A NEW seaside attraction has been put through its paces ready for its opening later this month.

Clacton Pier staff have been testing the Looping Star Roller Coaster ahead of the Halloween Festival at half term.

It will be the pier’s third new ride of the year as part of its 150th birthday celebrations.

The Looping Star – which has been brought in to replace Stella’s Revenge - has a three car train with 12 seats and includes a ten metre loop.

Pier director Billy Ball said that the trials have gone very well, and everything is set for a launch at the festival.

“We have run several days of testing and customers saw the Looping Star operating at the weekend,” he added.

“People were keen to enjoy the ride, but we had to explain it will be a few more days before it can open to the public and it will also need official certification by independent inspectors before families can enjoy this thrill attraction.

“There have been some frustrations in the delays of getting the Looping Star up and running – mainly due to additional workload as a result of storm damage sustained on Valentine’s Day 2020 – but hopefully the wait will be worthwhile.

“We have received many enquiries about when the ride will be in operation, and we are just about there now.”

The Looping Star will be one of the star attractions during an excitingly ghoulish Halloween Festival which promises a host of activities and fun for all the family.

It was bought from a park in Aberdeen in 2019 to replace the Stella’s Revenge which was sold to a leisure park in South America.

The fang-tastic Halloween Festival will run during half term from October 23 to October 31 with a free fireworks extravaganza on November 6.