Suffolk Food Hall near Ipswich to open ‘escape room’ puzzle challenge - ideal for birthday parties, team building and hen and stag dos
The Suffolk Food Hall in Ipswich. - Credit: Sarah Lucy brown
Players of Suffolk’s first permanent ‘escape room’ will have to push their puzzle solving skills and ingenuity to the limit – or they may never get out.
The room brings internet escape games – where players have to solve puzzles to get out of a locked room – to life and launches at the Suffolk Food Hall, near the Orwell Bridge, on Saturday October 29.
Visitors play the role of mid 19th Century poachers caught stealing rabbits from landowner Sir Reginald Rackham, known for being particularly ruthless to anyone who takes from him.
Locked in a booth while the police make their way from Ipswich to arrest you, players have a hour to solve a variety of puzzles and tasks to make good on their escape.
Russ Haddow, from the Food Hall, said they were lucky to have the perfect buildings to use for the adventure.
“It is a local story set in an old barn with authentic props – most of which have been used on a working farm.
“Players get a brief story to set the scene, are led into the room and then have to search for clues and keys to get out.
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“It’s not all up to yourself though.
“If you are going off track and having trouble you don’t just wait in the room for 45 minutes – there are clues given.
“The barn is perfect – it is old, it’s cold, the wood has weathered,there are cobwebs in the corners – it feels like it is made for it.
“We are hoping it should be pretty good fun.”
The idea of taking the internet game and putting it in real life originated in Japan.
Russ said the attraction, which has been organised with Steve Blake who tours with a mobile escape room, is suitable for anyone but is especially fun in groups.
“I know people who have done them for team building exercises, birthday parties, stag and hen dos. It is open to anyone but is great fun with a group of friends.”
To celebrate the launch of the attraction, a competition is under way on the food hall’s Facebook page offering people the chance to be the first to tackle the enigma.
