Hex - the Legend of the Towers

Hex - The Legend of the Towers is an attraction at UK theme park Alton Towers. It opened in 2000, and is not a "ride" as such, but features a walk through the genuine ruins of the Towers themselves, a cinema viewing of an old legend, and a ride-like finale.

The theme of the ride is loosely set around a legend that genuinely dates back to the nineteenth century, where the 15th Earl of Shrewsbury was traveling to the Towers, when a beggar woman approached the carriage, begging for money. After being disregarded by the Earl, the beggar placed a curse on the Earl, saying that every time a branch fell from the old oak tree, a member of his family would die.

Later that night, during the opening of the new banqueting hall, a freak storm rolled over the Towers. Lightning struck the oak tree, and a branch fell. Soon afterward, a member of the Earls family suffered an abrupt and inexplicable death. The next day, the Earl ordered the oak tree to be wrapped in chains so that a branch could not fall again.

While this is the end of the "genuine" story, the ride extends it to include the Earl dragging the fallen branch back to a secret vault within the Towers for study. We are told the vault has recently been rediscovered, and invites the public into the vault to view the branch.

Note: A second version of the legend exists in local folklore, where the role of the beggar is taken by a travelling fortune teller calling at the Towers during a banquet. The Earl turns the fortune teller away, who then puts the curse on the tree. The ride, however, sticks to the "beggar" version.

The attraction consists of four main parts, all of equal length. The main section of queue is housed in the Towers' armoury, where videos show a mixture of promotional materials for the attraction, and specially filmed documentary footage about the Towers and the legend of the chained oak.

The first main part shows guests a painting of the Earl of Shrewsbury, while a narration gives a brief introduction to the Towers and the Earl. Part 2 is a cinema showing a dramatization of the bride's main story, before guests are ushered through to the Octogan room, where special effects recreate a storm outside. The ride part of the attraction consists of two large seating benches facing the branch that riders have come to view. Dramatic music then plays as riders are given the illusion that they are turning 360 degrees in their seat around the walls and ceiling of the room. Designed to instill motion in the guests, some leave the attraction wondering if they have in fact been turned upside down, where as others realise that the seating area contains inadequate restraint devices for such a motion to occur, or notice the ride does not cause objects and hair to move due to gravity. Many riders have complained of motion sickness, dizziness or disorientation upon disembarking, but this is usually in good spirits and passes momentarily. Guests unwittingly leave the "genuine" Towers ruins, and enter a specially built corridor, heavily themed to ensure that the transition is not noticeable.