How The Willy Wonka Glasgow 'Fiasco' Is Triggering Meme Fest On Social Media

Scores of children and their guardians were left angry and disappointed in Scotland after they spent a heft fee for a Willy Wonka-themed event that promised an “immersive experience” based on the film Wonka. The event, named ‘Willy’s Chocolate Experience’ was held at Whiteinch, an industrial area of Glasgow. The event was ticketed at £35, approximately Rs 3,600. According to The Guardian the event “promised giant mushrooms, candy canes and chocolate fountains, along with special audio and visual effects, all narrated by dancing Oompa-Loompas.” Instead, what the attendees got was a sparsely decorated warehouse with a tiny bouncy castle and some backdrops pinned on the walls.

The event, which took place on February 24, was so bad that it was cancelled mid-way after some families called the cops. The organiser, House of Illuminati, a London-based events company has since issued an apology and promised a refund.

The organisers are being accused of using AI-generated images to falsely advertise the event which misled the people. The dismal preparations of the event are now going viral. The whole incident has also inspired a meme fest on social media.

An X user shared the photos that organisers used to advertise the event vs the actual decorations at the venue and wrote, “apparently this was sold as a live Willy Wonka Experience but they used all AI images on the website to sell tickets and then people showed up and saw this and it got so bad people called the cops lmao.”

Another person commented on the whole fiasco and wrote, “i cannot put in words how enchanted I am by the Willy Wonka fiasco in Glasgow. cops called, kids crying in terror, all in an abandoned warehouse. this is the organic esoteric horror we’ve been missing for ages. a pure lust for chaos no multimillion dollar business could recreate.” An X user wrote, “the funniest part of the willy wonka thing is that if it reopened this weekend it’d sell more tickets than it ever did.”

Paul Connell, an actor who was hired by the organisers to entertain the kids, told STV News that he was asked to improvise his gig as he was given none of the props or special effects that he was promised. He said, “I just felt sad because I was aware of how many kids were going to be coming through. We were told to hand the kids a couple of jelly beans and a quarter cup of lemonade at the end.”