LanguaTalk

Skip the Queue

Skip the Queue is for visitor attraction owners, directors and suppliers who want to improve their organisations and deliver a better experience for their guests. Each episode we speak with inspiring industry experts who share their knowledge of what really makes an attraction successful. This podcast is brought to you by Merac. We're here to help attractions unlock growth with innovative solutions, expert insights, and customer-first strategies.

What happens when museums stop giving answers and start asking questions instead - Donna Speed

33 mins; March 25, 2026

Dark Universe at Epic Universe: Design Secrets from Universal Creative and Framestore - Greg Hall and Max MacEwan

48 mins; March 18, 2026

Why neuroinclusion needs to be top of mind for themed attractions - with Robbie Jones

34 mins; March 11, 2026

The Leaders Redefining the Visitor Attractions Industry - Emily Popovich, Rachael Hamilton, Ruth Read, Liz Sanchez Rasking & Claire Furnival

45 mins; March 04, 2026

Master Planning the Future: How to Build Visitor Attractions That Last - Ray Hole

50 mins; February 25, 2026

Live at Cultural Enterprises Conference with Richard Paterson

30 mins; February 18, 2026

From Brand to Belonging: Designing Experiences People Feel Connected to - Mark Lofthouse

39 mins; February 11, 2026

How to Design Play Spaces That Drive Revenue and Repeat Visits - Simon Egan

41 mins; February 04, 2026

How to Improve Your Attraction’s Website in 2026: What the Latest Data Tells Us - Simon Jones and Steve Mills

40 mins; January 28, 2026

Burnout and Blue Monday: Why Wellness Matters in the Attractions Industry - Emma Newell

46 mins; January 19, 2026

Windsor Great Park Illuminated: Designing Experiences That Draw Guests Back Year After Year - Rob Paul and Kathryn Stafford

33 mins; December 10, 2025

Attraction Trends 2026 and insights from the TEA Global Experience Index - Melissa Oviedo, Martin Palicki and Edmond Chih

44 mins; December 03, 2025

When VFX meets visitor attractions - Rob Liddell and Simon Clarke

41 mins; November 26, 2025

How to Engage All the Senses: Building More Immersive Attractions

40 mins; November 19, 2025

Reflect. Adapt. Thrive - Science and Discovery Centres the next 25 years.

45 mins; November 12, 2025

The Role Of Data For Visitor Attraction Management with Jim Deegan and Ernesto Batista- Sanchez

51 mins; November 05, 2025

Behind the Screams: How Avon Valley Masters Halloween Attractions - Doug Douglas

38 mins; October 29, 2025

How to Build a High-Converting Online Gift Shop for Museums and Attractions - Stephen Spencer and Simon Jones

49 mins; October 22, 2025

LIVE from AVEA Conference 2025 - Get your attraction retail ready

50 mins; October 15, 2025

Behind the scenes at The Traitors Live Experience - Neil Connolly

47 mins; October 08, 2025

Green by Design - Choni Fernández

42 mins; October 01, 2025

Leading with Authenticity - Andreas Andersen

37 mins; September 26, 2025

Magic in the Sky - Jérôme Giacomoni

40 mins; September 25, 2025

The £100 Million Dream - Andy Hadden

36 mins; September 24, 2025

Think Different, Do Different - Massimiliano Freddi

35 mins; September 17, 2025

Go Big Or Go Home!

15 mins; September 10, 2025

It's not pipes and slippers

49 mins; July 09, 2025

Collaboration in the Maritime Museums Sector

28 mins; June 25, 2025

Museums + Heritage Show 2025 the big catch up

59 mins; May 21, 2025

What does best in class museum retail look like?

50 mins; May 07, 2025

25 Years of the Millennium Projects - Dynamic Earth

38 mins; April 23, 2025

Starting a new heritage attraction in the UAE

51 mins; March 05, 2025

Sharing our secret squirrel project - Crowd Convert

52 mins; February 27, 2025

Innovation in the Cultural Sector - the View from the Top

36 mins; February 19, 2025

Vox pops from the Farm Attractions Conference 2025

44 mins; February 05, 2025

Marketing Strategies for regional attractions

52 mins; January 22, 2025

Science Meets Cocktails: How Lit Lab is Shaking Up Public Engagement with Science

35 mins; January 08, 2025

Innovating for Change: Youth, Climate, and the Science Centres of Tomorrow

48 mins; November 27, 2024

Sustainability and Performance: How Greener Websites Drive Better Results

39 mins; November 14, 2024

Cambridge Science Centre - A Nomadic attraction that finally found a home

52 mins; October 30, 2024

Building a Sustainable Future: Real-World Solutions for Visitor Attractions

34 mins; October 09, 2024

Roller Coaster Royalty: The UK Theme Park Awards Unveiled

38 mins; September 26, 2024

Viral Monkeys and Marketing Magic - A recipe for social media success

34 mins; September 11, 2024

Putting the customer at the heart of everything we do. CX in the real world

42 mins; August 07, 2024

Why you absolutely should take part in the 2024 Visitor Attraction Website Survey

41 mins; July 17, 2024

Digital Sustainability and the Elephant in the Room

39 mins; July 03, 2024

From Lockdown to LEGO: Crafting History and Building the Future

54 mins; June 19, 2024

A surprise election, a dip in the sea, and all the glass cases in the world

40 mins; June 05, 2024

How the 2024 Visitor Attraction survey is different, and a new face at Rubber Cheese

33 mins; May 22, 2024

Data driven social media at the Royal Institution

47 mins; May 08, 2024

Understanding Sustainability Reporting

36 mins; April 24, 2024

Kelly's final episode

41 mins; April 10, 2024

What does it take to be a truly family friendly museum?

48 mins; March 20, 2024

Questions from the 2023 Visitor Attraction Website Report, with Kelly and Paul from Rubber Cheese

56 mins; March 06, 2024

What the heck is a brand proposition and why should you care? With Catherine Warrilow

49 mins; February 21, 2024

The Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses, with Emily Yates

33 mins; February 07, 2024

Improving inclusivity at Kew Gardens, with Julia Willison

47 mins; January 24, 2024

Interactivity for visitor attraction websites, with Kelly and Paul from Rubber Cheese

28 mins; January 10, 2024

How Blenheim Palace uses data and AI to predict, and not just report on past performance

45 mins; December 20, 2023

Personalisation for visitor attraction websites, with Kelly and Paul from Rubber Cheese

30 mins; December 06, 2023

The transformation of process and people at an 180 year old attraction, with Dominic Wray

42 mins; November 22, 2023

Mobile optimisation for visitor attractions, with Kelly and Paul from Rubber Cheese

29 mins; November 01, 2023

Philanthropic thinking for funding of new projects, with Rhiannon Hiles

51 mins; October 18, 2023

Content, design and navigation, with Kelly and Paul from Rubber Cheese

44 mins; October 04, 2023

20 years of the Visitor Attractions Conference, with Bernard Donoghue OBE, Ken Robinson and Paul Kelly

55 mins; September 20, 2023

Harnessing potential and creating a great working environment at the Scottish Crannog Centre

40 mins; July 26, 2023

Why taking part in the 2023 Visitor Attraction Website Survey is so important, from The Mary Rose Museum and Roman Baths

36 mins; July 05, 2023

Lilidorei - the story behind the world's biggest playpark, with Ian McAllister

44 mins; June 28, 2023

Attraction Marketing: Find out the Number 1 thing all attraction marketers need to focus on in 2023

47 mins; June 14, 2023

Is the procurement process broken? With Sarah Bagg

47 mins; May 31, 2023

Transformative Public Programming. How a bold approach has transformed the calendar at Chelsea Physic Garden.

44 mins; May 03, 2023

How to develop a creative career in the Theme Park industry - and the mindset you need for it, with Mark Lofthouse

52 mins; April 19, 2023

Closing a visitor attraction and the opportunities that brings, with Mike Coe

40 mins; April 05, 2023

How attractions and cultural sites can create better visitor experiences through innovative storytelling, with Spencer Clark

47 mins; March 22, 2023

Developing and monetising online communities, with Nik Wyness

51 mins; March 08, 2023

Creative ideas and solutions for driving commercial income, with Matthew Henderson

38 mins; February 22, 2023

Ticketing Professionals Conference

1 min; February 15, 2023

How to innovate and diversify income streams beyond admissions, membership and retail, with Kingston Myles

43 mins; February 08, 2023

The economic outlook for 2023, and the big shift in experiences discovery and marketing, with Douglas Quinby

60 hours 49 mins; February 01, 2023

Developing a culture of innovation, with Elizabeth McKay

39 mins; January 25, 2023

Walk the Big One. Developing an exclusive experience, from an everyday safety process

54 mins; January 11, 2023

Looking forward to 2023: Key digital trends attractions shouldn’t miss out on.

38 mins; December 14, 2022

Castle Howard through the lens. What it’s like to film a TV production at a visitor attraction.

51 mins; November 30, 2022

The importance of building a great social community and process behind rebranding a 70 year old attraction

44 mins; November 16, 2022

Why smell is a form of mind control, with Liam Findlay

37 mins; November 02, 2022

State of the nation report, with Steve Mills

34 mins; October 19, 2022

How introducing variable pricing increased revenue by 2.3 million, with Simon Addison

38 mins; October 05, 2022

How to create truly unique visitor attractions, with Robbie Jones

43 mins; September 21, 2022

From award winning breakfast cereal to award winning visitor attraction. The story of Pensthorpe with Bill and Deb Jordan

46 mins; August 03, 2022

How storytelling can increase your donations by 400%, with Bala McAlinn

55 mins; July 20, 2022

Customer journey mapping at Historic Royal Palaces, with Cate Milton

44 mins; July 06, 2022

Kelly - Survey Announcement

3 mins; June 29, 2022

Attraction partnerships and rivalries, with Dominic Jones

47 mins; June 22, 2022

Why retail space is pivotal for today’s visitor attractions

43 mins; June 08, 2022

An attractions industry update, with Jakob Wahl, COO of IAAPA

45 mins; May 25, 2022

Guided tours and making it personal at the National Gallery, with Katie Weller

36 mins; May 11, 2022

Falling in love with ZSL. How engaging the internal team is benefiting both them and their visitors, with Kelly Wessell

36 mins; April 27, 2022

Innovation Marketing and why this sits at the heart of Imperial War Museums strategy, with Pete Austin.

42 mins; April 13, 2022

Switching from an international to domestic market. With Neil Dolan

36 mins; March 30, 2022

Leadership learnings and looking to the future at St. Paul’s. With Sandra Lynes Timbrell

36 mins; March 16, 2022

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