Pop Culture

Wonka Experience: Organizer of Widely Memed Sh*tshow Says He’s Lost His Friends and the 'Love of My Life'

If nothing else, the colossal failure at least gave the world a slew of memes and a now-in-development horror film.

The man who put on the uniquely shitty Willy Wonka event in Glasgow earlier this year insists that his initial goal was for attendees to "experience happiness."

In the hilariously titled Channel 5 doc Wonka: The Scandal That Rocked Britain, per a clip from E! News, the world is given some post-controversy insight from Billy Coull, who serves as director of the organization that staged the February event, although calling the arguably Fyre Fest-esque endeavor an “event” is an admittedly generous description.

"I have lost all of my friends," Coull, whose life is now "ruined," said. "I’ve lost the love of my life. I was made out to be the face of all evil. And genuinely, that’s really not the case."

According to Coull, who was previously seen in footage from the would-be experience being confronted by pissed off parents who wanted a refund, certain items needed to properly pull off this feat never arrived. This “gutted” Coull, though he still “believed that we could push on.”

Willy Wonka: the Chocolate Factory Experience, which, to be clear, was not officially affiliated with the recent Wonka film starring Timothée Chalamet, was billed as boasting everything from "enchanting environments” to “live performances featuring the lovable Oompa Loompas."

As no doubt every person on the planet now knows, the final version of the experience left much to be desired, resulting in a slew of memes and an expectedly swift announcement that a horror film inspired by one particularly peculiar character was being developed.

The actual Wonka, meanwhile, proved to be quite the hit at the global box office, leading nicely into the critical and commercial success of this month's absolutely brilliant Dune sequel. Put another way, it's TC season.

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