It’s not every day you get to attend the opening of an arcade. So when the Happidrome arcade in Southend-on-Sea, Essex was relaunching after flood damage I just had to go. It had been hit with terrible flooding twice over the past year and so the owner, Martin Richardson, had shut it down for several months and has given it a massive overhaul. Looks like it’s got totally new flooring and a whole new raised entrance to protect against any more flooding. Plus the whole inside has been given a huge refurbishment.

The Happidrome is one of the oldest, most historic arcades on Southend seafront. It would have been very sad to see it shut down after such challenges of the flooding, so it’s fantastic to see it come back stronger than ever. Some arcades these days can be a bit grubby and rough around the edges, but the new Happidrome is looking great and has a real family friendly atmosphere. I look forward to bringing my kids down soon. And from a retro perspective I’m doubly happy to see the Happidrome reopen because it is the only arcade on Southend seafront that has any retro machines! Thank goodness for Martin keeping the retro scene alive down on the seafront. Some of the retro machines he has include Ms Pac-Man (in a Pac-Man cabinet), Track & Field and the Simpsons. There was a cool game there on the opening night too called Stage. Never heard of that one before. Plus there’s Virtua Tennis and Daytona USA and Daytona 2. Hoping he can get even more retro machines in the future. He’s got some great pinball machines too. On top of that there’s all the usual family friendly penny pushers and claw games that the kids love.

If you’re ever down Southend way, make sure you check out the Happidrome when you’re on the seafront. It’s a family friendly arcade that’s doing things right. Great staff, great machines, great fun.

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