Paul Marden is joined by Professor Jim Deegan, founder of the National Centre for Tourism Policy Studies at the University of Limerick, and Ernesto Sánchez-Batista, a specialist in destination planning and digital transformation. They discuss how data is reshaping the visitor experience, using the Cliffs of Moher as a real-world case study. The conversation dives into the creation of the new Tourism Data Dashboard, how it’s being used to improve visitor flow, planning, and overall satisfaction, and what this means for the future of tourism and attractions.

We’re joined by the team behind Avon Valley’s FEAR Scream Park, a family-run adventure park with more than 35 years of experience, and now home to one of the UK’s most terrifying Halloween events. Winners of Best Event Entertainment at the 2024 Thrill Nation Halloween Awards, Avon Valley has mastered the art of blending immersive theatre, multi-sensory scares and spine-tingling attractions that keep thrill seekers coming back for more.

In this episode of Skip the Queue, recorded live at the VAC Conference 2025, industry experts Stephen Spencer from Stephen Spencer and Associates and Simon Jones from Navigate Agency join Paul Marden and Andy Povey to talk about the first Visitor Attraction Playbook, focused on building successful e-commerce gift shops, with special participation from Skip the Queue’s founding host, Kelly Molson. The conversation marks the launch of the Skip the Queue Playbook: The Retail Ready Guide to Going Beyond the Gift Shop — a practical resource designed to help attractions reimagine their retail strategies and create meaningful online experiences. They discuss how attractions can extend their visitor experience online using Stephen’s STARS model (Story, Team, Ambience, Recipients and Sustainability), while integrating systems, improving fulfilment and creating authentic, seamless shopping journeys. The episode highlights how e-commerce can become a natural extension of an attraction’s brand, offering new ways to engage audiences and generate revenue sustainably.

Recorded live at AVEA 2025 in Waterford, Ireland, this episode explores how attractions can integrate retail into the overall experience. Paul Marden chats with Jennifer Kennedy, Michael Dolan, Catherine Toolan, Máirín Walsh, and Dean Kelly about creating authentic, memorable gift shops that go far beyond souvenirs with insights on storytelling, sustainability, and the power of local products. Then Paul takes us to the conference floor to hear from Irish tourism leaders: Charles Coyle of Emerald Park on growth and AI-driven pricing, Suzanne Reid of Christ Church Cathedral on accessibility and a 1,000-year celebration, and Ray Dempsey of Jameson Distillery on inclusion and Dublin’s thriving visitor scene.

This week on Skip the Queue, we’re stepping into the turret and turning up the tension, as we explore one of the UK’s most talked-about immersive experiences. Our guest is Neil Connolly, Creative Director at The Everywhere Group, who have brought The Traitors Live Experience to life. With over 10 million viewers watching every betrayal, backstab and banishment on the BBC show, expectations for the live version were nothing short of murderous. So, how do you even begin to transform a TV juggernaut into a thrilling, guest-led experience? Let’s find out who’s playing the game… and who’s about to be banished…

In this episode, we chat with Choni Fernández, Chief Sustainability Officer and Customer at PortAventura World, Find out how it became the world’s first carbon-neutral theme park and a certified B Corp.

Insights from Day 3 of IAAPA Expo Europe featuring Zoos, Theme Parks and Water Slides

In this Episode, Jérôme Giacomoni, co-founder and Chairman of AEROPHILE - tells the story of how a simple idea, to “make everybody fly”, led to being the world leader in tethered gas balloons and immersive aerial experiences.

In this episode of Skip the Queue, host Paul Marden speaks with Andy Hadden, founder of the Lost Shore Surf Resort in Scotland. Andy shares the remarkable journey from his sporting background and early property career to discovering wave technology in the Basque Country, which inspired him to bring inland surfing to Scotland. Despite starting with no money and no land, Andy raised over £100 million and built one of the world’s most advanced inland surf destinations. He explains how Lost Shore Surf Resort combines world-class waves with a strong community focus, sustainability initiatives, and partnerships with schools and universities to deliver real social and economic impact.

We’ve well and truly kicked off season 7 in style as we welcome our first guest onto the show - IAAPA Board Chairman, Massimiliano Freddi. In this episode, Paul sits down with Massimiliano Freddi, the first Italian to ever hold the role of IAAPA Chairman in the association’s 107-year history. From his early dream of running a theme park to founding Wonderwood and shaping Italy’s unique attractions landscape, Massi shares how passion, storytelling, and a people-first mindset continue to drive his vision for the industry.

Skip The Queue is back for Season 7 and we’re announcing some big changes! Get ready for new hosts, a fresh new look, weekly content and find out where you can catch us live at events to be part of the action.

In this episode Paul Marden is joined by Sam Mullins, a historian, museum trustee and author. Sam gives Paul a tour of the SS Great Britain, while talking about the value that trustees bring to the charities and CEOs, as well as his magnum opus on the history of TfL.

Do you keep your competitors at arm's length, or do you work closely with the attractions that serve similar audiences? Today we're at the Association of Independent Museums and were returning to the topic of collaboration with best friend of the podcast, number 1 fan, and most listened to guest, Dominic Jones, CEO of the Mary Rose Trust.

Museums and Heritage Show is billed as the big catch up for the sector, and it never disappoints. In this episode recorded on the floor of the show, we meet a few podcast alumni as well as new voices from across the sector to hear about what happened at this year's show.

In this episode, recorded at Big Pit, the National Coal Museum, we take a look at Amgueddfa Cymru’s new approach to museum retail, which is emotive and has a strong feeling of place. Paul Marden is joined by Catherine Pinkerton, the Group Retail Manager at Amgueddfa Cymru - Museum Wales, and a number of different people who have taken part in the project.

The Millennium Commission was setup by the UK Government to celebrate the turn of the Millennium. Funded by the National Lottery, not only did it fund the Millennium Dome - now the O2 - it also funded many regional venues, including a number of Science Centres such as Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, which was the first major millennium attraction to open. In this episode, Paul Marden is talking to Mark Bishop, the CEO of Dynamic Earth, about those Millennium babies, and what the next 25 years might look like.

Longtime listeners may recall Paul Griffiths from Season 1, when he served as CEO of Painshill Park. He has recently relocated to Ras Al Khaimah to assume the role of CEO at Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village. In this episode, Paul Marden interviews Paul Griffiths to explore his first 90 days in the position, highlighting his experiences, key learnings, and achievements since stepping into this exciting new role in the Emirates.

In todays episode, Rubber Cheese and Skip the Queue co-Founder Kelly Molson returns to interview Andy Povey and Paul Marden about their latest project, Crowd Convert, which aims to rehumanise commerce for the visitor attraction sector.

Paul Marden was live at the Association of Cultural Enterprises View from the Top event at the Science Museum. This episode features Zak Mensah, Co-CEO of Birmingham Museums Trust, Amy Akino-Wittering, Head of Operations and Commercial at Young V&A, and Paul Sapwell, CEO of Hampshire Cultural Trust. They talk about how the cultural sector can innovate and pivot in order to thrive in these challenging times.

Paul Marden takes us inside the National Farm Attraction Network Conference 2025 at Blackpool Winter Gardens. With a packed agenda and exciting exhibitors, Paul chats live from the conference floor with key industry leaders about the latest trends and innovations shaping farm attractions. He speaks with Tom Pearcy, Chairman of NFAN & Controller of Fun at York Maze; Helen Bull, CEO of The Escapade Group; Stuart Beare, CEO of Tully’s Entertainment Group; Phil Pickersgill, MD of Innovative Leisure; Adam Goymour, MD of Roarr!; and Olly Reed, Marketing Director at Navigate.