Cosplay competition I was further surprised by the lack of attention paid where prizes were handed out to the winners whilst the eager audience was ignored and only told afterwards briefly what was actually going on. I won't rate the venue completely rubbish because it wasn't, it was simply overcrowded. The people themselves were fantastic and there was so many lovely people wondering around. If you can get a bigger venue or cap the tickets next time i'd be happy to attend, it just needs a lot more work and thought.

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

I agree with MichaelTuckwe ll, the organization was very poor and it felt like buying an early bird ticket was completely pointless.

Yorkshire Cosplay Con 7

I found it to be enjoyable, as it was my third big con (second one in cosplay, too). Right off the bat though, the lines were terrible. I got there early, and It still took me an hour after the event started just to get in. There was also little to no indication as to which line was the one for us until we got inside, so anyone in the wrong line would be out of luck. A bit of a tight squeeze throughout, too. That wasn't a problem for me, though I can see it being such for others. And finally, it wasn't made clear enough where or when people could sign up for the contests that were held during the event, due to one-time notifications that only people who were near the stage at the time would hear. Everything else about the event was very enjoyable though. Friendly people there, a variety of cosplay based on different forms of media (though there was a LOT of DC I noticed), interesting traders to check out, RALPH LISTER WAS THERE!!!, the shows on stage were very up-beat and had me in high spirits before long, and there definitely was a lot of room to move around in despite the large number of people attending. Part of me even wishes it lasted longer, as I was just starting to meet some awesome people! Definitely going to YCC8 this summer!

YCC 7

Agree with everyone above really. Didn't see the point in buying an early bird ticket just to get in at the same time as everyone buying tickets. Too many people cutting in the cue to join friends which I didn't deem fair at all. A lot of people I know brought kids and ended up having to leave because it wasn't exactly warm weather and kids got bored of cuing for so long. A woman I was stood with in the cue also ended up loosing her child because it was far too busy and crowded. I did enjoy it but defiantly needs to be more organized! I hope YCC take this into consideration.

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

I agree with SurferJed! The venue was too packed, disorganised and I was a little disappointed at my first major venue! I would have moved the seating area to the middle and had the stalls at the end with the celebrities, so the people eating/resting/meeting up; could watch the entries/artists on the stage area! It was worse when the lights went out, and of course, there weren't many staff/security as i expected there to be! I wont be returning unless they show us their redesigned areas that make it more enjoyable for everyone next time! I did enjoy talking to the celebs and watching the entertainment on stage!

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

I found the cuing system a joke, there were no directions as to which cue to join. It took over an hour and a half to enter the building and that was with an early bird ticket :-( There didnt seem to be enough staff to control the crowds. Once inside, it was impossible to get around the stalls so I did not bother. The lighting was awful, I saw one stall using a torch :-( not good. There were no seats at the stage area and being disabled was not good so did not stay too long. I hope the next one is better than this one. I know its not easy to organise these sorts of events, I hope this is a lesson learned. I gave atmosphere an average score due to being told to f--- off buy 2 people when asking if I could take photos, Please feel free to say no, but the is no need for vulgarity this is a family event.

Cosplay cosfun

Very very busy
Everyone worked hard to make the day, although it was packed I enjoyed the atmosphere,
for those who complained about the queues, think! It was successfull,
loved the costumes the characters and all the efforts for a great day! Thank you
It's a shame some public didn't appreciate the effort put in and *****ed about the crowds!
I was really impressed at the numbers there, in fact it should've been spread over two days

Yorkshire Cosplay 7

I was really looking forward to attending my 1st proper convention after being to a small one at doncaster race course . Unfortunately it was a disappointment completely due to the venue and access and egress to the convention , there was no way to know which queue you needed to be in if you had already got tickets or were purchasing on the day , once inside the building the queue just merged into a free for all , confused even more by people leaving having to squeeze through the crowd , people were pushing in line and there were barley any staff about to control the crowds . Once inside it was far far to cramped , a stall selling lego was set up in the corridor leading to the main hall making it impossible to browse , once in the main arena again the stalls were far to close together to be able to look round without blocking the way . The only positive were the people attending with a great friendly atmosphere and spotting the various fandoms , will definitely be attending another convention , just not at this location

History @ Magna

Best night out since forever...thank you Jon Besant and all involved, we definitely know how to party here in Yorkshire. Jon's set along with Farley, Graeme Park and Todd Terry took the roof off this massive venue. Amazing atmosphere, definitely going to the next one!!

History @ Magna

One of the best nights i've been to in a long time. Music was amazing from entering the venue (Red room) to the local hero's and the main room (Love to be v's Rise). I'd like to thank all the DJ's that i heard for one amazing night. It was definitely like a step back in time to the glory days of house music.

Fear fest

It was absolutely ****. Paid for tickets so we could stand outside some gates piss wet through for 2 hour, waaaank. So decided to sack it off and go round Sheff which was good. Que was stupid just people pushing to front and nobody letting you in.

Fear-Fest

Ques were absolutely ridiculous. No organisation whatsoever. An hours wait to get in and it was raining heavily. Once we were in the atmosphere was good. Bit pissed off they wanted even more money for the ghost ride and dodgems. Forget that. Ques up for a drink for about 30 mins. Very expensive and no variety, only shots were vodka. Forget that too. Settled for watery Stella. Music was great. That's what we were there for. All in all apart from a few annoyances it was a fab night, one to remember.

Fearfest- unorganised chaos! Dangerous! Treated like animals!

We went to fearfest last night at magna, been looking forward to it for ages and bought tickets for my husbands bday bash. Us and two other couples went all out, fancy dress etc, looked awesome. Upon arriving we were met with a gate far away from the main doors and queue, lined with police and police dogs within a couple of feet of guests- they were going mental! The crowd which were given no instruction, direction or explanation soon turned into a mob! Pushing shoving n it was kicking off big time! This was at 9pm and the venue opened at 8pm. Every so often they would let a handful of people threw and then the 'mob' would all push forward...we were slowly getting crushed. Trying to get out of the way we were blocked in by the police dogs, my friend... Who is a teacher, kindly asked an officer if he could back the dog off so we could clear the crowd which was pressing in around us only to get a very rude answer of... Get away from the dog and you won't get bitten! We had nowhere to go! Inevitably the crowd broke and everyone ran for the main doors. When it got worse... Around 1000 people crushed together and moved in mass. It was scary to say the least, there was no organisation, no barriers, staff, plan or safety precautions whatsoever...another hillsborough disaster in the making! we endured this for 1 hour and at times it really got scary! They definitely got one thing right... The atmosphere! It was terrifying for all the wrong reasons! We were pulled, pushed, kicked, crushed, the only security were at the front of the queue so the mob of people were basically allowed to organise themselves. When we finally got to the front they were rude, pushy and treated us like crap! Telling us to stop pushing... We were like...go to the back and sort the queue out that's where the pushing is coming from we were being pushed... Not pushing! In we went after a strip search... Understandably, I'll give them that. Bars were 6 deep at best, bar staff were unbelievably slow, prices were super expensive, small and weak. The toilets at the beginning of the night were foul! Faeces covered the floor, walls and the queue was about half an hour. The main room setup was good but you wouldn't dare get in the thick of it... It wasn't worth it by then...we'd seen enough outside. Too many people, too little staff... No organisation at all. The music was awesome which is what we came for... Me n my hubby love that music and thought with a venue like magna and the organisers involved, it would be well arranged with safety and a good time at the forefront the organisers didn't give 2 s**ts about us they were safely tucked behind their barriers with their security. And don't get me started on the so-called 'maze' what was all that about? Total rip-off, 2 people with masks on said boo! I did better at my kids haloween party last year! Pathetic! The dodgems were the best bit about the entire night. Thank god for a bit of fairground fun... We'd of had a better time at Donny racecourse fun fare! N next year we'll be doing something where you feel safe, respected and valued! We were treated like animals! Never again. Oh and spent about 300 quid after tickets, drinks and taxis for the two of us and I'm writing this review with not a wif of a hangover! If you are wanting a good time... Don't bother with this night...ull regret it!

Event Cancelld

Event canceled,

Shame as really looking forward to this, understand the reasons behind it and fair and efficient with refund. Good look to the guys involved at OTR and the rest for the future see you in January.

Bloody fantastic

I have been to all the Magna events so far and have loved every single one! This time I took two friends who are rave virgins and it was the best night we have ever had!! Security was good, not too over crowded just fab! I am definitely going to the next one!!!

SHM

The Sw**ds Rocked it!!! the best thing about it was u could actually dance and move concidering how many ppl was there!!! Downfalls too many ppl at the bars toook ageees for a drink and agesssss getting in!!!