Universal Studios UK theme park gets go-ahead for development — and thrill seekers are in for a treat

Plans for a Universal Studios theme park based in the UK have floated about since at least 2023, and the government has now granted planning permission for the epic endeavour.

The Universal Studios UK theme park will be based in Bedford, around a 90-minute drive from London.

As the first bricks haven’t even been laid (and it’s to live on the site of a previous brickworks, apparently) NBCUniversal has not told us much of the fun stuff about its theme park plans yet. But we did get a tease earlier this year.

Universal Studios UK promises to be “unlike anything that exists in the UK,” throwing all kinds of shade on Chessington World of Adventures, Thorpe Park and co.

We’ve heard the largest rides could be up to 115m tall, which is massively higher than the Thorpe Park’s Stealth. It’s the tallest rollercoaster in the UK at the time of writing, clocking in at 72m high.

This even beats anything at Florida’s coaster heaven Busch Gardens, whose tallest ride is Iron Gwazi, at 63m tall.

Unsurprisingly, though, Universal Studios UK’s plans are unlikely to eclipse what we’ve seen across the US to date. Six Flags in New Jersey had Kingada Ka, a 139m-tall coaster that closed in 2024 to make way for potentially an even more impressive-scale rollercoaster due next year.

Taking on the big guys

Universal Orlando in Florida is split into eight “lands” based around the company’s properties — including Harry Potter, Dreamworks, Minions and The Simpsons — plus recreations of iconic parts of the US. Universal Parks are also home to Nintendo World areas.

We’re yet to hear whether the UK park will get all, or any of these. But you can safely bet at least some of the characters will appear on our shores — Harry Potter feels like a dead-cert.

NBCUniversal has released a concept image of the park, which depicts large rollercoasters, an open welcome plaza and a central lake area.

“Absolutely delighted to share with you that Universal Studios has got the green light - the Special Development Order has been granted and comes into force on the 12 January,” said Mohammed Yasin, MP for Bedford and Kempston, following the announcement.

A statement released earlier in 2025 indicated the plan is to hopefully open the park by 2031, so we’ll have to make do with Thorpe Park for the time being.

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