The Waterloo memorial in Belgium has been turned into a “Disneyland” fairground attraction, according to an outraged former British Army officer.
The famous Lion’s Mound monument, rising 44 metres above the ground and overlooking the historic Waterloo battlefield, now features a nearby mobile restaurant that is hoisted into the air by crane as pop-group ABBA’s famous hit Waterloo plays. Visiting the site, Major General Ashley Truluck took to Twitter, slamming the development as “Awful”.
Belgian commercial interests turning the #Waterloo battlefield into Disneyland – crane-operated restaurant is raised to deafening strains of Abba’s ‘Waterloo’ 😩😫😢 Awful. pic.twitter.com/vNPdxxai5E
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— Ashley Truluck CB CBE (@Truluck_Wilts) June 19, 2023
Reacting to Truluck’s outburst, many expressed similar sentiments.
One user responded that while the restaurant wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, the music itself was inappropriate.
Yeah, was there today.
Can't object too much to the dining "experience" there are restaurants a plenty in the area.
But after ABBA there was some very loud dance music, would (& shouldn't) happen on most battlefields. pic.twitter.com/zubDRpc5mb
— Marcus Cribb (@mcribbHistory) June 19, 2023
Another user retweeting the original said the entire attraction was not acceptable; “This is very disrespectful to the men who fought and died at Waterloo. War memorials should be a place of silent reflection and reverence not a venue for a gimmick noisy restaurant.”
The new catering facility is run by a company called “Dinner in the Sky”. According to its website, tickets for a lunch are an eye-watering €295 per person, with a minimal purchase of two tickets.
Based out of Belgium, the company describes its origins as being “a surrealist story of the kind Belgium loves so much”. It was established in 2006 through a collaboration between a catering company and a business that specialises in fairground rides.
Since then, Dinner in the Sky says it has hosted more than 5,000 such events in over 50 countries. Among them was a ‘floating dinner’ for Prince Albert of Monaco featuring one of France’s most famous chefs, Joel Robuchon. Another was what the firm described as a ‘champion poker match in the sky’.
However, despite the apparent popularity of the firm’s attractions, observers say choosing to hold one at the Waterloo site is questionable. The 1815 battle is considered among the most important in European history.
In what many may see as poor taste regarding the battlefield attraction, on Instagram, Dinner in the Sky proclaims: “Flavor bombs 😋💣 will be exploding in the sky”.
Waterloo is where the Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, suffered his final defeat after his forces were trounced by Prussians, which had forced him into exile on the island of Elba.
Bonaparte’s desperate last gamble for power saw him and his army take on a combined force of British, Dutch and German soldiers. It was a close fight and at the end more than 60,000 men lay dead on the Waterloo battlefield.
Regarding the Lion’s Mound attraction, Dinner in the Sky representatives declined to comment.
Despite what some may regard as a form of desecration, it appears more such commercialised stunts are on the way with the Waterloo tourist website advertising an upcoming exhibition based on ABBA.
