The first British safari park - a roaring success at Longleat, Wiltshire
The very first drive-through safari park outside of Africa opened more that 50 years ago in the grounds of Longleat, a stately home in Wiltshire. The concept of safari parks was the brainchild of Jimmy Chipperfield (1912–1990), former director of Chipperfield's Circus.
The safari park opened in 1966. It was a ground-breaking idea but Henry Thynn, the 6th Marquess of Bath, was already a pioneer. In 1949, faced with crippling death duties, he was the first member of the aristocracy to throw open the doors of a stately home to the paying public.
However, more income was needed to save and maintain the enormous Elizabethan mansion, and Jimmy Chipperfield convinced the Marquess that a smaller version of the game reserves that drew tourists to Africa could become a hit here.
Though locals worried about escaped lions running amok in the Wiltshire countryside, Lord Bath fenced off about 100 acres of his estate and the first visitors rolled through the gates in early April 1966, paying £1 per vehicle, to be greeted by a pride of 50 lions.
During that opening year there were almost 500,000 visitors and on one bank holiday alone queues stretched back four miles. Since then millions more have flocked to Longleat, which now has 1,200 animals and many other attractions for visitors to enjoy.
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