Families hit out over monster cost of show

Families feeling the pinch have hit out at hefty ticket prices for a £10 million dinosaur spectacle in Birmingham, with no discounts available for children.

Seats are still available for Walking With Dinosaurs, which runs at the NIA until Sunday, with the cheapest tickets for the 100-minute show starting at £20. Other prices are £30 and £35, with a limited number of premium seats for £45, plus booking fees of £3.50 per ticket, meaning a family of four would have to spend a minimum of £94 for entry alone.

Groups of 12 or more can have a 10 per cent discount on midweek shows but there are no other concessions available.

With merchandise including programmes for £12, cuddly dinosaurs for £15 and inflatable toys at £12 it could prove an expensive day out for parents.

The show, which opened on Wednesday, was described as "a Hoover on your wallet" by one mother on a parents' internet forum.

Pensioner Dave Martin, aged 71, of Rayford Drive, West Bromwich, said he and his wife Barbara had been hoping to treat seven-year-old grandson Keaton, but the cost was off-putting.

"The show looks good, but it seems pretty expensive to me. We go to things like this purely for the kids, they are the ones that enjoy it, so I would have thought they could have had children's tickets for sale.

"It could mean just my wife taking him. It would be a very expensive day," he added.

Tour spokesman Ashley Gerrie said the prices compared favourably to other theatre shows and it was a very expensive production to put on because of the technology involved.

"The T-Rex alone cost £500,000 to build," he said.

"Considering the production costs of the show and the fact that it is completely unique in terms of what you get, it is well worth the money. It has sold half a million tickets across the UK already."