Roller coasters
The Smiler is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, England. Manufactured by Gerstlauer, it opened to the public on 23 May 2013 as the world's first roller coaster to feature 14 inversions, a record it still holds. The ride is themed around a fictional psychological experiment called "Marmalisation," with a distinctive black-and-white optical illusion paint scheme and a soundtrack composed by British electronic band Orbital.
The Smiler is a Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter model with a custom layout, featuring a vertical lift hill and a beyond-vertical first drop of 90 degrees. Its 14 inversions include a cobra roll, a batwing, and a unique element called the "Smiler," which combines a heartline roll with a dive loop. The ride's trains seat riders in four-abreast rows, with lap-bar restraints only, and the track is painted in a black-and-white hypnotic spiral pattern that extends into the station and queue line.
The ride's theme revolves around the fictional "Marmalisation" process, a psychological experiment conducted by the Ministry of Joy. The queue line features a series of "smile stations" with interactive elements, and the ride's soundtrack, composed by Orbital, includes a spoken-word introduction by actor Stephen Fry. The experience culminates in a final brake run that passes through a darkened tunnel with strobe lighting and a giant smiling face.
On 2 June 2015, The Smiler suffered a serious accident when an empty train, sent into the station as part of a test, collided with a stationary train carrying passengers. The collision occurred on the first lift hill, causing the empty train to derail and strike the occupied train's rear car. Sixteen people were injured, with four suffering serious leg injuries, including one person who required a lengthy hospital stay.
The incident led to a prolonged closure and a criminal investigation by the Health and Safety Executive. Alton Towers' parent company, Merlin Entertainments, was fined £5 million in 2016 after pleading guilty to health and safety breaches. The ride reopened on 19 March 2016 after modifications, including a new anti-rollback system and a revised dispatch procedure. The accident prompted a review of ride safety protocols across the UK theme park industry.
Upon opening, The Smiler was marketed as the world's first 14-inversion coaster, surpassing the previous record of 10 held by Colossus at Thorpe Park. The record was verified by Guinness World Records, and the ride remains the only coaster to achieve this number. Its layout is notable for its compactness, fitting 14 inversions into a relatively small footprint within the park's X-Sector area.
Critical reception has been mixed. Enthusiasts praise the ride's relentless pacing and unique elements, but some critics note that the inversions can be disorienting and the ride's roughness increases over time. The Smiler has consistently ranked in the top 50 steel coasters in the annual Mitch Hawker poll, though it has never reached the top 10. Its theming and soundtrack have been widely lauded as among the best in the UK.
The Smiler's development was shrouded in secrecy, with the ride's name and theme only revealed in early 2013. The original concept included a "vertical lift" that was later modified to a standard lift hill due to engineering constraints. The ride's soundtrack, "The Smiler," was released as a single by Orbital, and the band performed a live set at the park's opening event.
A notable edge case is the ride's "smile" logo, which is a stylized version of the Cheshire Cat's grin from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The ride's queue line features a series of "smile stations" with interactive elements, including a "smileometer" that measures guests' smiles. The Smiler also holds a lesser-known record: it is the only coaster in the world with a "batwing" element that is immediately followed by a "cobra roll," creating a unique sequence of inversions.
The Smiler remains the only roller coaster in the world with 14 inversions, and its 2015 accident led to significant changes in UK amusement ride safety regulation.
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