Key Points
- The Narnia Experience in Bootle Strand Shopping Centre has reacted to social media comparisons with the 2024 Willy Wonka event held in Glasgow.
- The attraction is organized by a community theatre called In Another Place and has opened on October 17th with dates until November 7th.
- The attraction allows the audience to experience C.S. Lewis’s story of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in the form of a theatrical production.
- The walk-through production features the visitors following either Lucy’s or Edmund’s path and encountering such characters as Mr Tumnus, Mrs Beaver and the White Witch.
- Ticket prices start from £5, the price of adult tickets being £7 and £5 of children’s according to an earlier Liverpool Echo report.
- Organizers stated that the performance is made by volunteers who use props and sets made during weekly workshops from recycled materials.
- The spokesperson added that the feedback from the audience and school groups has been “wonderful” and that the performance had previously won a Liverpool Tourism Award.
- People have taken to social media defending the attraction and stating that the comparison with the Glasgow Willy Wonka event is unfair.
Bootle (Liverpool standard) October 10, 2026 — The Narnia Experience at Bootle Strand Shopping Centre has responded after online users compared it with Glasgow’s widely criticised Willy Wonka event, saying it remains focused on providing a positive experience for families and children.
As reported by the Liverpool Echo, organisers said they had not been deterred by the comments, which have circulated on social media and largely focused on visual comparisons between the two attractions. The Narnia Experience is presented by In Another Place, a community theatre company, and opened at the shopping centre on October 17 after a nine-year break. It runs until November 7.
A spokesperson for the organisers told the Liverpool Echo: “We are a community theatre company made up of volunteers from every age and background, including those with additional needs. We provide a place where people can find purpose and form friendships.”
The spokesperson added: “Our props and sets are made and designed by volunteers in our regular weekly workshops and we pride ourselves on creating things from repurposed materials.”
The company also pointed to previous recognition for its work. It said it won a Liverpool Tourism Award for one of its earlier events, with its use of recycled materials cited as one reason for the award.
“We won a Liverpool Tourism Award for one of our previous events and our use of recycled materials was sited as one of the reasons for the award,” the spokesperson said.
Why has the Bootle attraction been compared with Willy Wonka?
The comparison arose after discussion of the Bootle event spread on social media. According to the Liverpool Echo, the comparisons have primarily related to visuals rather than complaints from attendees.
The reference is to Willy’s Chocolate Experience, a Willy Wonka-inspired event held in Glasgow in February 2024. The event became an international viral story after families said the experience did not match its advertising.
As reported by the BBC, the Glasgow event used AI-generated images in its marketing, while attendees described the venue as “little more than an abandoned, empty warehouse”. The BBC reported that promised chocolate fountains and “chocolatey delights” were absent, with children instead offered half a cup of lemonade and a small ration of jelly beans. Police were called as tempers rose, and the event was cancelled within hours.
CNN reported that tickets for the Glasgow event cost £35, while attendees had been promised “optical marvels” and “extraordinary props”. The broadcaster said Police Scotland confirmed officers were called to the scene and that the event was subsequently cancelled.
STV later reported that organisers House of Illuminati apologised to customers and said the event should have been cancelled after being “let down last minute” by suppliers. The broadcaster reported that the company said the attraction “did not take shape as planned” and confirmed that full refunds would be issued.
The Liverpool Echo did not report any comparable complaints, cancellations or police involvement in relation to the Bootle Narnia Experience. Instead, it reported that organisers remain committed to delivering a quality experience for families and children.
What can visitors expect at the Narnia Experience?
The Narnia Experience is a walk-through theatrical production based on C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It is being staged at Bootle Strand Shopping Centre and places audiences inside the story.
Visitors are guided through a wintry forest setting in Narnia, where they encounter characters including Mr Tumnus, Mrs Beaver and the White Witch. The Liverpool Echo reported that audiences can choose between two separate trails: Lucy’s journey or Edmund’s path.
Each route presents different scenes and perspectives from the story. According to the Liverpool Echo, the only way to see the full story is to visit twice.
The production originally debuted in 2009 at Old Christ Church in Waterloo. It was later staged at St George’s Hall in 2011 and 2013, before its most recent return in February 2017.
Tickets for the current Bootle run begin from £5. An earlier Liverpool Echo report said tickets were priced at £7 for adults and £5 for children.
How have visitors and local people responded?
Organisers said the response to the event has been positive. The spokesperson told the Liverpool Echo:
“The response to The Narnia Experience so far has been wonderful with families and schools really enjoying stepping through the wardrobe and meeting the characters.”
The company said it had collected comments from visitors and wanted to share examples. The Liverpool Echo reported that large numbers of people have also defended the event online, saying the Willy Wonka comparisons are unfair.
On Instagram, Vanessa Bullocks said:
“I don’t think it’s fair to pick on little local things that are being honest about what they are.”
Lauren Buckley said:
“Nothing wrong with it?? Can tell a lot of effort and time has gone into this, not to mention training the actors too.”
Lizzy Meehan said:
“For a family with little kids on a tight budget it looks like a nice thing to do. Comparing it to Willy Wonka, that was marketed and sold as something far grander, is completely unfair.”
Another commenter said:
“Fiver in a local shopping centre. Something nice for the kids a bit like s***** Santa Grottos we all went to. Why people expect it to be The Odyssey I have no idea.”
The organisers’ closing message to prospective visitors was: “This really is an experience you have to see for yourself. There are still tickets available so don’t miss out.”
Background to the development
The Narnia Experience returned to Bootle Strand Shopping Centre after nine years. It is presented by In Another Place and runs from October 17 to November 7, adapting The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe into an immersive, walk-through format.
The event’s history dates back to 2009, when it first appeared at Old Christ Church in Waterloo. It subsequently appeared at St George’s Hall in 2011 and 2013, and returned most recently in February 2017.
The comparisons with Glasgow stem from Willy’s Chocolate Experience, staged at the Box Hub Warehouse in Whiteinch over the weekend of February 24, 2024. STV reported that families had paid up to £35 per ticket for an event promoted with colourful, AI-generated imagery promising an “enchanting” day out.
Instead, visitors described sparse decorations, plastic props, a small bouncy castle and limited refreshments. STV reported that children received half a cup of lemonade and a ration of jelly beans, while police were called and the event was cancelled hours after opening.
The Glasgow event became a global online phenomenon, with images and videos viewed hundreds of millions of times, according to the BBC. It was later referenced in Parliament, spoofed on television, recreated in Los Angeles and adapted into an Edinburgh Fringe show.
The Bootle organisers have not been accused of the issues associated with the Glasgow event. Their response has centred on clarifying the community-led nature of the production, its volunteer-built sets and the feedback received from families and schools.
Prediction: what could this mean for Bootle families?
For local families, the episode may make ticket-buying decisions more dependent on clear expectations and first-hand reviews. The Bootle event is priced from £5, which is substantially lower than the £35 ticket price reported for the Glasgow Willy Wonka experience, and organisers have emphasised that it is a community theatre production using volunteer-made sets and repurposed materials.
If attendance remains strong, the controversy could increase awareness of the Narnia Experience among families in Bootle and the wider Liverpool City Region. The organisers’ statement that families and schools have enjoyed the event, alongside public comments defending it, may help counter negative assumptions created by the online comparisons.
For In Another Place, the development may also reinforce the value of transparent marketing. The Glasgow event became notorious partly because its promotional imagery differed sharply from the venue visitors encountered, according to the BBC and STV. By describing the Narnia Experience as a volunteer-led, community production and inviting people to see it for themselves, the Bootle organisers appear to be positioning the event as a modest, locally created family attraction rather than a large-scale commercial immersive experience.
For other small attractions, the case highlights how quickly visual comparisons can spread online. Local event organisers may need to provide clearer images, pricing information and descriptions of what visitors should expect, particularly when their productions rely on volunteer labour, recycled materials and community support.
