The owner of Legoland and Madame Tussauds waxworks is poised to buy some of America’s best-known visitor attractions including SeaWorld and the Busch Gardens parks in Florida. Private equity group Blackstone is finalising a deal to buy Busch Entertainment Corp, the second largest amusement park operators in the US for between $2.5 billion and $3 billion.
The first stage of a £12.5 million upgrade to Britain’s iconic London Eye has begun with the removal of the first of its 32 capsules. The remaining capsules will be taken down for renovation one-by-one, with a dummy unoccupied capsule replacing them. The work is expected to be completed in time for the 2012 London Olympics.