Thorpe Park's Fright Nights is celebrating 25 Years of Fear in 2026, and this year the park is offering an exclusive Behind the Screams Tour of its brand-new scare maze, Tenement.

The experience gives guests the opportunity to explore the attraction with the lights on, discover how its special effects work, learn more about the storyline and uncover hidden details that would normally go unnoticed.

The Tenement Behind the Screams Tour costs £72 per person and is exclusive to annual passholders. Park admission is not included and must be purchased separately.

The experience includes:

- A guided behind-the-scenes tour of Tenement
- Exclusive Fright Nights VIP lanyard and pin badge
- Exclusive poster
- Personalised ID card
- One-shot Fastrack for Tenement

Behind the Screams Tours are extremely limited this year, with only six taking place throughout Fright Nights 2026 and a maximum of seven guests per group. This is a massive change compared with previous years, when Thorpe Park offered a wider selection of Behind the Screams Tours and VIP experiences.

Our tour lasted approximately one hour and gave us a fascinating look at how Tenement operates, from its clever lighting effects and hidden actor corridors to the secrets behind some of the maze's biggest scenes.

Behind the Scenes – How Tenement Works

One of Tenement's biggest features is the torches carried by guests, which play an important role throughout the maze. These are supplied by Terror Torch by Genius, a company discovered during an exhibition at ScareCON.

Each torch is charged nightly using USB-C and has over 24 hours of battery life. Although the LEDs can change colour, they remain the same colour throughout Tenement. The torches are controlled remotely using wireless DMX technology, allowing them to be switched on and off at specific moments during the experience.

Another interesting feature is the buttons hidden throughout the attraction. These allow the team to communicate when guests have reached or cleared certain areas. For example, after the Stretching Hall, a button activates a light in the pre-show area to indicate that guests have moved through and the next group can be sent into the maze.

The actors also operate slightly differently compared with other scare mazes. Rather than rotating between different characters, each performer is cast in a single role, which they continue to play throughout the event.

Like other Thorpe Park mazes, Tenement has several backstage actor runs and corridors, with lighting strips along the walls to help performers navigate in the darkness. These spaces also provide somewhere for actors to keep water bottles and store props.

The actor runs are also used to transport torches back to the beginning of the maze. Once guests have their torches taken away, they're placed into a bucket. When an actor notices the bucket getting full, they can swap it over and return the collected torches to the entrance, ready for the next group.

One thing that really surprised us was just how dark Tenement remains during the daytime. Unlike Stitches, where daylight makes much of the attraction visible inside the tent, Tenement uses blackout curtains extensively throughout its structure to keep the entire maze incredibly dark.

Pre-Show – Nova Lux Senior Living

The experience begins inside the lobby of Nova Lux Senior Living, where guests are introduced to the story behind Tenement.

The building has suffered a power failure, and several tenants have mysteriously vanished. Guests take on the role of emergency electricians tasked with restoring the power before their shared light fades. However, there's something far more sinister lurking inside the building. Have the Luxivora returned?

During our tour, we were given additional information about the backstory, which helped explain several elements that hadn't made complete sense during our previous experiences.

There are also some hidden Easter eggs around the lobby, including envelopes scattered across the floor and near the post box featuring names of people from RWS Creative.

Interestingly, the original plan was for a resident to hand guests their torches during the pre-show. However, this was changed before Fright Nights began to improve throughput, with torches instead being positioned at the front and back of each group.

Stretching Hall

The Stretching Hall features one of Tenement's most impressive effects, as guests are welcomed by the Landlord before the corridor appears to move around them.

During the scene, the Landlord walks backwards while moving a door to create the illusion. The character is also responsible for triggering the effects within this section.

We were shown how the moving door mechanism works, and it's surprisingly simple considering how effective it looks during the experience. Hopefully, its straightforward construction means it won't suffer too many technical problems.

Photography isn't permitted inside this room as it would reveal the mechanism, although there isn't a huge amount else to see behind the scenes.

Kitchen

The Kitchen introduces guests to Mr Fix It, alongside an elderly female tenant.

One interesting detail is a shelf that drops down as guests approach. Rather than simply being part of the theming, it acts as a cue for the actor, signalling that the next group is about to enter and it's time to begin the scene.

It's a simple but effective way of coordinating the performance without guests realising what's happening.

Utility Corridor

The Utility Corridor features Mr Fix It and Sunny Sparks, with guests entering a steam-filled passageway.

As guests make their way through the corridor, Mr Fix It suddenly appears through a vent in the side to deliver a scare.

The combination of steam and restricted visibility helps conceal the character until the perfect moment.

Dead End Elevator

The Dead End Elevator is one of Tenement's more impressive scenes, and we discovered several interesting details about how it operates.

Inside the lift is a two-way mirror, while the rumbling floor effect is actually created using speakers rather than a mechanical vibration system. This prevents the vibrations from being felt elsewhere throughout the maze.

The doors are another clever element. When guests enter, one door closes while another opens, with two separate doors serving the same corner of the room. This conceals the route guests have just travelled through and reveals a completely different pathway.

The result is a convincing illusion that leaves guests feeling trapped inside the lift as chaos begins around them.

The Non-Living Room

The Non-Living Room is home to The Soiler, with fake poo scattered across the floor.

This section features a choreographed performance rather than a traditional scare scene, with several interesting details hidden throughout the room.

One of these is a painting that appears to stretch and move. It's actually made from fabric, allowing an actor passing behind it to push against the material and create the illusion of something trying to escape.

There are several other paintings around the room, although we discovered that these don't have any particular meaning within the story.

Another small detail can be found on top of the television, where a copy of The Thursday Murder Club has been placed and glued down to certain pages.

Breathing Hallway

The Breathing Hallway gets its name from the combination of mirrors and strobe lighting used throughout the scene.

Like the previous room, this section focuses more on a choreographed performance than a traditional jump scare.

One of the effects involves a drop mirror, which is actually a fake mirror built into the wall. An actor can release it to make it fall, startling guests on the other side.

There are also peepholes hidden within the doors, allowing performers to see where guests are positioned. The peephole in this room is the largest in the attraction, with most of the others being little more than pinhole-sized openings.

Another feature is an actor-activated floor pedal, similar to systems used at Halloween Horror Nights. By stepping onto the pedal, the performer can trigger the effects and begin the show sequence at exactly the right moment.

Rooftop

The Rooftop is where Tenement begins to separate groups, directing some guests into the Rooftop while others are sent through the Crawl Space.

This section features the Washer Woman, who appears from the area containing the drop wall.

Smoke also fills the floor during the scene, helping create an unsettling atmosphere as guests make their way through.

Separating the group adds another element to the experience, with guests taking different routes through the attraction.

Crawl Space

The Crawl Space is another section designed around splitting guests into smaller groups.

Inside the tunnel is a character known as the Crawler, although we discovered that the Crawler and the character responsible for the scare are actually two different performers.

It's a good use of the available space, allowing the attraction to separate guests and create a more individual experience.

Switcher Room

The Switcher Room contains another collection of hidden Easter eggs, with names written across the walls.

Many belong to members of the Thorpe Park and RWS teams, although some are completely random.

We also discovered that this room was originally planned to feature a live camera feed, which would have allowed guests to be left alone inside.

However, the idea was cancelled before the maze was built. We're not entirely sure how the concept would have worked in practice, but it was interesting to hear about a feature that never made it into the finished attraction.

The Portal

The Portal is one of Tenement's more unusual rooms, featuring ropes hanging from the ceiling and several pieces of theming.

There are no actors inside this section. Instead, the room features air cannon pipes hanging from the roof and a large themed structure positioned in the middle that guests can walk around.

One detail that particularly caught our attention was a door in the corner of the room that appears to be half-floating.

It gave us some serious Stranger Things vibes!

The Basement

The Basement is where the Nova Lux witches begin to reveal themselves from within the darkness.

Faces representing the witches can be seen across the walls, with strobe lighting and other effects creating the illusion that they're moving.

An interesting detail we discovered is that the witches are instructed to move towards guests carrying the torches and remain close to the light.

This makes the torches an important part of the performance, as the lighting helps determine which guests the characters approach.

No Exit Hallway

The No Exit Hallway is one of our favourite effects within Tenement.

Guests are lured into what appears to be a never-ending corridor, with a glowing exit sign positioned above their heads, before coming face to face with Nova Lux.

It's a surprisingly basic effect, but one that works incredibly well. We really like how such a simple setup can create such a convincing illusion during the experience.

The Bedroom

The Bedroom features Sunny Sparks and another choreographed performance, this time involving a fight sequence rather than a traditional scare.

The room itself is inspired by a childhood memory of a grandparent's bedroom, giving it a more personal feel.

We also discovered that one of the props has already been changed. Originally, there was a frying pan prop in the bed, but this broke and has since been replaced with a rolling pin.

There are also several messages written across the walls, including "Thank you for bringing it to us" and "They're watching".

These are the sorts of smaller details that can easily be missed when experiencing the maze in darkness.

Boiler Room

The Boiler Room marks the point where guests have their torches taken away before being sent into the mirror maze to brave the darkness.

After relying on the torches throughout the experience, losing your light completely changes the atmosphere.

We also discovered that buttons are used to trigger the smoke effects within this section.

Light Storm

Light Storm is a mirror maze filled with smoke and flashing lights, where guests encounter the Luxivora witches.

As guests navigate the maze, sudden flashes of light reveal the witches getting closer, creating the illusion that they're appearing and disappearing around you.

One interesting construction detail is that the walls are made from foam, with heated plastic formed over them to create the finished surfaces.

It's another example of how relatively simple construction techniques have been used to create some of Tenement's impressive environments.

Final Fade

Final Fade is Tenement's final exit scene, featuring just one moving light within the room.

However, the most interesting detail is hidden on the floor.

A large diagram resembling a ritual marking can be found in the room, featuring the Roman numerals XXV, representing Fright Nights' 25 Years of Fear anniversary.

What makes this even better is that the entire design was hand-painted by Becca, Tenement's Show Captain.

For us, this is easily the best Easter egg in the entire maze! It's a fantastic little tribute to Fright Nights' anniversary and something most guests would probably never notice during a normal run-through.

Our Review – Is the Tenement Behind the Screams Tour Worth It?

We thoroughly enjoyed the Tenement Behind the Screams Tour, and it was fascinating to discover how Thorpe Park's newest scare maze has been built and how it compares with previous Fright Nights attractions.

Tenement is the first maze RWS has built at Thorpe Park, and they've created an impressive attraction featuring detailed environments, clever effects and plenty of theatrical moments.

Some of the theming genuinely reminds us of Halloween Horror Nights, particularly the actor-triggered effects and choreographed scenes. However, we do feel that parts of the maze have been constructed more cheaply compared with previous Thorpe Park Fright Nights attractions.

That doesn't necessarily make the experience any less impressive, though. In fact, seeing how some of the simpler mechanisms work was one of the highlights of the tour.

While Tenement is a great maze, we still feel it has some flaws with its group sizes and the number of torches provided per group or batch. Given how important the torches are to the storyline and scares, these elements can have an impact on the overall experience.

What makes the Behind the Screams Tour particularly enjoyable is discovering all the little details that would otherwise go unnoticed. From hidden Easter eggs and actor-triggered effects to learning more about the backstory, we came away with a much better understanding of the attraction.

We also appreciated that some rooms and scenes could be explored but not photographed. This allowed us to see how certain effects work while keeping some of the mystery alive for guests experiencing Tenement for the first time.

As for the exclusive merchandise, we really liked the Fright Nights 25 Years of Fear VIP pin badge, which makes a lovely souvenir from the anniversary celebrations. The exclusive poster was also an unexpected addition and a nice bonus alongside the lanyard and personalised ID card.

With only six tours available throughout Fright Nights and a maximum of seven guests per group, this year's experience is considerably more exclusive than previous offerings.

At £72 per person, with park admission needing to be purchased separately, it certainly isn't cheap. However, for dedicated Fright Nights fans who enjoy discovering how scare mazes are brought to life, there's plenty to appreciate.

Our tour lasted approximately one hour, giving us a great opportunity to explore every scene and learn more about the attraction's design, effects and operation.

Overall, the Tenement Behind the Screams Tour was a lot of fun and gave us a new appreciation for the maze. While we'd love to see Thorpe Park bring back a wider selection of Behind the Screams Tours and VIP experiences in future years, this was a fantastic opportunity to explore its newest attraction from a completely different perspective.

For big Fright Nights fans who love discovering the secrets behind the scares, it's certainly an experience worth considering.