We’ve been driven loopy by a ROLLERCOASTER built yards from our homes… noise is unbearable & influencers won’t leave

A ROLLERCOASTER has been built just yards from a new housing estate – and is driving residents loopy. Families living on the Persimmon Homes development were baffled when the giant Crazy Mouse ride appeared towering over their properties. Residents in Sandford Lane, Hucknall, have watched a large amusement ride take shape metres from their homes Credit: Roland Leon Locals say the ride – on an old Rolls Royce yard – has now started a testing phase Credit: Roland Leon The spinning mouse coaster has been built in hangars on a former Rolls Royce yard by the Mellors Group, which specialises in fixing and assembling amusement rides. Noise from the construction and rattling of metal at night over the last year and a half has been bad enough – but now the ride is reportedly going through a testing phase. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Locals say they can hear the little carts being sent down the track. And the construction is also allegedly attracting yobs and influencers, who are clambering on the ride and making videos. Melissa, 43, a nurse who works night shifts, told The Sun: “We were assured that nothing would be in front of these houses. “Sure, there was a fence and a yard behind it but trees were planted to cover that, but nothing can hide that thing looming over us. “I have had to sleep in the spare room because of the clanging of the workmen. “We have to keep our blinds shut during the day because there are workmen up on the rollercoaster just a few yards away.” Most read in The Sun Nnamdi Onuegbu, 38, is more positive than most and hopes to see the ride in action Credit: Roland Leon The huge mouse coaster is just yards from people’s homes Credit: Roland Leon “We would never have bought this place if we’d known,” Melissa said. “I’m a nurse and after a busy night shift this is the last thing you need.” To make matters worse for the home owners, the presence of a rollercoaster on the housing estate in Hucknall, just north of Nottingham, has proved a magnet for kids. Melissa said: “We’ve been attracting all the ASBOs, climbing up on it, making Tik-Tok videos. It’s a nightmare.” After locals questioned whether the work had the correct approval, Mellors Group applied to Ashfield District Council for retrospective permission – with the authority to decide next month. Another home owner, 32, who did not want to give his name, said he and his wife were horrified by the coaster’s presence in their lives. “We moved in November 2024 and there were just a few old Rolls Royce heritage buildings and some hangars,” he said. “It used to be a manufacturing site during World War II. Kim Cox, 56, is concerned about the influencers turning up, but Sapphire, 8, is keen to test the ride herself Credit: Roland Leon The firm behind the ride is now seeking retrospective planning permission Credit: Roland Leon “We were told it was a storage and distribution place so we expected to see the tops of some HGVs over the fence, not a permanent rollercoaster. “The work they do is really noisy. There are men up on cherry pickers and welders. “We have done a noise survey for the Council to show how unreasonable it is. If it’s a windy night, we can hear the straps clanging against the sides.” James Mellors, a director at family-owned Mellors Group, admitted that the rollercoaster had been there much longer than anticipated. He blamed the US attack on Iran and the subsequent closure of the Straits of Hormuz, for delaying much-needed steel. He told NottinghamLive: “Usually a ride would not be in position for quite as long as that has been. It’s the first one in the world and it’s just not quite been going together as well as it should. “It’s frustrating for myself how long that coaster has been there. The rides don’t make any money when they’re in storage.” He assured residents that most rides would fit comfortably into the old air force hangars. Cookie Yeung, 40, said she’s surprised the ride has been there so long Credit: Roland Leon The site owners say delays mean the ride has been there longer than expected Credit: SWNS Another new arrival, Kim Cox, a 56-year-old cleaner, said: “We knew that Rolls Royce had been there and that Mellors owned the yard and they do work for Fantasy Island and places but we never thought of these kind of structures. “It has attracted problems with kids being kids and climbing over the fence. “It is dangerous because they are climbing it without any safety equipment.” However, some of those on the estate aren’t too bothered and one or two are positively excited at the rollercoaster on their doorstep. Home-school mum Kirsty Welsh said her daughter Sapphire, eight, wanted to volunteer to test it out. She said: “I quite like it. We have watched it from day one and it is fascinating to see it taking shape. “When we moved in 18 months ago there was some sort of Joker ride there but it was nothing like this big. “My daughter Sapphire loves big rides and really wants to test it out. “I do get why others don’t like it because if it’s really windy, you hear the clanging but I will miss it when it’s gone.” Nnamdi Onuegbu, 38, a radiographer on paternity leave, said: “So far it has not disturbed the baby so it’s all good. “It is quite interesting seeing it there. I knew there was a factory there but it didn’t put us off. I would actually like to see it moving.” Locals say the Crazy Mouse ride is entering a testing phase with the sound of little carts being sent down. Victoria, 29, an ambulance worker, was putting a brave face on what others described as an ‘eyesore’. “You know I would rather look out on that than a building site and more houses. It came out of the blue. “There had been a couple of little fairground rides but then this appeared and has stayed well over a year. “It is kind of iconic now, a landmark, and when you have visitors you tell them to drive to the rollercoaster and you’ve arrived.” For some the rollercoaster is destined to be a damp squib. Lecturer Abraham Brown, 50, was also waiting for it to start but with more trepidation. He fears it could be “very noisy” once the testing phase is in full swing. “It can be noisy now, but not too much,” he said, adding he was relieved to hear it wasn’t a permanent fixture. And Cookie Yeung, 40, a cleaner, said: “It is not too bad… I am surprised it has been here as long as it has.” But plumber Reece Willow, 37, was less forgiving: “We were told there would be nothing there, that we wouldn’t see anything but a line of trees. Now we’ve had this eyesore there for a year and a half. “When you’ve worked hard to buy a new home, it’s not what you want at all. “You can hear it in the night and of course it attracts kids. “I would have been there myself when I was young but as an adult you have to say it is not safe.” A council spokesperson told The Sun: “The council received reports from local residents that the buildings were being used for purposes which were not in line with the approved planning use class for the land. “Advice was provided to the landowner and a planning application has been received.” The Sun has also approached Mellors for further comment. Comment now