General Chat

CANCELLED CANCELLED CANCELLED LOL DUE TO LACK OF SALES OF TICKETS.

Teresa, Your story is awful,I can only Imagine the suffering you Father endured, I wish we could live in peace it would be a wonderful world thats for sure. Unfortunatly some people will never understand or care,its a sad state of affairs I agree, if only we could learn to respect eachothers faith,beliefs it would happen. Roxanne x

So who nudged this at 5.07am then? Mandy :)

I've spent a good while reading right through all the comments here, and these are my thoughts: At first i did think it sounded a bit exclusive, but then I realised that: Each year Alton Towers has the Ultimate Event, in May, for Christian teenagers, with Christian bands playing all evening. My kid's youth group usually go. For many years, until recently, a group of Christian churches hired out the Warwickshire Agricultural Showground each August for a week of worship, prayer, seminars and family fun. Ok, so you didn't have to have a certificate to prove you were a Christian but you certainly had to abide by the site rules. Last summer my sons went to Newday, a Christian youth camp which took over the Newark Showground and Notts County Football Club too. If someone had come to the stadium meetings and started a football match on the pitch, EVEN THOUGH that is what usually happens there, they would have been asked to leave! This summer they will be at the Uttoxeter showground...the kids have to sign a code of conduct- no smoking, drinking, foul language- but you can be sure plenty of that goes on when the ground is used for it's regular purpose! So I feel that when any group legitimately hire out a location they should be able to set the ground rules according to their own values. Anyone joining them should respect these standards. Denise

If I've read the thread correctly, no-one has sold anyone out. The wedding party is due to take place the day before the park is hired for the private party. The wedding couple had planned for their guests to enjoy Alton Towers the day after the wedding. There was no way for Alton management to second-guess this and in any event they still can - Islamic Leisure will sell a ticket to anyone who wants to buy one who will abide by the 'rules of the day'. They are entitled to impose those rules in the same way that any group who hires the whole park can. Re-reading the original post/news article, it seems to me that the whole article was biased from the start. Given that so many religious and other groups organise events for themselves all the time, I really don't see what the fuss is about. The facts that other countries are more restrictive or that christians have been killed by muslims or muslims have been killed by christians, are irrelevant. If a body count is wanted, many more muslim civilians have been killed by military personnel than the other way round. Having this kind of event in no way reflects on the plight of people, soldiers or civilians caught in a war zone. It's not Alton Towers being greedy, they are just doing what they do for all the rest of the days of the year - hiring out their facility to anyone who wants to pay the required fee.

I can't see the problem - Anyone can go in the park, but you have to respect the organisers wishes, just as if I invited you to my house or if I was organising a dinner out and had privatley booked a resturant and I asked that smokers go outside you/I would hope that you respected that. Alton towers haven't double booked anything - the wedding is the day before, the wedding couple haven't booked the theme park for the day after! they said they planned to use it, just as I may have planned to use it that day. It all boils down to respect at the end of the day, and I think that the muslims have a right to say please respect our religion, if you can do that then please join us for the day. Joanne

Linda, what's new? Big companies do it all the time if there is money to be made. Nothing new there.

Not judging by some of the replies on here Teresa sadly. I also think it says a lot that this 'story' was deemed newsworthy in the first place. It just stirs up bad feeling against Muslims and brings out the closet racists.

Roxanne, I feel very strongly on this one. My father spent 2 years in a Russian concentration camp in 1939. As a teenager he endured unimaginable horrors including knowing families had killed one of their other children to feed to the others in order they might survive. No food was available other than what they could find. I grew up in a community where many other people suffered similarly. Their crimes? They were Polish Jews, priests....In other words the population deemed them unacceptable. Have we not yet learnt not to judge others and live side by sidein peace?

As i said before that people should be able to say as they feel, my Moto freedom of speech, and i for one will, i dont think any of the comments made were offensive in anyway. And at the end of the day Alton Tower's have not done there self's any favours by double booking. Lil

Teresa, I couldent agree more:-)) If we lived in Saudi we would be whipped for wearing a Cross.

Did you know Jehovah Witnesses hire stadiums for their conventions? They have been doing this for years now. Catholics have retreats in hotels. Whether you agree or not with the Alton Towers holding a Muslim Day, isn't it great to live in a country where you aren't tortured or killed for your beliefs.

Definately not Shelli. carolx

David, I don't think I want to get drawn into this really. But I feel that is wrong of us then. Lorraine & Carol I used to work for the armed forces and I feel very strongly that they are out there fighting a war that is not really our war, they should not be there and the number killed is appalling. I feel very deeply for the families, I so wish they would bring our personnel home. But, just as not all Christians are good, so all Muslims are not bad. If we want peace in our country we have to respect their beliefs, and hope they will respect ours. They have said anyone can go to their day, all they ask is respect for their beliefs in what to wear. They have not asked people to wear the headscarf, just to be circumspect. And anyway, sensible wear for the rides is probably trousers which will be acceptable. As for not knowing, it is in all the papers and I am sure it will be on the TV news. I am sure if it was say The Round Table or The masons hiring it for an all male day nobody would have said a word. Ann Glos

I must add, That double bookings are common place in all walks of life., weddings, venues, coaches, kids parties, holidays...the list is endless. Regarding the wedding couple, their actual wedding day does not clash with the Muslim day the next day.(thats how ive read it anyhow) They can still get married and enjoy the rides on their wedding day.

i agree with live and let live... but would we be allowed to live and let live if we was in a Muslim country and wanted to hold a christian day???????????

Gillie,If you had read my other comments you will know that I have No objections, I really dont care I have far more Important things in my life to concern myself with. Its just a sign of the times Im afraid and this is the way some people feel rightly or wrongly. Live and let live is my moto. Roxanne

I agree completely with Old Crone. Ann, I don't think there would have been all this hooha if the party hadn't been Muslim:)

Thankyou Lorraine this is a very emotive issue. Carolx

I suspect that none of us would know anything about this if it had not been for the wedding party. I wonder how many times similar days have been booked before with no comment from anyone becauseit was not in the paper. It really is only one day out of 365. Ann Glos