Popular Clacton Pier attraction receives £40,000 revamp

The rooms in the Discovery Bay soft play area will be transformed with a new look, receiving some name changes and exciting additions. 

The revamp is part of a larger project and will eventually include a refreshed play frame and party room. 

The Discovery Bay will celebrate its sixth anniversary in July and will see its first significant change since the extra seating booths were installed in 2021. 

Work started before Christmas and will take several months to complete. 

Pier director Billy Ball said: “It involves carpentry by an in-house team and a large amount of hand-painting by a local scenic artist. 

“He is spending hundreds of hours to create an environment which will engage children and also provide a quiet room where they will be read stories by an animatronic owl.  

“There will also be a nod to the pier’s and town’s past. 

“Discovery Bay is open 364 days a year and we want it to be the best it can be for our customers.” 

The Wise Owl’s Library will take over from a shop and will be equipped with bean bags.  

The owl, which is being supplied by the company that provided the animatronic reindeer in Santa’s Grotto, will be reading four different stories. 

Clacton Pier’s cinema will be renamed “Flicks” and refurbished with an art deco theme, enhanced lighting and new films for visitors. 

The police station with the jail will also be retained with a new mock CCTV system, new props to play with and a repaint. 

As part of the revamp, an Ocean Theatre will be created in the old marine workshop where children will be able to perform, and entertainment can be staged in peak periods. 

It will include stage lighting and play microphones for youngsters to become creative. 

Oscars Children’s Disco will stay but revamped with updated lighting and sound system. 

Finally, the blank walls on the outside of the rooms will get scenes painted by the same artists who made the Jurassic Pier mural.