Swigging back grog with Captain Morgan – Bompas and Parr Lost Lagoon

Shiver me timbers, set designers Bompas and Parr have joint forces with Captain Morgan to give Londoners a nautical adventure to an underground paradise of the Lost Lagoon.

For three months from the beginning of February 2019 until early April, buccaneers will be able to discover a secret island within a secret location in central London to take a journey of wonder on the largest underground lake in the UK.

I was invited on a complimentary basis to adventure through Bompas and Parr’s latest part immersive theatre part bar experience with another buccaneer of my choosing so I just had to have my bestie Steve join me as to keep me safe from them pirates.

Bompas and Parr

Bompas and Parr is globally recognised as the leading expert in multi-sensory experience design.

They work with commercial brands, artistic institutions, private clients and governments to deliver emotionally compelling experiences to a wide variety of audiences.

Sam Bompas and Harry Parr first came to prominence through their expertise in jelly-making, but the business rapidly grew into a fully fledged creative studio offering food and drink design, brand consultancy and immersive experiences across a diverse number of industries.

Past genre-defining projects include an Alcoholic Architecture, an inhabitable cloud of gin and tonic; the world’s first Multi-Sensory Fireworks display for London New Year’s Eve 2013; and the Taste Experience for the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. Bompas and Parr also founded the British Museum of Food, the world’s first cultural institution exclusively dedicated to food and drink, and has published six books that explore humankind’s relationship with food.

Discover more about Bompas and Parr by clicking here.

Lost Lagoon adventure

With a plot inspired by the world’s most famous buccaneer himself, Lost Lagoon represents a fantastical reinterpretation of the eponymous Captain Henry Morgan’s world, and will require guests to navigate themselves by boat on the world’s largest indoor lagoon to a series of islands inspired by the atolls of the south Pacific in contrast to rum’s spiritual home in the Caribbean.

Who is Captain Morgan though?

Sir Captain Henry Morgan came from humble origins but rose through the ranks to become Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica.  He was a life cut from a sailcloth of adventure, plus, resource and guile, a buccaneering hero who tweaked the nose of the establishment and made himself a rich man in the process.  

Swashbuckling through the lakes of the Lost Lagoon

Firstly we were greeted by a pirate and put into groups of four before being blind folded and led to Sailor Town harbour where we then got stamped before boarding our vessel. 

I just hope that we have not been given the black spot.  It was then time to set sail the river of the Lost Lagoon. 

After saying Ahoy, Me Hearties! we then had to come up with a crew name.  Which we called ourselves The Red Hats as we were all wearing red hats as we were all press related.  After acquainting ourselves we then selected a captain which Steve was the chosen one.  He sat in the front, I sat in the back (which was scary) and the other two buccaneers sat in the middle and rowed us to glory.

Map in hand, a bottle of rum in the other it was now time for us to set sail the waters, battling and braving various weather conditions whilst we visited many different islands in which we had to seek rum-based ingredients from so we can create a punch inspired from a 400-year-old rhyme-based recipe that has stood the test of time.

First stop was the Spice Boat which we had to choose our spice from.  We opted for Star Anise. 

Next it was onto St Clementine’s Rock where we got to choose from either a lemon or lime.  

Then Marooners Rock which we chose a coloured oyster shell to represent which kind of Captain Morgan’s superior rum we would like.

At the Forgotten Fort we had to defend ourselves before we could grab a juice for our punch concoction.  

It was then onto Neon Nectar Isle which at this stage my sea legs had taken a toll and I nearly was shark bait but thankfully one of the buccaneer’s saved me just in time.  Here we met a lady who had her face neon painted which we had to tell her our darkest secret before leaving the island with our final ingredient for our punch.

Then it was onto Captain Morgan’s Island Cave of Wonders where we collected a vessel from Captain Morgan’s bounty to mix our ingredients within by one of his bar tenders.

It was then time to party with Captain Morgan and other hearties on his urban south Pacific island.  As the notorious 17th century privateer in-between plundering and torture is bit of a party animal.

There was a bar set on the island serving rum-based drinks, a whirlpool cocktail station and a hut selling beach-inspired food as well as entertainment provided by Captain Morgan himself like a good old arm wrestle against other buccaneers and a pirate or two.

We remained together as a crew and sat downing our punch which I must admit was not great however maybe we should of thought about our ingredients more but never fear as we drunk many other grogs by professional mixologists before sailing back on home which tasted great.    

All Hand Hoy!

If you love boats, sailing, pirates, immersive experiences and plenty of rum then set sail and book yourself on this highly immersive experience like no other.

I and Steve really enjoyed setting on sail on the seas of Lost Lagoon which is the largest underwater man-made lake in the UK which we got to sail, seek and adventure through before partying the night away with Captain Morgan and other hearties.  

Set sail on the Lost Lagoon

Tickets to the Lost Lagoon start from £20.   Better make haste, though there’s just a handful of dates in February to April still available.

Perfect for groups, and with a dress code of Neo-Tiki, the vibe will be colourful and celebratory: think beyond nautical, beyond beach, beyond buccaneer.

Click here to book.

Thank you to Bompas and Parr for the invite me and Steve of Love Pop Ups London swash buckled our way through the seas of Lost Lagoon and partied the night with Captain Morgan and buccaneers. This experience was complimentary but all views are my own honest opinion.

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Bompas and Parr Lost Lagoon