As early as March 2000, Geoffrey Thompson began talking publicly about wanting to introduce resort accommodation at Blackpool Pleasure Beach.
The Big Blue Hotel at the Pleasure Beach that opened in 2003, was originally conceived as the Pleasure Beach Lodge. Concept art was shared in publicity material at the end of 2000.
The Lodge would have differed quite considerably from the Big Blue, not least because it was to be an American motel concept, with ‘room only’ accommodation across 118 bedrooms.