The London Dungeon Marks 800 Years of the Magna Carta

To mark the anniversary of the Magna Carta, guests who visit the world famous The London Dungeon will be able to ‘fess up to their crimes and having Britain’s most ludicrous laws in the dock with a special new courtroom show. For the whole of June, the length of time Ludicrous Laws will run, those who has ever carried a plank of wood along a pavement or stuck a stamp on an envelope upside down should be mildly concerned.

The Magna Carta, which was signed in June 1215, saw the passing of a thousand laws, some of which remain on the statute today that in their time may have been reasonable but in 2015 are totally and utterly ludicrous. Judge Lord Wendy Farqhuar’s London Dungeon Court, will leave guests wondering whether his madcap zeal is more disturbing than the loony laws his hapless defendants are accused of breaking, after seeing them on trial in a fast-paced, irreverent show.

Defendants may find themselves on a short walk to Tyburn after being dispensed the death penalty, before being condemned to ‘take the drop’ on Drop Dead Ride to Doom, a thrilling vertical free fall ride. The Dungeon is frequented by those who have committed truly treacherous crimes, so all the petty criminals will be in good company throughout. From Jack the Ripper in Whitechapel to Sweeney Todd’s Fleet Street, Henry VIII’s deadly torture chamber and Guy Fawkes’ parliament, 1000 years of London’s murky past is brought to life in 18 shows featuring 18 actors, two thrilling rides and plenty of edge of the seat surprises.

TWELVE MOST LUDICROUS LAWS OF ALL TIME:

1. It is against the law to carry a plank along a pavement (1839)
2. Under the same law, it is illegal for any person to fly a kite or slide on ice or snow whilst in the street (1839)
3. Any dead whale or sturgeon found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the Monarch (1322)
4. It is illegal not to tell the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing (2006)
5. It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour (1313)
6. It is an offence for a pub landlord to allow drunkenness in their pub – in other words, it is illegal to be drunk in a pub! (1872)
7. In London, it is illegal for a person (knowingly) with the Plague to ride on a bus (1984)
8. It is illegal to keep a pigsty in front of your house – unless duly hidden (1847)
9. It is an offence to be intoxicated and in charge of a horse or cow (1872)
10. It is illegal to handle a salmon in suspicious circumstances (1986)
11. It is illegal to beat or shake any carpet or rug in any street. However, beating or shaking a doormat is allowed before 8am (1839)
12. No person shall import into England, potatoes which he knows to be or has reasonable cause to suspect to be Polish potatoes (2004)