UNIVERSAL CLOSE TO AGREEING UK DEAL. ANNOUNCEMENT THIS MONTH?

Rumours have been circulating for a while, and now the usually reliable source the Financial Times are reporting a deal for a UK Universal theme park is nearly done.

If you’ve not been following this major news over the past couple of years, Universal Studios bought a large plot of land that previously housed a brickworks in Bedford. They’ve been open about investigating the option of building a new resort on the land, which would come with huge economic benefits for the UK, but would require some significant infrastructure upgrades in the surrounding area. The suggestion is that they have been negotiating with the government over a deal that would incentivise them to go ahead with the project. The details are not known, but this could be anything from commitments that the government will go ahead with improving transport links such as road and rail connections, to special tax incentives/rates for Universal owners Comcast.

Reports suggest the government is calling this ‘Project Nectarine’ and negotiations are “In the final stages” with an announcement possible by the end of April.

Universal have stated it’s too early to reveal exactly what would be inside this potential new theme park, but that hasn’t stopped rampant speculation around the likes of Minions, Jurassic Park, Lord of the Rings, and Harry Potter lands a short trip away from London. We do no from early planning docs shared that the plan would be for one theme park initially, with associated resort surrounding it such as hotels, with room for a second park somewhere down the line if this proves to be a success.

Universal’s imminent focus is on the opening of their new Orlando theme park, Epic Universe, which will be opening to the public from 22nd May.

We’ll keep you updated as further news breaks on Universal UK.