BACKGROUND
The dolphinarium was sited at the Coney Beach Pleasure Park, Porthcawl, South Wales and originally built and owned by Joe Raber's company Marine Mammals International. The last two dolphins to be housed there were in the winter of 1974 undergoing training for the Royalty Folies show in London. The dolphinarium was then used for sea lion shows by Jervale Ltd in the summer of 1975.
A Review of Dolphinaria states:
The pool, in a precast concrete building, was 13.72 x 6.71 x 2.74 m deep. In October 1974 it was said that the dolphins wintered at Flamingo. It is not clear when the change from Battersea to Flamingo animals took place, possibly for the 1973 season.
It is interesting to note that the design of the pool was very similar to the design of the pools used by ETAM (Trust House Forte) for their dolphinariums at Rhyl Dolphinarium, Knowsley and Woburn Safari Parks and could possibly have been a template for the construction of these facilities.
PHOTOGRAPHS
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| Summer 1971 https://www.walesonline.co.uk |
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| Young children are introduced to dolphin Flipper and his friends during a performance at Coney Beach, Porthcawl. August 1971 - Western Mail and Echo Ltd. |