Attraction welcomes back visitors after six year closure

A Kent tourist attraction has re-opened with new owners after closing during the Covid pandemic.

The Canterbury Tales, based on the 13th Century stories of Geoffrey Chaucer, has been shut since April 2020, after welcoming tens of thousands of visitors from around the world since the mid-1980s.

Lewis Hunt and Mica Dougan have spent the past five years on the site at St. Margaret's Church in Canterbury city centre using their experience in special effects to redesign the attraction.

"We want it to be show-stopping and to show other visitor attractions what can be achieved using state of the art technology to create an immersive visitor experience," says Hunt.

Featuring the latest hologram technology, visitors can have the experience of going on a pilgrimage from Southwark to Canterbury, taking in authentic sights, sounds and smells along the way.

Visitors can also walk through rooms in groups personally tailored to their own needs, with the high-tech system altering the soundtrack and language as they go along.

Hunt said: "I think we set a new benchmarks here as we're showing that education can be done differently, (and) that museums can be done differently through experience, immersion and interactivity."

Mica Dougan thinks Geoffrey Chaucer would approve of the telling of his stories using this modern technology.

"He's the godfather of English literature so to be able to tell his famous tales to new generations is an honour.

"Our visitors can follow four of the stories within The Canterbury Tales as if they are walking alongside the pilgrims."

Alongside the hologram depictions of Geoffrey Chaucer and pilgrims featured in the famous tales are a cast of real-life actors to guide visitors through the experience.

Ashley Henderson, an actress who plays a barkeeper, said: "My role is all about making sure that the immersive experience comes to life and that every person that comes through feels as though they've actually been transported back in time."

"I hope we are as successful as the previous attraction on this site, bringing in tourists to the city from all over the world and still be open after 35 years," she adds.

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