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We try Alton Towers’ brand new Wicker Man wooden roller coaster that bursts into flames – with a Go Pro headset on

THE Sun rode the new Alton Towers Wicker Man roller coaster – with a Go Pro headset on to film the whole terrifying ride.

The wooden roller coaster bursts into flames as people ride it – making it quite the intense experience.

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The ride has a tunnel which is filled with flames - which is quite the experience

But if you're afraid of fire then this might not be the ride for you - although the flames can't actually harm the wooden roller coaster.

Once the roller coaster starts, you hear the words “let the ceremony commence” – a rather bleak message before the ride sets off...

But as it gets going it’s all thrills – especially when the roller coaster passes through a smoky, flame-engulfed tunnel.

The Wicker Man is the first wooden roller coaster to be built in the UK for 21 years and looks more like an art installation than a thrill-seeker paradise.

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seems to drift over a frame that gives the impression it could fall apart at any moment.

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While the ride isn’t particularly fast, the rumbling of the carts against the tracks is thrillingCredit: Mikael Buck
Wicker Man seems to drift over a frame that gives the impression it could fall apart at any momentCredit: Mikael Buck

We hurtle through the flaming Wicker Man three times, the only element of the ride to be constructed from steel and concrete rather than wood.

But before I know it, we’re plunged into complete darkness to find ourselves back where we started.

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As I’m released by the Beornen, an overhead booming voice warns me to escape.

I ride again, and again - and every time I notice something different about the movement of this ride that seems to keep on giving.

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If you’re looking for pure thrill, the Wicker Man might be tame in speed - but there’s something different and exciting about this carefully engineered wooden frame.

Wicker Man will officially

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Commenting on the launch,  John Wardley – the rollercoaster developer behind rides like Nemesis, Oblivion and The Smiler said: “What Alton Towers have done is created a fabulous, fast-paced, smooth, thrilling, exhilarating ride which is beautifully and imaginatively presented to a standard far higher than probably any other woodie in the world.”

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