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When the pandemic hit, and reality settled in that life would be isolated and mostly inside, Grammy winner Anderson .Paak found himself on the outside looking in, in a way he didn’t anticipate. “I was the odd man out. My son was 8, and BTS took over the whole house,” .Paak explained in an interview with The Times at his WeHo lounge, Andy’s. “It was a K-pop storm. Before that, me and my son were bonding off of my music.”

.Paak’s son, Soul Rasheed, and his now ex-wife originally from Korea, Jaylyn Chang, had become obsessed with K-pop alongside much of America, which reminded .Paak of the intensity of Beatlemania. Black American music influenced the birth of a new style, which formed and expanded across oceans, then returned to the U.S. and exploded. This effect in the .Paak household was palpable, causing Soul and Chang to deeply bond in a new way. .Paak himself, as a soul, R&B and hip-hop aficionado, was tapped into the source, but not the reinterpreted subject. So he had to find a way in.

Soul, at the time, like many 8-year-olds, had also become obsessed with becoming a YouTuber. Besides .Paak’s music, the father-and-son duo had also previously connected over humor, so .Paak started there. They began with funny skits and eventually fused them with BTS dances. Soon, there were even videos featuring them comedically educating each other about their individual music tastes. “I loved it,” .Paak recalled, getting lost in the memory. “I was getting to know him more, and he was getting to know me. My mom would always say, ‘It’s one thing for your kids to love you, but it’s another to share things you’re interested in.’ It wasn’t like I was being Anderson .Paak, I was just Dad.”

“I was getting to know him more, and he was getting to know me,” .Paak said of bonding with his son, Soul.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

Through this exploration and the realization of a potential continued familial bond, a story idea emerged, then a treatment for a K-pop-centered film that .Paak would direct and he and Soul would both star in. .Paak then began directing a slew of music videos as the pandemic began to fade, building a portfolio and gaining experience in the medium. But he could start to sense Soul’s interest fading as time passed. After a few failed pitch attempts, .Paak urgently enlisted the help of one of his oldest friends and fellow entertainer, Jonnie “Dumbfoundead” Park, who brought .Paak and the idea to Stampede Ventures.

“The pitch was from an idea that Anderson had, and [to introduce it], we showed them this TikTok that he had with his son,” Park recalled over Zoom. “Anderson was like, ‘Do you know anything about BET, son?’ And [Soul] was like, ‘No, but I know BTS.’ Then they were just going back and forth, arguing about BET and BTS. That was literally the deck, [us saying] we would take that energy and put it into a two-hour film. They loved it. As soon as we walked out of the office, Anderson looked over like, ‘Are we greenlit?!’ They just understood it, the whole intergenerational, intercultural element of Black and Korean.” Stampede combined forces on the project with Live Nation Studios and .Paak’s debut feature “K-Pops!” was off to the races.

It’s important to note that .Paak is himself Black and Korean. His mother was adopted from Korea by a SoCal Black American military family and .Paak’s father was also a Black military officer. Thus, while his mother was born in Korea, he was raised almost entirely within a Black cultural space. .Paak didn’t experience much direct exposure to Korean culture until his 20s, when he met Chang at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood. As an immigrant directly from Korea, Chang showed him the fortitude of structure amid her community. He was also taken by their inherent family value system. “In Korean households, you stay in the house until you get older so you can take care of your parents, and your parents can help take care of the kids,” .Paak explained. “There’s an infrastructure that’s worked out. Also, Korean food is important, as is learning the language. I was drawn to that. My son didn’t eat anything outside of Korean food for so long, and he’s just now getting into tacos.”

.Paak then further explored his Korean side through a burgeoning friendship with Park, which happened a bit later, after Chang had already given birth to Soul. Park introduced .Paak to K-town-based Korean culture through their shared music scene. “The people that came from K-town had a lot of Latino and Black influences as well,” .Paak remembered. “There was a little more of a melting pot, and it was more urban. But in a similarly communal way [to Koreans from Korea], they were all hanging out in K-town with other Korean friends. They’d drink soju, and go to after-hours where you had to have somebody Korean with you.”

While .Paak had some opportunities in adulthood to grasp a bit of his Korean heritage, in “K-Pops!,” through his main character BJ, he also got to actualize what his mother may have missed. In the film, BJ, a failed karaoke bar R&B musician, gets a lucky chance to go to Korea and be the drummer for a popular K-pop competition series. There, he bumps into his estranged ex-girlfriend’s son, Tae Young (played by Soul), who is competing on the show. He then finds out that the kid is his. While a messy transition ensues, BJ and Tae Young eventually get to galavant around Korea and work together to try to win the competition. Through this exploration, BJ finds out he can thrive in Korea while still holding onto his Blackness. .Paak’s mother’s dive back into her roots had a different result. “My mom went abroad and spent a year in Korea, but when she went there, she just didn’t like it,” .Paak explained. “In the movie, initially, BJ doesn’t really have any connection to his Korean side and doesn’t really care to know, but then he finds a bridge.” That bridge is music.

Actor Yvette Nicole Brown, who in “K-Pops!” plays BJ’s mother, proclaimed over Zoom that, “Everything about the film and the music in it is Blasian, every culture is celebrated and massaged and made into something beautiful.” .Paak made a concerted, intentional effort to explore both the Black and Korean sides of K-pop in two scenes.

The first is an early breakdown initiated by Soul’s character, Tae Young, who explains the structured roles of a K-pop group, which may be fun for superfans and educational for laypeople to the genre. The next is a winding presentation by BJ to Tae Young about the influence of Motown groups like the Jackson 5 and boy bands like New Edition on the momentum of K-pop’s rise. It’s particularly poignant because it is all shot at a record store on the streets of Korea, where .Paak explained he actually found the records he was referencing. “There’s nothing wrong with people doing their interpretation of Black music, as long as you pay homage and as long as you respect it and take care of it,” .Paak declared. “Because [if you do], then they’ll take care of you, but the moment you don’t, you’ll see what happens … I wanted to explain that history because that’s how I saw it.”

Real-life father and son, Anderson .Paak, left, and Soul Rasheed, co-star in “K-Pops!”

(Jake Giles Netter)

”K-Pops!” has as much of who .Paak and Soul are as father and son as he could fit in. There are appearances by legacy Black artists like Earth, Wind & Fire, as well as K-pop stars like Vernon from Seventeen. There are original songs co-written and co-produced by .Paak and musician Dem Jointz, that feature K-pop fused with soul and funk, one of which Tae Young performs as his finale competition number (soundtrack arriving soon). The film was shot in both L.A. and Korea and provided ample time for bonding (especially during scenes filled with off-the-cuff humor) that .Paak envisioned from the beginning. Yet still, at the time they were about to shoot, .Paak almost couldn’t get Soul on board because he had turned 11 and wasn’t as into K-pop or acting comedically anymore; he insisted he was instead “into Slipknot.”

The duo did find their footing, though, and executed a winding story that centers on their connection. As a burgeoning teenager in 2024, Soul went with his father to the world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, along with a plethora of Korean relatives from his mom’s side. .Paak anxiously awaited their full reaction to the culmination of his quest for a deeper bond.

“Everybody really enjoyed it,” .Paak remembered, relieved. “[Soul] was like, ‘I’m proud of you, Dad.’ I asked him, ‘You think you would ever do part two?’ He was like, ‘Nah, I don’t think acting is my passion, but I’ll never forget those moments … You know what? On second thought, it depends on the script.’ But I think he’s really proud of it. I think it’s something like, when he gets older, he’ll see how special it is as well. But yeah, he didn’t say it’s cringe.”

“K-Pops!” has its L.A. premiere on Tuesday and debuts in select theaters Friday.

THE capital could soon get its biggest ‘floating park’, along with a new lido, spa and sauna.

It’s all part of a £5billion regeneration plan at London’s Royal Docks.

The major new attraction would be built across 12-hectares of water.

Designs for the floating park reveal lots of greenery, some seating areas, and it would also be home to art installations and hold cultural events.

Right next to it, and also floating, are plans for a new wellness centre.

Sitting on top of the water, the centre would have a sauna, spa, and a lido for public swimming.

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Alongside the two attractions could be a floating residential community with moorings and homes on the water.

The new area is part of the Mayor of London‘s Royal Docks regeneration plan.

Over 20 years it has had a £5billion investment to create an accessible waterfront for locals and visitors.

Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz said: “The development of Royal Victoria Dock West is reshaping the space as a leisure and wellness destination, making the most of the waterway and giving residents and visitors the opportunity to enjoy a new community right on the water.”

These proposals will go out for public engagement later this month.

Early phases of construction are expected to begin in 2030 – if funding is put in place and plans are approved.

There’s already lots to do at London’s Royal Docks, like hopping on the IFS cable car.

The attraction is suspended 90 metres above the Thames where it connects the Royal Docks to Greenwich.

Every summer, Dock Beach opens to the public – tonnes of sand is placed on the bank to transform it into London’s biggest beach.

The dock also has a wakeboarding centre and it’s a great spot for rowing, sailing, canoeing, kayaking and paddleboarding.

And while this proposed floating park will be London’s biggest, it’s not the only one.

Over in Merchant Square, Paddington is ‘The Floating Pocket Park’ which has benches, deckchairs and beanbags on top of the water.

It also has free Wi-Fi and during the summer is shaded by a canopy.

In better weather there are also free film screenings, music performances and exercise classes.

For more on new lidos, one could be built on the site of a car park 50 years after it was destroyed.

And here are all the new lidos set to open across the UK from seafront pools to city swimming spots.

IN a few years, Bedfordshire will be one of the top places to visit in the country when the UK’s first Universal theme park opens there.

But according to one local, there’s so much that you can do in the county already, especially its namesake town, Bedford.

Lydia Pettet has lived in Bedford for almost all of her life, and makes it her mission to get others to love Bedfordshire just as much as she does.

She shows the best of the county on her social media account lydeatsfood – and here are her top spots.

New Theme Park

Of course we have to start with the upcoming theme park.

In April 2025, it was announced that Bedford would become the location of Universal’s very first UK theme park.

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And work behind the scenes has already started as Universal has found a temporary headquarters close to its planned site.

The company has taken over the top floor of Bedford Borough Hall on Cauldwell Street, which is already home to Bedford Borough Council.

The US firm was granted planning permission in December 2025 to build a destination across 662 acres on a former brickworks at Kempston.

Once it’s fully up and running which is scheduled for 2031, the theme park is expected to get 8.5million each year.

Food

As for what to do now, some might be unaware that Bedfordshire has strong Italian heritage.

Back in the 1950s, Italians were recruited to work at the brickworks, the site of the new Universal theme park.

Lydia explained that many never left resulting in lots of incredible Italian restaurants popping up around the county.

Bedford in particular has some top eats. Lydia told Sun Travel: “If you come to Bedford, expect incredible Italian food. One of my favourites is A Casa Di Anna, which is run by a lovely couple called Stefano and Anna.

“We’ve got Santaniello Pizzeria which is one of, if not the oldest restaurant still open in Bedford.

“Its menu is very limited – it’s actually been the same for my entire life. Inside it’s got the classic plastic gingham table cloths and you can’t go wrong with the breadsticks, a margherita and finish off with a shot of Limoncello.

“Other modern Italian restaurants include The Higgins Pantry, which is inside the Higgins Museum. Or La Terrazza which is more date night, girls night vibes.”

Other must-try foods in Bedford include the ‘Bedfordshire Clanger’ – a half sweet, half savoury pastry that you can buy at the Gunns Bakery in Sandy.

Most interestingly, it has a speciality called ‘chocolate toothpaste’ which Lydia explained is an “old school dessert”.

It’s made from shortcrust pastry with a chocolate filling with a swirl of whipped cream on top.

Lydia added: “Every cafe in Bedford sells them – so I’d encourage every tourist to try one.”

Hotels

When it comes to where to stay in Bedford, Lydia recommends the newly renovated The Swan Hotel.

It was built in the 1700s and recently reopened in September 2025 after adding 24 rooms and a new fitness suite.

Lydia says it’s a great spot for those who want some “luxury“.

Inside are 137 rooms which range from the classic double all the way to the Junior Suite.

It has an on-site brasserie and restaurant in a pretty conservatory that looks over the River Ouse.

Depending on the time of day guests, or visitors, can pop in to munch on breakfasts, Sunday lunches, dinners and afternoon tea.

The hotel also has a Thermal Spa with pools and three experience showers from mist to a dousing bucket with cold water.

The vitality pool has massage benches, neck and body massage jets and air beds.

It has a traditional steam room, a Finnish sauna for relaxation, a steam lounger and a relaxation space.

Non-guests are welcome to use the spa too, a one hour session is £20, with two hours priced from £30.

Other packages include a traditional afternoon tea and two hour spa session for £48.

Activities

Every summer, Bedford Park holds the Bedford Summer Sessions – essentially a music festival.

The summer of 2026 will see Deacon Blue, UB40, Tom Grennan and Paul Weller take to the stage.

Single day admission starts from £58.80 per person, while a four-day festival pass is priced at £199 per person.

If you’re a fan of comedy, you might get the chance to see some big names in Bedford.

Lydia has seen the likes of Alan Carr and Joel Dommett on home turf before.

She said: “They test out material before heading to the big cities.”

If you don’t fancy paying for entertainment then across one weekend this year is the Bedford River Festival.

Lydia revealed “it’s the biggest free festival in the country after Notting Hill Carnival, this year it’s on between 18-19 July.

“It has live music and races down the river in boats. There’s lots of food, lots of gift stalls and they have a community stage with dance schools and choirs.

“Then we have the Bedford Italian festival which is held every year and Summer Sessions in Bedford Park.”

Throughout the rest of the year, the river is often used for watersports.

Popular activities on the river include canoeing and kayaking.

You’ll find Box End Park in Bedford, on the lake is a huge inflatable which opens from April 2026.

The lake is a popular spot for open water swimming, wakeboarding, water skiing and paddleboarding.

For more on Bedfordshire, an iconic tourist attraction inspired this suburban leisure centre which is set to get a revamp.

In the neighbouring county, here’s more on the UK’s ‘worst big town’ – and why it’s a great alternative day trip to London.

A holiday park offers families affordable February half-term breaks with play area, spa and lake views

February half-term presents a challenge for many families, particularly those still recovering financially from Christmas, whilst eyeing the longer Easter break ahead. British weather during this period is notoriously unpredictable, but that needn’t prevent you from discovering an enjoyable getaway destination that won’t break the bank.

Woodland Lakes holiday park near Thirsk, Yorkshire, boasts numerous attractions for families during the school holidays.

The heated indoor swimming pool proves consistently popular with youngsters eager for a dip, whilst an indoor play area, Pamper Lounge Spa, restaurant and bar complement the tranquil lake vistas and fishing spots, offering ample chances to unwind, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Situated on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors and a brief drive from both the vibrant market town of Thirsk and the historic city of York, it’s described as ‘the perfect retreat for those seeking a break away in a relaxed and picturesque environment’.

Various properties can be booked at the site this February half term, including Cedar lodge.

A four-night stay from February 16 to 20 is priced at £461 for four guests, equating to £28 per person per night through Sykes Holiday Cottages.

South Lakeland Village holds an overall Google rating of 4.3 out of five, with visitors commending the ‘excellent’ pool and ‘good pub food’.

James Shaw, chief commercial officer for Sykes Holiday Cottages, commented: “February half term is the perfect time for a family escape, and with 63% of Brits taking a UK break last year, staying closer to home is more popular than ever.

“Holiday resorts like Woodland Lakes Lodges offer shorter journey times, great value, and onsite activities that keep everyone entertained.”

He went on to say: “We’re also seeing families plan later to secure better deals and work around busy schedules, so there’s still plenty of time to book a last-minute getaway.

“Cedar offers the ideal mix with a heated pool and play area for the kids, spa facilities for parents, and the North Yorkshire Moors right on the doorstep for outdoor adventures.”

To explore further holiday options with Sykes Holiday Cottages, head over to their website. Woodland Lakes holiday park is a Landal site bookable through Sykes, alongside 22 other Landal destinations.

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ONE ride at Legoland is set to be knocked down to make way for something new.

The Viking River Splash ride in Land of the Vikings closed back in 2023 and was once a favourite amongst visitors.

The clearance of the site is to make way for a new attraction within the park.

The Viking River Splash, a water rapids ride, first opened in 2007.

After 16 years, Legoland announced news of the ride’s closure on Facebook. They wrote: “Calling all Vikings! It is time to lay down your oars and say a fond farewell to Viking River Splash.

“Join the LEGO® Viking fleet one last time and make your last voyage before Monday 25th September, after which the ride becomes part of Viking history.”

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When the ride was first announced to close, lots of visitors were disappointed – but excited to see what came next.

One said: “Sad to see this ride go! However it needs it! Can’t wait to see what the park does with the space.”

Another added: “Surprising move. However I’m curious as to whether it will be re-themed or replaced.”

This isn’t the first application from Legoland this year.

It has also submitted another to build a new 390-capacity 4D cinema at its Imagination Theatre.

The Imagination Theatre is one of the oldest attractions at the theme park, which celebrates its 30th anniversary next month.

Both applications are waiting for approval from the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (RBWM).

Last summer, Legoland Windsor revealed its brand new entryway.

Over the years, the main entrance had remained relatively unchanged until August 2025.

It now has two new huge 32 feet tall structures on either side of the Legoland sign.

These look like giant Lego bricks and on top of them are characters like knights and ninjas on the towers.

Other upgrades around the park will be a new Brick Street Cafe, upgraded bag search and ticket areas, and improved crossing.

The plans were given the go-ahead in November 2024.

The park’s Miniland revealed its £1.2million makeover in early 2025 too – the revamp of Miniland includes new buildings such as The Cheese Grater, The Gherkin and Canary Wharf buildings.

While there are 10 other Legoland theme parks around the world, Legoland Windsor is the biggest – it has 55 attractions to explore.

One Legoland resort has announced it will open the world-first Harry Potter land with rides and wizard themed hotel rooms.

And one Disney fan reveals what they thought of the Legoland Windsor resort after visiting for the first time.

Drayton Manor has launched a K-Pop themed takeover for half term, and while it had some fun moments, our favourite attraction was worlds away from the glittering world of K-Pop music

If you have a child of primary school age, the soundtrack to your life is likely to be the cheery sounds of K-Pop. K-Pop, which stands for Korean Pop, has been on many music fans’ radar for years now, but 2026 is likely to be a big year for the genre.

Not only has K-Pop Demon Hunters become the most-watched original title in Netflix history with 500 million views – quite a few of which have come from my house – but K-Pop bands have been all over the charts. In August 2025, a record seven K-Pop tracks made the top 40 singles chart, including BLACKPINK and Stray Kids. A recent tour announcement by BTS saw a Taylor Swift-style clamber for tickets and UK dates sold out in 30 minutes.

So, it wasn’t a huge surprise to see that Drayton Manor, a theme park in the West Midlands, would be hosting a K-Pop Takeover for February half term. My daughter was thrilled to be going to a K-Pop themed day and wore her favourite HUNTR/X hoodie for the occasion. And of course, Spotify was cued up with an appropriate playlist on the way.

While the park isn’t fully open during February half term, in addition to the K-POP activities the ticket price includes Thomas Land, a handful of rides, plus the zoo. With tickets starting at £19.90, the price reflects that you won’t get the full theme park experience.

We arrived just in time for ‘K-Pop games’ on the park’s main stage, and a very enthusiastic entertainer was leading some kids in a game of red light, green light, followed by some singing along to the tune of Golden. There was also a K-Pop themed dance workshop later on, with excited kids dancing in front of the sparkly stage.

Other than some Korean fried chicken being served in the burger bar, and some Korean souvenirs in the gift shop, there wasn’t a huge amount of K-Pop theming throughout the park. However, the end of day K-Pop concert definitely brought in the crowds and seemed to be widely enjoyed.

Three entertainers, dressed as a K-Pop girl group, sang songs by HUNTR/X, Saja Boys, and Rosé, bringing the day to a close with a water show in the park’s lake. Kids and adults were bopping along to the tunes, and I was impressed that the group’s lead singer managed to tackle the high notes in Golden.

But the real draw at Drayton Manor is Thomas Land. While it took the silver award for Best Theme Park for Toddlers in 2025, people of all ages seem delighted when wandering around the Sodor-themed attraction. Even grown adults were posing for photos with Thomas, showing the nostalgia around the show never went away.

It seemed to be a good time to visit. Queues were pretty minimal on most of the rides, although we did unfortunately wait half an hour to get on Winston’s Whistle-Stop Tours only for the ride to break down. However, quite a few of the smaller rides had no queue at all, and it meant we got a couple of turns on Toby’s Tram Express and some other favourites.

Thomas Land also had regular shows, and we got the chance to meet Sir Topham Hatt, or depending on your age, the Fat Controller. The performer was great, and I noticed he could communicate in Makaton – a type of sign language often used for children with learning or communication difficulties. It would be great to see more theme parks train staff in this way to make the entertainment more inclusive.

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So, is this review Golden or is it a Takedown? Overall, I’d say it’s worth visiting the park for the K-Pop Takeover. Outside of the main stage, there’s not a whole lot of K-Pop theming, but enough to keep fans happy. The end of day concert was definitely a highlight for my youngest and she hasn’t stopped talking about it, and concert only tickets are available if you just want to visit later on. But Thomas Land is always worth a day out. Just make sure you bring your big coat.

You can find out more on draytonmanor.co.uk.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

A POPULAR UK holiday park has gone into administration after nearly 20 years.

The future of the resort, which features a retail village, golf course, and theatres, currently remains uncertain.

Stonham Barns Park, based in the Suffolk countryside, filed the notice on Monday, February 16.

David Hudson and David Hinrichsen of FRP Advisory have been appointed as joint administrators following a period of financial pressure on the business”.

The administrators confirmed they are focused on continuing to trade the site while seeking a buyer, with the aim of securing the park’s future as a going concern.

All existing holiday bookings will be honoured, and the site will continue to take new bookings, with all facilitiesoperating as normal throughout the administration process. 

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David Hudson, joint administrator and partner at FRP, told The Sun: “We are very much focussed on business as usual and want to reassure guests with existing bookings that these are unaffected.

“Anyone considering booking a visit can make one with confidence too.  

“We are actively marketing the site for sale and would welcome bidders who see the opportunity here with a well-established and popular caravan park.” 

Located conveniently on the A1120 tourist route, Stonham Barns Park was first opened in 1987, with the current management taking over in 2001.

Stonham Barns eventually evolved into a multi-facility destination, offering fun for all the family for 362 days of the year.

The park is famous for hosting niche enthusiast shows, including historic re-enactments of the Viking era, as well as classic car shows and darts tournaments.

Visitors can also enjoy countless onsite attractions, including an indoor soft play area, a pirate-themed adventure golf, a vibrant shopping village, an owl sanctuary and Meerkat castle, fair rides, and fishing lakes.

The park is also popular with golf enthusiasts, offering a nine hole golf course, simulator bays, a street golf driving range, a chip n putt course, golf darts, and foot golf.

Stonham Barns Showground is also located within the park, hosting numerous events throughout the year, including an annual dog show and a Christmas spectacular.

Visitors can also rent or buy holiday homes on-site, including luxury lodges situated around the scenic lake.

In December, the HMRC issued the park with a Winding Up Petition, a last‑resort enforcement tool when other collection options have been exhausted.

A deadline was reported for the end of January, with no official amount disclosed.

At the time of issue, company directors publicly stated that the park was fully in funds to meet the obligation and that there was no risk to the ongoing operation of the resort and its on‑site businesses.

The Sun has reached out to Stonham Barns for comment.

The historic venue was paved over to provide beach parking, but a bold plan could see the lido revitalised for year-round swimming could “bring new life to the town” according to a local organisation

In 1935, the Marina Bathing Pool opened in a stunning seafront location, offering locals and tourists the chance to take a dip in fresh seawater. Over the years, it brought in huge crowds, especially at weekends when families would flock to the area to cool off, take a dive, or even learn to sail in the boating pool. Its was part of a complex that even had a space for dancing and a roller rink.

But despite its beautiful Art Deco architecture, the lido, like so many others eventually closed down and the site was abandoned. In the 1970s, it was paved over to create a car park, in a twist worthy of a Joni Mitchell song.

However, the council owned car park is now being considered by Thanet District Council for disposal, and an enthusiastic non-profit organisation is hoping to take it over, potentially bringing back the lido for year-round outdoor swimming.

Non-profit organisation Heritage Lab Ramsgate said its in “early discussions” with a developer to create an outdoor swimming complex at the site, which it hopes would “help re-establish Ramsgate as a distinctive coastal destination”.

A spokesperson for Heritage Lab Ramsgate said: “Thanet has a thriving sea and open-water swimming culture, with people of all ages swimming year-round for wellbeing, connection and community. Outdoor swimming is no longer niche – it’s part of a wider shift in how people travel and spend time at the coast.

“When combined with elements such as saunas, cafés and social spaces, an outdoor pool can become something more than a place to swim — it can be a year-round destination that locals and visitors return to again and again.

“The former Marina Bathing Pool site offers a rare opportunity to reinstate a high-quality outdoor swimming facility in a location that has been associated with leisure and seaside holidays since the mid-1930s.”

A Facebook post showing potential plans for the site received a number of positive comments, with one saying: “Brilliant idea- kudos to the person/persons who conceived this project. It makes perfect sense to restore what once was a vital part of the town.” Others shared fond memories of the original lido, and one commenter said: “Used to spend all day in the old marina pool when it was there. Mum never saw us from 0900 until about 1730.”

However, one comment questioned the feasibility of the project, asking: “But would people use it? Did it originally close for lack of use? Like when people try to reopen village pubs and it struggles and struggles, many different landlords come and go eventually they close again. Not all but most. Personally I’d like to see this happen but I doubt I’d actually use it. Good luck I say.”

A report is due to be submitted to Thanet District Council ahead of a February 26 meeting recommending a marketing exercise which will invite proposals from a range of parties who may be interested in the site. The council previously explored transforming the site for leisure use.

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A spokesperson for Heritage Lab Ramsgate added: “If a scheme were to progress, it would need to be developed responsibly and in close consultation with local residents, with careful attention paid to affordability, accessibility and ensuring the benefits are widely shared.”

The non-profit has also nominated the site to be designated an Asset of Community Value (ACV), which prevents the asset owner from selling it for up to five years, unless the nominating group has a chance to bid for it. Giving the car park ACV status will also give locals more of an opportunity to formally have their say over what happens to the site.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

A MUCH-LOVED family theme park has reassured Brits that it will still reopen to the public, despite entering liquidation last week.

Brean Theme Park in Somerset claims to be the ‘biggest free-entry theme park’ in the UK.

However, last week The Gazette – the UK’s official public record – published ‘resolutions for winding up’ for the company, meaning that it must cease trading and in other words, close.

However, in a turn of events, the theme park is now under a new organisational structure and is preparing to open in just weeks.

Peter Mainwaring, general manager, said: “We are working hard behind the scenes and will reopen for the 2026 summer season from Easter.

“Although the group structure has changed, our loyal visitors will still enjoy the same park, the same team, and the same great day out.

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The message also told fans to keep an eye on social media for updates on the park.

He added: “For clarity, Brean Theme Park is not owned by Unity Holidays.

“We operate as a fully independent business and lease land from them.

“We look forward to continuing to work together.

“Preparations are underway and we can’t wait to welcome you back very soon.”

Many excited fans also took to social media to express their happiness at the news.

One said: “This is good news. My children were quite upset to hear it may close.

“I will definitely be coming for our annual visits.”

Another added: “Brilliant news, that’s defo now been added to my list to visit ASAP and support.”

A third commented: “Aw what a relief – my kids look forward to going every summer holidays and other times when we can.

“They were gutted to hear the sad news last week but [are] thrilled now.”

Brean Theme Park originally opened back in 1946 as a campsite and today is home to over 40 rides including indoor and outdoor rollercoasters, carousels, crazy boats and dodgems.

It even has a ghost train, which according to the attraction’s website, is the best in the UK.

The park is usually open seasonally between March and October.

And even though entry is free, each ride costs a certain amount of credits which can be bought when you arrive at the attraction.

In other theme park news, here is the UK’s strangest (and coolest) theme park, which launches a new ‘crazy trikes’ attraction for 2026.

Plus, world’s first Paw Patrol land opens at UK theme park in weeks – here’s what it’ll look like.

I WAKE up to what sounds like thunder shaking the walls of my hotel room.

As I open a porthole-style window, a rollercoaster roars past, just yards from my face.

Not your average wake-up call.

But nothing about this place is average – I’m in Rookburgh, a gritty, smoke-filled steampunk world inside Phantasialand, which is one of Germany‘s most impressive theme parks.

This place, in Bruhl near Cologne, is famous for its attention to detail, next-level rides and the kind of immersive lands that make you feel like you’ve stumbled into another world.

And that doesn’t stop at the rides – even the accommodation is part of the show.

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I’m staying in the Charles Lindbergh Hotel, a retro-futuristic airship terminal.

Wrapped around the hotel like a giant steel snake is F.L.Y. – the world’s only launched flying rollercoaster.

What really makes it unique is the way in which you board.

You are strapped in while the track is on its side, almost like a sideways train.

Then, as you roll out of the station, the seats slowly rotate and the track shifts above you, flipping you into a face-down ‘flying’ position.

There’s no slow climb, just a powerful launch that catapults you face-first through tunnels, over rooftops and past steamy vents and water features that feel just inches away from your feet.

As you step out of Rookburgh, you’re greeted by the park’s entrance zone, named Berlin and it couldn’t feel more different, with quaint streets, fancy facades and a classic carousel.

You’ll find ice-cream parlours, food carts and flower-lined walkways, with plenty of seating if you need a breather.

Once you’re feeling ready for some more adrenaline-inducing rides, head over to the adjoining Mexico zone.

Mariachi music drifts through the air and the main attraction here is Chiapas – a log flume that is themed on a lost Mayan world.

It looks like a family ride but don’t be fooled.

There’s a 53-degree drop, which is one of the steepest of its kind in the world and then there’s a mix of tunnels, waterfalls, twists and turns so you never know what’s coming next.

Next door is the Talocan ride, which is even more intense.

It’s a Top Spin ride set in a Mayan temple, with fire blasts and water bursts all around you.

Just a short walk from the Mexico zone is the land of Klugheim, a village carved from rock.

It’s dark and moody, and home to what is considered to be one of the world’s best rollercoasters, called Taron.

With two powerful launches, it throws me straight into high-speed twists and tight turns, hugging the ground and darting along at speeds of up to 73mph.

Just around the corner from the jagged rocks of Klugheim is the Mystery zone – a medieval fantasy world with stone towers and crumbling castle walls designed around a forest theme.

The main draw here is Mystery Castle, an indoor drop-ride built into an ancient fortress.

It’s dark inside, with flickering lights and echoing sounds.

Once I’m strapped in, I’m launched upward with serious force and then suddenly dropped without warning.

It’s intense and over quickly, but terrifying while it lasts.

I jump on the neighbouring River Quest ride next, which features wild rapids with a twist.

Instead of you slowly bobbing around, an elevator platform takes your raft high up into a tower before plunging you downwards into dizzying drops gushing with water.

I dry off while exploring the nearby Wuze Town, which is part of the mystical Fantasy area and filled with rides for all ages.

The standout attractions here are Winja’s Fear and Winja’s Force, which are two spinning coasters running side by side but with different layouts.

They twist, turn, tilt and spin at random with sections of the track that suddenly drop mid-ride.

Before leaving the park, swing by Deep in Africa, which has a jungle theme set to a drumming soundtrack with dusty terrains and exotic plants.

This area is home to Hotel Matamba.

Built more for families, this lodge has tribal decor and views over Black Mamba – an inverted coaster hidden among foliage that hugs the scenery so tightly it feels as if you might hit it.

If you’re after a more upmarket stay, consider Hotel Ling Bao – an impressive Chinese temple-styled hotel with sit-down restaurants serving authentic noodle dishes.

It borders the gorgeous China Town, my favourite area of the park.

With red temples, koi ponds and hanging lanterns, it offers a lovely, calming break away from the crowds.

Because of the amazing theming throughout Phantasialand, you don’t just travel around the world, you travel through time.

One minute I’m flying around a steampunk airfield, the next I’m spinning through a medieval fantasy world or diving into a jungle temple.

In just one day, it felt like I’d done six holidays‘ worth of exploring and all without ever leaving the park.

Ryanair has direct flights from the UK to Cologne from £19.99 one-way.

Trains run regularly to Bruhl, with a shuttle bus to the park or a taxi takes under 30 minutes from Cologne Bonn Airport.

One-day tickets start from £27 for adults, £26 for kids aged four to 11 and free for children under four.

On-site hotels include Charles Lindbergh (short-stay cabins), Matamba (family-friendly), and Ling Bao (high-end).

Rooms start from €150 (£130) per night and packages include park entry.

In other theme park news, the UK’s ‘largest free-entry theme park’ at risk of closing forever.

Plus, the UK’s strangest (and coolest) theme park launches new ‘crazy trikes’ attraction for 2026.

One question has bothered Martin Ludlow in his decades as a concert and event promoter in Los Angeles. In a city packed with excellent jazz musicians, and a century of history with the genre, why is there no local equivalent of the massive festivals that cities like Montreal, New Orleans or Montreux, Switzerland, have built? One where the music transforms clubs, restaurants and parks across the city for nights on end?

This summer’s inaugural LA Jazz Festival in August will be the biggest push in a generation to build that here. Ludlow’s event — which melds his passion for jazz with the logistics muscle of his former life as a city councilman and labor leader — hopes to draw 250,000 fans across the city for a month of concerts culminating in a stadium-sized show on Dockweiler Beach. It will be one of the largest such events in the world, and the biggest Black-owned fest of its kind.

“This festival is intended to lift up our ancestors that came to this country in bondage, terrorized, brutalized,” Ludlow said outside City Hall on Wednesday. “It’s also about celebrating the end to those last bastions of Jim Crow racism, the days we were denied access to public drinking fountains, public swimming pools and public beaches. From the beginning of this journey, we’ve been very intentional about telling the narrative of that human rights struggle called Jazz.”

Flanked by Mayor Karen Bass, City Council members Heather Hutt, Traci Park and Tim McOsker, and jazz figures including Ray Charles Jr. and Pete Escovedo, Ludlow promised a galvanizing occasion for L.A.’s local jazz scene and the city’s wobbly tourism economy. That jazz scene has welcomed new investments like Blue Note L.A., and lamented beloved clubs like ETA closing.

This festival, however, hopes to be more on a scale with forthcoming mega-events such as the World Cup and the Olympics. The 25-day event in August will sprawl all over the region, with free park concerts in all 15 council districts, and 150 late-night shows at clubs and restaurants across the city. A Caribbean street fair highlighting the African and Latin roots of jazz will hit El Segundo, along with guided tours of historic Black coastal sites like Bruce’s Beach and Inkwell beach.

The fest culminates in a two-day concert on Dockweiler Beach that hopes to draw 40,000 fans a night. While a lineup is still in progress, the scope of Ludlow’s ambition is formidable — the fest will ban fossil fuels from its footprint, and earned a strong vouch from the California Coastal Commission. For decades, the Playboy Jazz Festival (now the Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival) was the defining event for the music in Los Angeles; this could eclipse it several times over.

“Martin, I’ve been on this 15-year journey with you. Through all of the ups and downs, I’m so excited this is the year,” Mayor Bass said at Wednesday’s event at City Hall debuting the festival. “This is the Los Angeles that will welcome the world. One of the best things we have to offer is all of our culture.”

Ludlow is a colorful figure in Los Angeles politics, a former council member and L.A. County Federation of Labor executive who pleaded guilty to misappropriating funds in 2006. He’s since delved deep into community activism and embarked on a successful third act as a concert and event promoter, throwing socially-conscious events with his firm Bridge Street, which has produced shows for Stevie Wonder, The Revolution, Sheila E and Snoop Dogg along with civic events like the ceremony renaming Obama Boulevard in Los Angeles.

“During this journey, you can only imagine there’s a lot of highs and a lot of lows,” Ludlow said. “When you have those lows, you want a friend that really can lift you up.” He had plenty of them onstage with him Wednesday announcing what could be a new flagship event for jazz in Los Angeles.

“These are our homelands.”

“We are still here.”

The statements are objectively true: The Timbisha Shoshone have lived in what’s now popularly known as Death Valley for thousands of years. And they still live there, in a small village inside the national park that has about 30 full-time inhabitants.

In 2000, Congress officially recognized these two facts in the text of the hard-fought Homeland Act, which transferred nearly 7,800 acres of land, including the village site, back to the Timbisha Shoshone.

But federal officials have now taken issue with those seemingly innocuous sentences, according to Mandi Campbell, tribal historic preservation officer for the Timbisha Shoshone and a resident of the village.

The rationale? Orders from President Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum directing the National Park Service to review interpretive materials for content that the administration feels “inappropriately disparages Americans.”

Only certain types of Americans, as it turns out: The executive order also has been cited in a lawsuit by the city of Philadelphia as the presumptive reason the NPS removed an exhibit on enslaved people from Independence National Historical Park.

Participants take time out for a photo during a march organized by the Timbisha Shoshone to mark the 25th anniversary of the Homeland Act.

(Kim Stringfellow)

And it’s prompted Lowell National Historical Park in Massachusetts to stop showing films about women and immigrant textile mill workers, according to the New York Times, which also reported that plaques referencing climate change have been removed from Muir Woods National Monument in California and Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park in South Carolina.

On top of that, Trump officials recently ordered the removal or editing of signs and other materials in at least 17 national parks in Arizona, Texas, Colorado, Utah, Montana and Wyoming, The Washington Post reports.

Back to Death Valley — a name that, by the way, members of the Timbisha Shoshone have never liked. Campbell told me that a celebration of the Homeland Act’s 25th anniversary that took place Friday at the national park’s Furnace Creek Visitor Center was supposed to include the unveiling of updates to its interpretive exhibit. The tribe had planned to place in a display case earrings and a medallion that members once gifted to former park Superintendent J.T. Reynolds to mark the passage of the act, along with some descriptive language, she said.

Ahead of the event, the Park Service submitted the additions to its parent agency, the Interior Department, for review. Campbell said that agency officials replied that not only could the new exhibit not include the new phrases “these are our homelands” or “we are still here,” but that similar language that’s been on display since 2012 would also be placed under review.

Interior Department spokesperson Elizabeth Peace said this is not true. “The Department has a long-standing history of working closely with tribal partners as part of exhibit development and review, and the park was never told they could not use that specific language or phrases,” she wrote in an email.

Peace went on to explain that although the new exhibit is under review pursuant to the executive and secretarial orders — both titled “restoring truth and sanity to American history” — the department hasn’t made any final decisions.

The review, according to Peace, is meant to ensure that parks tell “the full and accurate story of American history,” which includes addressing enslaved and Indigenous people, “informed by current scholarship and expert review, not through a narrow ideological lens.”

So, the 25th anniversary celebration went ahead without acknowledging the ongoing debate about the new exhibit.

There was a march from the village to the visitor center in which tribal members walked behind a banner that read, “We are still here,” which, Campbell said, was meant to echo a protest staged on Memorial Day in 1996 in which the Timbisha Shoshone demanded the restoration of their homelands after negotiations with the federal government broke down. That rally was widely credited with restarting the talks that eventually led to the passage of the Homeland Act.

Three decades later, the struggle continues. “Why do we still have to fight to be heard?” Campbell wondered earlier this week. “We weren’t even in history books. And we still can‘t tell our story. When do we get our chance?”

Despite the recent controversy, the tribe has a good relationship with the Death Valley-based NPS officials, Campbell said, and she’s confident they’ll be able to work through whatever happens next together.

After Friday’s march, tribal council members and park officials gave a series of speeches at the visitor center saluting their strong partnership and all the work that it’s taken to get to this point. Then they took pictures and ate cake.

More recent land news

If you’re a regular reader of this newsletter, you probably are aware of how lawmakers have been using the Congressional Review Act, which enables Congress to overturn recent federal rules with a majority vote, to revoke specific Bureau of Land Management plans that limit mining and drilling in specific places. This was unprecedented until last year but has since been used to throw out BLM plans in Alaska, Montana, North Dakota and Wyoming.

Now, a decision by the Government Accountability Office has cleared the way for Congress to throw out the BLM plan for Utah’s Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, which protects the land from mineral extraction, limits grazing and prioritizes conservation. Experts expect Republican Rep. Celeste Maloy or another Utah member of Congress to introduce a bill to do so this year, according to Caroline Llanes of Rocky Mountain Community Radio. If it passes, it would mark the first time the act has been used to roll back protections in a national monument.

Four former U.S. Forest Service chiefs are speaking out against the agency’s move to repeal the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. The 2001 rule protecting 58 million acres of national forests from road building and logging was supported by both political parties, and is needed to protect sensitive wildlife and maintain clean drinking water, argues an op-ed published in the Hill.

The Forest Service has revised its oil and gas leasing rules to “streamline” the permitting process by replacing parcel-by-parcel environmental reviews with a broader review that can sometimes cover millions of acres, reports Jake Bolster of Inside Climate News. Environmental groups told Bolster that the move will increase the likelihood that the agency misses sensitive habitat when deciding where to allow drilling.

Some environmental advocates are concerned about a new order from Interior Secretary Burgum that seeks to expand hunting and fishing access on federal public lands. “It flips conservation on its head and treats wildlife protection as the exception,” said Michelle Lute, executive director of nonprofit Wildlife for All. Others say the directive is more of a statement of values than something that will result in drastic changes on the ground. “It’s a nice nod to the hunting and angling community that acknowledges ‘we know these areas mean a lot to you,’” said Ryan Callaghan, president and chief executive of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.

A few last things in climate news

Much has been made of a record-setting rainy season that’s helped lift California out of drought. But an extraordinarily warm January has left the snowpack across the Sierra Nevada and much of the Western U.S. far smaller than usual, Times water and climate change reporter Ian James writes. That means more hard times for the snowmelt-fed Colorado River, which provides water for farms and cities across seven states.

A federal judge recently ruled that a wind project off the coast of New York state can go forward — the fifth time a court has ruled against the Trump administration’s efforts to halt major offshore wind projects, write Jennifer McDermott and Alexa St. John of the Associated Press. Meanwhile, the administration has also been stymieing solar and wind energy projects on land by halting or delaying once-routine federal approvals, find Brad Plumer and Rebecca F. Elliott of the New York Times.

Peninsular bighorn sheep seeking to migrate back and forth across the California-Mexico border, as they’ve long done, are now being hampered by razor wire installed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the Jacumba Wilderness, according to our wildlife and outdoors reporter Lila Seidman. Similar scenarios are playing out across the Southwest, where the 1,954-mile border cuts through the habitat of more than 80 threatened and endangered species.

This is the latest edition of Boiling Point, a newsletter about climate change and the environment in the American West. Sign up here to get it in your inbox. And listen to our Boiling Point podcast here.

For more land news, follow @phila_lex on X and alex-wigglesworth.bsky.socialon Bluesky.

A POPULAR family-run theme park is at risk of closing forever after it was forced into liquidation.

Brean Theme Park in Somerset originally opened back in 1946 as a camp site and later grew, but soon will close for good.

The theme park, which calls itself the ‘UK’s largest free-entry theme park’, has over 40 rides – which include indoor and outdoor rollercoasters, a ghost train and carousels.

According to The Gazette, the UK’s official public record, the theme park has gone into liquidation, with Nicholas Stafford of Hazlewoods LLP appointed as liquidator.

On February 4, ‘resolutions for winding-up’ were published in The Gazette.

It states: “NOTICE IS GIVEN that the following written resolutions of the above-named Company, were passed on 28 January 2026 as a Special resolution and Ordinary resolution respectively:

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1. That the Company be wound up voluntarily
2. That Nicholas Stafford (IP No: 27270) of Hazlewoods LLP, Staverton Court, Staverton, Cheltenham, GL51 0UX be appointed Liquidator of the Company.”

This essentially means that the company must cease trading and in other words, close.

A spokesperson has confirmed to Burnham-On-Sea.com that Brean’s Unity Holidays and Brean Splash, Brean Play and Brean Gym will be unaffected.

No official date for the closure has been announced yet but currently on the website it says the park is still set to open as usual on March 14.

The House family originally purchased the land of the theme park in 1946, with it first being a camp site.

In the 70s, it expanded to include a golf course, swimming pool, bars and a bowling alley.

Most of the rides then came in the 80s.

The park is usually open seasonally between March and October.

While entry is free, each ride costs a different amount of credits which can be purchased when you arrive.

Many people have taken to social media to share their sadness on the news.

One person said: “Aww that will be missed by a lot of people , Brean isn’t the same.”

Another added: “That’s a shame kids loved it up there.”

Brean Theme Park has been contacted for comment.

In other theme park news, the world’s first Paw Patrol land is set to open at a UK theme park in weeks – here’s what it’ll look like.

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Kristen Stewart fears the death of classic Hollywood cinema.

As the actor-turned-director drove through the streets of Los Angeles and saw beloved local theaters replaced by major retail chains, she decided to help save theatergoing in the city that started it all.

So she bought a historic movie theater in L.A.

Stewart purchased and is restoring the Highland Theatre, a cultural landmark that once hosted vaudeville acts.

“When people are desperate, they start doing desperate things,” Stewart said in an interview with Architectural Digest. “I think buying this theater feels a little desperate in like the most beautiful way.”

The theater shut its doors nearly two years ago — less than a week short of its 100th anniversary. The owner, Dan Akarakian, told The Times in 2024 that the theater was unable to recover economically from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Everything that’s already living here is so beautiful. It just needs to be like taken care of,” Stewart said. “I mean, the place is falling down. We definitely need like a lot of help, but it’s worth it.”

The local film and TV industries in L.A. were struggling long before wildfires that ravaged the city early last year dealt another blow, halting production and threatening the homes of stars and crews alike.

Stewart, who first achieved international success with her role as Bella Swan in the “Twilight” saga, said movie theatergoing is becoming a lost art, as “people are watching movies on their tablets and their TVs and likely watching a couple of things at once.” She and her peers struggled to get movies off the ground.

Stewart hopes the theater can become “a space that families can go and that also filmmakers can go and so we can kind of be in service of each other,” she said. “We can be in actual communication with people and not cut off from each other.”

The three-story building has theater rooms and venue space, ideal to host screenings and public community events, she said.

The theater was designed by architect Lewis Arthur Smith, known for other local theaters like the Vista in Los Feliz and El Portal in North Hollywood.

“It’s an opportunity to make a space to gather and scheme and dream together,” Stewart told AD. “This project is about creating a new school and restructuring our processes, finding a better way forward.”

Stewart’s effort to save local cinema comes on the heels of a coalition of filmmakers, led by “Juno” director Jason Reitman, purchasing the 93-year-old Village Theater in Westwood in 2024.

Oscar-winning writer-director Quentin Tarantino bought the Vista, also designed by Smith, in 2021. The theater reopened its doors over two years later.

Stewart, who was raised in the San Fernando Valley, has been a longstanding advocate of the L.A. community. She works closely with the Downtown Women’s Center, which provides housing to homeless women.

The actor decried the lack of stories by and for women in Hollywood during her keynote speech at the annual Academy Women’s Luncheon in November.

“I absolutely f— love this city,” she said. “I like the spaciousness. You can decide how you want to fill it.”

AT Diggerland you can forget classic fairytale castles and rollercoasters because this one-of-a-kind theme park has none of that.

What it does have is plenty of JCBs, tractors and dumper trucks that kids can drive around themselves – which makes it arguably the strangest… and best day out for a family.

The theme park, which has four sites across the UK, will reopen on February 14, 2026 – just in time for half-term digging fun.

Diggerland is where kids can drive and operate real construction machinery – something they can’t do anywhere else.

They can use them to dig for treasure, navigate mini-tractors, and get spinning on the Spin Dizzy ride.

There’s also a tractor ride, safari adventure course, and kids can even use mini-excavators to play hook a duck.

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And new for 2026 is the Crazy Trikes attraction – three-wheeler bikes that are designed to make OTT spins.

Diggerland says of the experience: “Buckle up and unleash your inner dare-devil as you spin, twirl, and whirl in every direction imaginable in our new Crazy Trikes.

“Spin into doughnuts like a pro or cruise at superb speeds.”

Diggerland is running a very limited-time special offer during February half-term.

Families can buy two standard general admission tickets on the day of their visit for £39.50pp and get two more tickets completely free.

So, a family of four can enjoy a full day of digger fun for £79.

Just make sure to present the voucher (found online) on arrival – and note that you can’t use this on pre-booked tickets.

The offer is valid only during February half term, on days Diggerland is open between February 14 and March 1, 2026 and is available at all four UK locations.

Lauren Nelson, Marketing Manager at Diggerland, said: “We’re so excited to be welcoming visitors back for our 2026 season, and we’re already planning to start the year with a bang.

“February half term is the perfect time for families to enjoy something a little different, and with our special offer plus the launch of the brand new Crazy Trikes attraction, there’s never been a better time to visit and create unforgettable memories together.”

‘Diggerland has to be seen to be believed’

The Sun’s Head Of Travel, Digital, Caroline McGuire, visited Diggerland in Rochester and here’s what she had to say…

“Diggerland has to be seen to be believed – and even then it’s quite hard to compute.

“We spent the day riding dumper trucks around a gravel pit, digging stones out of a hole with a full-sized digger and riding around a muddy concourse while seated in an enormous bucket.

“In fact, there are quite a few variations on each of those themes.

“You can dig for mud, “gold bricks”, stones or toy ducks. You can drive a dumper, take a digger safari, ride backwards in a bucket carousel – somehow, they’ve made 20 different rides from machinery.”

“If that doesn’t suffice, there are also plenty of coin- operated (you’ve guessed it) car and digger rides dotted around the place.

“With the exception of a couple of car attractions, everything comes straight off a construction site, and if you know any young kids you’ll know there lies the appeal.

“And if the weather is bad, there’s also an indoor soft-play area and bouncy castle next door.”

Altadena has never organized itself around a traditional civic center, like a city hall plaza or downtown square. Instead, this decidedly informal community has relied on an informal constellation of shared spaces — parks and playgrounds tucked into the foothills, popular mid-century libraries, an amphitheater carved into a slope, a handful of living room-like bars and cafés.

After last year’s Eaton Fire tore through town, incinerating community infrastructure and scattering residents across the region, the importance of such places has grown dramatically — not only as centers of gathering, but as sites of refuge, planning and healing. Thanks to a determined commitment from residents and officials, these communal sites are starting to return — in many cases better than before — revealing innovative thinking about the ways we can create and use community spaces.

Earlier this month, L.A.-based aid organization Community Organized Relief Effort, or CORE, founded by Sean Penn and Ann Lee, broke ground on one of the hamlet’s newest local gathering spots: the Altadena Center for Community. Designed by acclaimed Japanese architect Shigeru Ban (who will be receiving the 2026 American Institute of Architects Gold Medal Award later this year), the 1,600-square-foot building, located on a county-owned lot on Lincoln Avenue, adapts a prototype that Ban — who has been designing lightweight structures for disaster victims for more than thirty years — first employed in Onagawa, Japan, following the 2011 Tōhuku earthquake and tsunami.

The vaulted, wood-beamed space, supported on its flanks by shipping containers, is designed to be put up quickly, affordably and with minimal waste, said Ban, who estimates construction will cost about $300,000 and be completed in two to three months once permits are approved.

“Every move we make has to be very cost effective,” noted Ben Albertson, the local project manager for Ban’s firm.

The center can host workspaces, meeting rooms, mental health facilities and community events, but programming is still pending, based on an assessment of community needs, noted CORE co-founder Lee.

An architectural rendering of Shigeru Ban’s design for the 1,600-square-foot Altadena Center for Community, located at 2231 Lincoln Avenue. Construction began in January and is set for completion this summer.

(Shigeru Ban Architects / CORE)

“What are the gaps? What do they want to name it?” said Lee. The center’s open, flexible design, she added, will allow programs to evolve over time — inside and out — with the goal of accommodating markets, religious services, yoga classes and other types of support.

Local officials, particularly L.A. County Parks and Recreation, immediately started to address the dearth of places to congregate after the fires. While parts of Eaton Canyon still burned, parks staff organized sheriff-escorted site visits to assess damage and determine which spaces could safely reopen first, said Chester Kano, deputy director of the planning and development agency at L.A. County Parks.

In May, Loma Alta Park was the first major spot to reemerge with significant upgrades, funded in part by an outpouring of donations from local residents and businesses as well as philanthropic sources like FireAid, the L.A. Clippers Foundation and the L.A. Dodgers Foundation.

“There’s been so much trauma. I think just building back the way things were would be insufficient,” says Kano.

County crews first addressed widespread damage, then installed new play facilities — including Landscape Structures’ towering “Volo Aire” jungle gym, featuring three tunnel slides — as well as two refurbished baseball fields, a new computer lab and a renovated pool and gymnasium. Several local artists, including Victor Ving, Eric Junker and Katie Chrishanthi Sunderalingam, have painted colorful murals.

Four-year-old twins Noah and Luke Stafford, who had to evacuate during the Eaton Fire, play on new equipment at Loma Alta Park in Altadena.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The park addresses the need for communal gathering via a new cluster of colorful outdoor furniture known as the Alta Chat Space.

“People didn’t have anywhere to go,” says Kano. “They were meeting on their driveways, literally on top of ash and debris, bringing folding chairs.”

Perhaps the most significant transformation will be to Charles White Park, located a short drive from CORE’s future facility and named for the famed Altadena artist. Long a community focal point, the five-acre park is set to undergo a redesign thanks to a $5-million donation from the Walt Disney Company, and a $5.5-million outlay from California State Parks.

County Parks and Salt Landscape Architects are set to take the lead on the work. New facilities will include a play area and splash pad designed by Disney Imagineers, a community center (with meeting spaces and interpretive exhibits about White), pathways, bathrooms, a small amphitheater, a bronze of White and public art by White’s son, Ian White.

Ian White said his designs are still being finalized, but could include poetry, sculpture, landscape art, and information and quotes relating to notable Altadena residents, including artists, scientists and indigenous tribes.

“It will be a dramatic shift,” noted White. “I must admit every time we have a meeting about it, I’m excited about the potential.”

White is complimentary of Disney’s willingness to take input from the community, despite a flurry of concerns that arose last fall around the release of an early design sketch of the play area, depicting somewhat cartoonish, pinecone-shaped play structures that some locals felt didn’t reflect local identity.

“Disney’s been doing the work, trying to understand the legacy and history of Altadena,” said White, who recently hosted 17 Imagineers at his house. “I think there’s going to be an evolution of their design,” added Kano.

Challenges remain

Despite early victories, there are more than a few remaining “heavy lifts,” as Kano put it. The county has brought in about $60 million to restore parks damaged in the Eaton and Hughes Fires, but about $190 million is still needed.

Arguably no lift is bigger than Farnsworth Park, the beloved recreation space along Altadena’s northeast side. That facility, now largely overgrown and covered with opaque fencing, still needs electricity after the destruction of its power lines and an on-site utility building. Its centerpiece, the lodge-like Davies Building, was all but obliterated by the fire, and its amphitheater, while still intact, suffered notable damage.

A view of the closed and heavily damaged Farnsworth Park in Altadena, which needs about $69 million in repairs.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Thus far, the park — which needs about $69 million in repairs, said Kano — has only received $5 million from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy to build a healing and reflection garden along its west flank; and $3 million from the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy to rebuild a restroom and restore some landscaping and other related work.

Liz MacLean, a principal at Architectural Resources Group, a preservation-focused firm that has been advising L.A. County Parks about repairs to Farnsworth’s amphitheater, lived less than half a mile from the park. She and her family are still undecided on whether they will return to the area, making her memories of the park particularly poignant.

“It was a real destination for the community, tucked up in the hills,” noted MacLean. “They’d have a musical in the summer, and people would picnic outside of the amphitheater on the lawn. And every type of sport you wanted to do, there seemed to be a field for it. My daughters have had a bunch of events for their schools up there. Graduations, performances, meetups. The community would vote there. Boys and Girl Scout troops would have events in the banquet hall.”

Altadena’s two libraries, both spared from destruction, have borne outsized responsibility for picking up the slack from these losses, and have hosted community events and workshops for those hoping to rebuild. But starting Feb. 1, the skylit, greenery-filled Main Library will undergo a long-planned renovation and expansion that will put it out of commission for about the next 18 months, officials said. Updates will include access improvements, new mechanical and electric systems, a seismic retrofit, and space reconfigurations.

“There have been people who have said, ‘Please don’t close. What are we going to do?’” said Nikki Winslow, director of the Altadena Library District. “But this has been a long time coming. Our Main Library really needs a renovation.”

As a result, the smaller, recently renovated Bob Lucas Memorial Library and Literacy Center will host far more activity. The district has also installed a temporary satellite library inside a multipurpose room at Loma Alta Park. Stewart noted that the district is looking for more spaces — including the Altadena Community Center — to host events.

Ian White, standing by the sign for Charles White Park, is the son of the park’s namesake and is working on creating public art for the project.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

“We’ve become so dependent on all things virtual, but nothing can really replace the human connection, especially coming out of a disaster,” said Carolina Romo, director of the Construction and Asset Management Division of the Los Angeles County Development Authority, which is coordinating with CORE on its new center. “You can’t really address the psychological toll in a virtual environment.”

CORE’s Lee says that such spaces are particularly important in areas where digital expertise is less common. “There’s just so much bad information out there. You don’t know who to trust. So going to a physical space and seeing people that you know you can talk to can make all the difference.”

Rebuilding will take years, and many decisions remain unresolved. But the community, said Architectural Resources Group’s MacLean, needs something solid sooner: “There are things that were lost that were special to everyone. At the end of the day people just want their community back. They want to gather again.”

Before we see elephants at Elephant Valley in the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, we come face to face with destruction, only the wreckage is beautiful. A long, winding path takes guests around and under felled trees. Aged gray tree hunks form arches, for instance, over bridges that tower over clay-colored paths with hoof prints.

The design is meant to reorient us, to take us on a trail walked not by humans but traversed and carved by elephants, a creature still misunderstood, vilified and hunted for its cataclysmic-like ability to reshape land, and sometimes communities.

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“It starts,” says Kristi Burtis, vice president of wildlife care for the Safari Park, “by telling the story that elephants are ecosystem engineers.”

Elephant Valley will open March 5 as the newest experience at the Escondido park, its aim to bring guests closer than ever to the zoo’s eight elephants, which range in age from 7 to 36, while more heavily focusing on conservation. The centerpiece of the 13-acre-plus parkland is a curved bridge overlooking a savanna, allowing elephants to walk under guests. But there are also nooks such as a cave that, while not previewed at a recent media event, will allow visitors to view elephants on their level.

In a shift from, say, the Safari Park’s popular tram tour, there are no fences and visible enclosures. Captive elephants remain a sometimes controversial topic, and the zoo’s herd is a mix of rescues and births, but the goal was to create a space where humans are at once removed and don’t impede on the relative free-roaming ability of the animals by keeping guests largely elevated. As an example of just how close people can get to the herd, there was a moment of levity at the event when one of the elephants began flinging what was believed to be a mixture of dirt and feces up onto the bridge.

An aerial view of Elephant Valley at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, home to eight elephants.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

“Our guests are going to be able to see the hairs on an elephant,” says Kristi Burtis, vice president of wildlife care for the Safari Park.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

“Our guests are going to be able to see the hairs on an elephant,” Burtis says. “They can see their eyes. They can see the eyelashes. They can see how muscular their trunks are. It’s really going to be a different experience.”

Elephant Valley, complete with a multistory lodge with open-air restaurants and bars, boasts a natural design that isn’t influenced by the elephant’s African home so much as it is in conversation with it. The goal isn’t to displace us, but to import communal artistry — Kenyan wood and beadwork can be found in the pathways, resting spaces and more — as a show of admiration rather than imitation.

“We’re not going to pretend that we’re taking people to Africa,” says Fri Forjindam, now a creative executive with Universal’s theme parks but previously a lead designer on Elephant Valley via her role as a chief development officer at Mycotoo, a Pasadena-based experiential design firm.

“That is a slippery slope of theming that can go wrong really fast,” she adds. “How do we recognize where we are right now, which is near San Diego? How do we populate this plane with plants that are indigenous to the region? The story of coexistence is important. We’re not extracting from Africa, we’re learning. We’re not extracting from elephants, we’re sharing information.”

But designing a space that is elephant-first yet also built for humans presented multiple challenges, especially when the collaborating teams were aiming to construct multiple narratives around the animals. Since meetings about Elephant Valley began around 2019, the staff worked to touch on themes related to migration and conservation. And there was also a desire to personalize the elephants.

“Where can we also highlight each of the elephants by name, so they aren’t just this huge herd of random gray creatures?” Forjindam says. “You see that in the lodge.”

Two of eight elephants eat during an Elephant Valley preview.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

That lodge, the Mkutano House — a phrase that means “gathering” in Swahili — should provide opportunities for guests to linger, although zoo representatives say reservations are recommended for those who wish to dine in the space (there will also be a walk-up, to-go window). Menus have yet to be released, but the ground floor of the structure, boasting hut-like roofing designed to blend into the environment, features close views of the elephant grazing pool as well as an indoor space with a centerpiece tree beneath constellation-like lighting to mimic sunrises and sunsets.

Throughout there are animal wood carvings and beadwork, the latter often hung from sculptures made of tree branches. The ceiling, outfitted with colorful, cloth tapestries designed to move with the wind, aims to create less friction between indoor and outdoor environments.

There are, of course, research and educational goals of the space as well. The Safari Park works, for instance, with the Northern Rangelands Trust and Loisaba Conservancy in Kenya, with an emphasis on studying human-elephant conflict and finding no-kill resolutions. Nonprofits and conservation groups estimate that there are today around 415,000 elephants in Africa, and the African savanna elephant is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Water areas in Elephant Valley have been redesigned with ramps and steps to make it easier for the elephants to navigate. The hope is to inspire play.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Studies of the zoo’s young elephants is shared with the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in the hopes of delivering care to elephant youth to prevent orphanage. Additionally, the Safari Park has done extensive examination into the endotheliotropic herpes virus. “The data that we collect from elephants here, you can’t simply get from elephants in the wild,” Burtis says.

One of the two entrances to Elephant Valley is outfitted with bee boxes; bees are known to be a natural elephant deterrent and can help in preventing the animals from disrupting crops or communities. To encourage more natural behavior, the plane is outfitted with timed feeders in an attempt to encourage movement throughout the acreage and establish a level of real-life unpredictability in hunting for resources. Water areas have been redesigned with ramps and steps to make it easier for the elephants to navigate.

The view from Elephant Valley’s Mkutano House, a two-story dining destination in the new space at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

With Elephant Valley, Forjindam says the goal was to allow visitors to “observe safely in luxury — whatever that is — but not from a position of power, more as a cohabitor of the Earth, with as much natural elements as possible. It’s not to impose dominance. Ultimately, it needed to feel natural. It couldn’t feel like a man-made structure, which is an antiquated approach to any sort of safari experience where animals are the product, a prize. In this experience, this is the elephant’s home.”

And the resulting feel of Elephant Valley is that we, the paying customers, are simply their house guests.

A record fiscal quarter for Walt Disney Co.’s theme parks division was dampened slightly by a streaming aquisition and a protracted fight with YouTube, the Burbank media and entertainment giant reported Monday.

Disney recorded overall revenue of about $26 billion in the three-month period that ended Dec. 27, up 5% compared to the previous year. Disney’s income before income taxes totaled nearly $3.7 billion, a 1% jump from the same time period last year. Earnings per share were $1.34 for the quarter, down from $1.40.

Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said in a statement that he was “pleased” with the company’s start to the fiscal year and nodded at the transition ahead to a new CEO.

“As we continue to manage our company for the future, I am incredibly proud of all that we’ve accomplished over the past three years,” he said.

It was a big quarter for Disney’s experiences division, which includes its theme parks, cruise line and Aulani resort and spa in Hawaii.

The sector reported $10 billion in revenue, aided by a 1% bump in attendance at its domestic theme parks and higher guest spending. The launch of the new Disney Destiny cruise ship in November also helped boost operating income to $3.3 billion, a 6% boost compared to the previous year.

Disney’s box office success with billion-dollar hits like “Zootopia 2” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash” helped propel revenue for its entertainment division by 7% to $11.6 billion. But costs related to its acquisition of a majority stake in FuboTV, as well as higher marketing costs in theatrical distribution and streaming services affected the sector’s operating income, which declined 35% to $1.1 billion.

The dip in operating income from the entertainment sector took a toll on the company’s total segment operating income, which was down 9% to $4.6 billion. That was also partly due to Disney’s contract dispute last fall with YouTube TV, which lasted for nearly 15 days and resulted in a blackout of Disney channels.

The temporary suspension of Disney channels on YouTube TV took a $110 million toll on operating income within Disney’s sports division, which was down 23% to $191 million. Sports revenue for the quarter totaled $4.9 billion, up 1% compared to the previous year.

This huge park that’s 2.5 hours from the UK is already among the largest in Europe, and visitors arriving in 2026 will have two more thrilling experiences to enjoy including a one-of-a-kind ride

One of the largest theme parks in Europe, which is popular with Brits on holiday, has announced two huge new attractions for the summer season.

PortAventura World is already a vast theme park set in a popular part of Spain. The resort includes PortAventura Park, the main theme park, which is split into six worlds including China, Mexico, and even Sesame Street. There’s also the separate Ferrari Land, which is themed around the luxury car; and PortAventura Caribe Aquatic Park, a large water park which has a range of waterslides, a lazy river, and more.

The first new attraction will be found in Caribe Aquatic Park and is named Coral Bay: The Lost Legend. It’s set to be a 6,000 m² family area themed around a pirate bay that has risen from the depths of the water.

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At Coral Bay, visitors will be able to make a splash on a water coaster, which PortAventura claims will have a unique twist that’ll be a first in Europe. This is in addition to an adventure pool, featuring a fun obstacle course for kids to take on. The new area will also include more waterslides and new food and drink options for visitors.

The second addition is Makamanu Jungle: The Adventure Trek. The attraction will be added to the Polynesia area of PortAventura Park. Guests will experience exploring the deepest jungle, with secret walkways, hanging bridges, and obstacles and challenges for both “children and their companions”.

The adventure park will join existing rides in the Polynesia world, including Tutuki Splash, a water ride that’s popular on hot sunny days as it includes a cooling splash at the end, and Kontiki, a pirate ship-style ride with a Tiki theme.

PortAventura confirmed that both attractions will open to the public by summer, although it didn’t give exact dates.

PortAventura is close to the popular tourist town of Salou, and just a short drive from Reus Airport, which has seasonal flights to the UK from easyJet, Jet2, Ryanair, and TUI throughout the summer months. It’s also just under 90 minutes from Barcelona, and a popular day trip for those staying in the city.

If you want to spend longer exploring PortAventura, one option is to stay in the resort’s hotels, six of which can be found on-site and include unlimited visits to PortAventura Park. Packages also include one-day access to Ferrari Land, and discounted tickets to Caribe Aquatic Park, so you can enjoy all that this vast resort has to offer.

Four-star Hotel PortAventura is a popular option for guests as it offers direct access to the park through its Mediterrània area, home of Europe’s fastest rollercoaster, Furius Baco. Themed around a charming Mediterranean village, the hotel has its own pool, games room, and entertainment. Guests can also opt for half- or full-board stays, with buffets and an on-site restaurant.

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Another fun-themed hotel is the Hotel Gold River, which is close to the park’s cowboy-themed Far West area. Designed to look like a Wild West town, the hotel has its own saloon and an upmarket Victorian-style restaurant. It also has three pools open for the summer season, so you can cool off after a day exploring the park.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

DID you know there’s a place in the UK so dark that you can see planets, shooting stars, and even the Northern Lights.

There’s an observatory in Northumberland nestled in a huge National Park that’s set to be the ‘world’s best travel adventure’ for this year.

National Geographic recently revealed their ’20 travel adventures to book in 2026′.

And at the very top of the list is going on a ‘mini stargazing safari in Northumberland’.

The publication suggested that adventure-hungry Brits head up to Kielder Forest which has a huge public observatory and organises over 700 events a year.

Kielder Observatory is one of the best places to see the night sky as it sits in Europe’s largest Gold-Tier International Dark Sky Park – Kielder Forest.

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It’s also the third-largest protected Dark Sky reserve in the world.

The fact it’s unaffected by light pollution means you’re likely to see thousands of stars and the Milky Way on a cloudless night.

Through binoculars or observatory telescopes, visitors can sometimes see Andromeda Galaxy, planets and the Northern Lights.

Many visitors say the experience was “unbelievable” and “out of this world” with lots seeing them.

One added: “When the clouds eventually started to clear we were given the chance to use the telescopes and stay a bit longer after the experience had finished to see Jupiter and some stars.

“Absolutely brilliant night, would fully recommend it to anyone! And the hot chocolate is amazing…”

Tickets for the observatory start from £25 and it’s open all year-round.

There are other experiences in the surrounding areas for stargazing; the local Twice Brewed Inn country pub offers some too.

You can enjoy a two course meal before an evening of stargazing with astronomers from the Kielder Observatory.

There’s even a ‘stargazing, supper and slumber’ package which is tailored to guests.

For those who are keen to embrace the great outdoors, you can also pitch up at the ‘remotest campsite in England‘ which is Kielder Village Camping & Caravan Site.

The three-star site is right in the heart of the forest, so there’s no phone signal and very little Wi-Fi.

Facilities include a dish washing room, showers, hair dryer sockets, drinking water, washing machines and BBQ stands.

It’s dog-friendly too and there’s a children’s play area onsite.

There are pitches for tents, caravans, motorhomes, touring caravans and two family pods – these don’t have beds but are more weather-proof than tents.

The campsite will reopen to the public on March 27, 2026 with bookings available from February 1, 2026.

Rates start from £12 for a single occupancy tent, with two-man tents increasing to £20 per night – or £10 per person.

For more on the Northern Lights – here are the five best places to see the Northern Lights near the UK.

Plus, one Travel Writer spent the night in the UK’s biggest National Park with both stargazing and Northern Light spotting.

Here are the top 10 travel adventures to book in 2026…

Here are all the adventures you should book in 2026 according to National Geographic…

1. Stargazing Safari in Northumberland
2. Take a modern-day pilgrimage in Portugal
3. Conquer Slovenia in six days
4. Try forest bathing in Japan’s Kii Peninsula
5. Wallow in a warm mud bath in Italy
6. Get a change of scenery on a grief retreat
7. Sweat it out in an urban sauna in London
8. Soak with seaweed in Brittany
9. Take a football pilgrimage across South America
10. Play padel under the sizzling Spanish sun

This year’s Sundance felt marked by great uncertainty. Personally, I was never quite sure how to feel, as the many unknowns of next year’s move to Boulder meant that it was unclear how much this year was supposed to feel like the end of something or the start of a new beginning. I didn’t know just how mournful to be, though, as the festival marched along, it became clear there was a space for nostalgic reflections.

The first movie I ever saw at Sundance was Andrew Fleming’s comedy “Hamlet 2” in the Library Center Theatre. Which means it was 2008 and I was then an intrepid freelancer who talked my way into sleeping on a recliner at a condo rented by The Times until staffers trickled out and I eventually had the place to myself because of the vagaries of an extended rental agreement. Which is how I found myself, entirely unexpectedly, in a room interviewing all of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, who were in town for their tour documentary “CSNY/Déjà Vu.”

That sense of surprise and discovery — and in-person interactions that likely wouldn’t happen anywhere else — are what have brought me back to the festival every year I could manage since. It’s exactly why I have been a huge fan of the festival’s NEXT section, made up of films that don’t quite fit elsewhere in the program. A standout this year was Georgia Bernstein’s debut feature, “Night Nurse,” a film of assured poise about a young woman (a compelling Cemre Paskoy) who takes a job at a retirement home only to find herself drawn into a series of phone scams, erotic role play and psychosexual transference with one the clients. Recommending the film to colleagues feels a little like an HR violation, but the kinky undercurrents and unsettling emotions are worth it.

Cemre Paksoy and Bruce McKenzie in the movie “Night Nurse.”

(Lidia Nikonova / Sundance Institute)

Many conversations around the festival seemed to firmly center on “The Invite” and “Josephine,” but another film people consistently brought up was “Wicker.” Written and directed by Eleanor Wilson and Alex Huston Fischer, adapting a short story by Ursula Wills-Jones, the film takes place in an unspecified time and place: a sort of medieval-ish middle European village of the mind, in which an unmarried woman (Olivia Colman) asks a local basket weaver (Peter Dinklage) to make her a husband. That he comes out looking like Alexander Skarsgård sets the whole town into a tizzy. Nimble and inventive, with convincing special effects work, the film is a charming parable that continually finds ways to reset itself.

It is unclear just how planned it was, but there could have been no better film than “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” to be the final fiction feature to debut in the Eccles Theatre, one of the festival’s most storied venues. Character actor Noah Segan’s directorial debut, the movie is a warmly elegiac portrait of the city and the pain of recognizing when your time has passed. Led by a quietly commanding lead performance by John Turturro, the film also features Steve Buscemi and Giancarlo Esposito in supporting roles.

As the trio took the stage with Segan and other cast members after the film, it quickly became apparent how special it was to have those three actors there in that moment. Buscemi rattled off a quietly astounding number of films he has appeared in with “New York” in the title — “New York Stories,” “Slaves of New York,” “King of New York” — while Turturro spoke movingly about his relationship with Robert Redford, whose absence hung heavy over the entire festival.

John Turturro in the move “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.”

(MRC II Distribution Co. L.P. / Sundance Institute)

As Esposito began talking about what Sundance has meant to him over the years, his words took on a fierce momentum. He recalled when he first came to the festival in the ’90s, he was “ecstatic because it gave a voice to those who didn’t have a voice. … We didn’t come to sell a film to a big studio. We came to share our small movie with human beings that could really see themselves in a mirror on the screen.”

Of Redford, he added, “His vision is priceless. It’s the gem that we all hope for. It’s the juice of why we live. It’s the connection of why this movie works. It’s the love of what we do. This, to me, will stick with me for the rest of my life. My interactions with this man who started this festival will always be a beacon of light in my creative process.”

It was a beautiful and inspiring way to leave that theater for the last time and, in turn, leave Park City behind for a future that, while full of unknowns, will for now also hold the promise of new discoveries to come.