A Dismal Day at the Seaside

Sometimes an opportunity comes along that's so singular, you just have to grab it with both hands. When I found out Dismaland, the Banksy-spearheaded art installation/"bemusement park" was only going to be three hours' drive from VR home base, I knew what I had to do next. I was going to Dismaland.

I realise this is a bit of a departure from the usual for Vagabond Romantics, but I couldn't resist sharing a few highlights. Despite the best efforts of all involved, neither buying tickets nor entering the park were as traumatic as they might have been. If you are planning to go - and you should if you could - I'd simply advise to be on the official website when the next lot of tickets are released, and don't bother turning up early for your time slot. Here are a few of my highlights.

A worrying passenger rests on the otherwise-normal carousel

Darren Cullen's loan shop for the under-12s was, conceptually speaking, my favourite 

Gotta be a dream job

The Astronauts' Caravan by Tim Hunkin and Andy Plant

Banksy's Boat Pond was the most emotionally charged artwork, no doubt for many others as well as myself

Water Cannon Creak (complete with fountain and slide) by Banksy

And last but not least, dodging with death, it's Banksy's Grim Reaper

Banksy is already being criticised for capitalising on the very values he claims to parody, and it's not an unfair point. But that very confusion has got people talking about art, and anything that gets the wider public visiting exhibitions gets our grateful acknowledgement, and despite its name, Dismaland is a hell of a lot more fun than most traditional galleries.