Credit: Jeremy Thompson, FlickrOne of the world’s oldest operating roller coasters is under scrutiny after a rider’s video appeared to show a mid-course track separation at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in the United Kingdom.
The clip, posted to TikTok on Thursday by a user identified only as Erin, shows her car on the Big Dipper tilted noticeably to one side, its wheels appearing to have come off the rail, while the rest of the train sat motionless in the low point between two of the ride’s signature hills. The footage also pans forward to show a section of track ahead of the train with what appears to be separated rail and disordered crossties.
Responding to a commenter who asked why her car was angled off to the side, Erin wrote that “as we were going down the track split slightly sending the last cart sideways,” adding that the split ended up “breaking all the rails up the way.” Because “the last cart was pulling along the track,” she said, the train “slowed down and we all went backward” before a following car struck hers.
See the video below:
never in my life going on a rollercoaster again
@erins.o09 never in my life going on a rollercoaster again. #abcxyz #fyp #blackpool #saxaphone
What We Know About the Big Dipper
Despite the alarming footage, the Big Dipper remains listed among Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s 10 operating coasters, alongside the park’s steel flagship, the Big One, which held the title of tallest roller coaster in the United Kingdom when it opened in 1994.
The Big Dipper first opened in 1923 and was reconstructed in 1934, extending its layout to the roughly 3,295-foot track guests ride today. It was built by Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters, Inc., and designed in part around the work of John A. Miller, regarded as one of the most influential roller coaster designers of the early 20th century. The ride reaches a top speed of about 56 kmph (35 mph), runs approximately three minutes per cycle, and has a stated hourly capacity of 672 riders. Blackpool Pleasure Beach markets it as “the ultimate woodie coaster” and notes that the original structure recently passed the century mark.
The coaster has a documented history of incidents. In 2009, Lancashire police investigated after two cars collided on the track, injuring nearly two dozen riders.
Social Media Reacts
The TikTok video quickly drew thousands of comments, with reactions split between alarm, dark humor, and pushback on both extremes.
Some commenters treated the footage as confirmation of long-held fears about the ride’s age and mechanical condition:
“This is why I can’t trust Big Dipper. I’ve been on it but never again.” — @ThemeParkEnthusiast
“Its also 103 years old, so its just another ride i cant put on my cc [coaster count].” — @maple.muse
“This place needs knocking down. Blackpool pleasure beach is a joke.” — @Scoobyblue555
Others speculated the incident could force the ride’s closure or removal entirely, with one user asking directly, “Is this the end for the big dipper?” and another writing, “That’s the big dipper being shut down now.”
A separate contingent of commenters pushed back, framing the stoppage as evidence that the coaster’s safety systems worked as intended:
“This is supposed to happen even at the slightest inconvenience — the rollercoaster is built to stop if even the littlest thing deems it unsafe… this just proves how safe rollercoasters actually are.” — @Ducky:b
“This is extremely rare to happen and coasters are completely safe.” — AJ
“Girl trust me don’t make the Big Dipper your example for all rollercoasters, it’s literally one of the oldest rollercoasters ever, you’ll be fine I promise.” — Soul slayer
Several riders also shared their own past experiences on the coaster, including at least one account of a prior collision:
“Me and my partner crashed on this last year, never ever catch me on this again!” — Elliemetty
The General Consensus
Across the comment section, the dominant sentiment is less about outright panic and more about resignation mixed with dark humor — a recurring “this tracks” reaction to a coaster many commenters already regarded as showing its age. A vocal minority is using the incident to call for the ride’s retirement or renovation, while a smaller but consistent group of self-identified enthusiasts is defending the Big Dipper specifically and roller coaster safety mechanisms broadly, pointing out that an automatic stop under uncertain track conditions is a safety feature functioning correctly rather than a failure.
Few commenters appear to have firsthand confirmation of what caused the apparent split, underscoring that most of the conversation is speculative pending an official statement from the park.
Have you ever been on a roller coaster that has derailed or broken partway through? Where were you and what happened? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!
