In my last article I explained how the various ideas for a freefall ride eventually became Walt Disney World's Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. I also managed – thanks to some over-zealous use of spellchecker – to incorrectly call the Twilight Zone's host Rod Sterling instead of Serling. I'd like to apologise for this, and to thank those of you that wrote to me pointing out the error.

The Imagineers are now in the process of constructing a Hollywood Tower Hotel at the Walt Disney Studios park, which will hopefully open on Halloween 2007 as part of Disneyland Paris' 15th anniversary celebrations. It could be said that this version of the ride is "coming home", as it's to be a close copy of Disney's California Adventure's version of the ride. Hopefully you can see the likeness in the accompanying billboard photo. This revision of the MGM ride had originally been designed for the Paris park, but a combination of that resort's financial problems and Disney's California Adventure's lack of paying customers brought a change of location. Like many rides and shows in Disneyland Paris the Tower of Terror will be presented partly in English, partly in French. Purists may complain, but it's an effective way of getting the story across to the majority of the resort's guests.

As with all attractions at Disneyland Paris, the ride must be relatively low on direct verbal communication. In the American parks a ride can be extremely narrative driven – think for example of the introduction to the Orlando version of the Tower of Terror. With all the different European countries represented at Disneyland Paris, a pre-show with this much explanation would not have been appropriate. So a less talky idea was dreamed up whereby the Tower would be an actual film set, A scene was being filmed in an elevator and, just as the direction called for "Action!", the scenery was struck by lightening. Rod Serling would then make a much shorter introduction explaining how the entire Hollywood Tower set has been standing unused since then, but the guests would be more than welcome to witness a recreation of the filming of that fateful scene.

But perhaps the most interesting incarnation of the attraction will be the one that will open shortly at Tokyo DisneySea, as its totally new storyline has no mention of The Twilight Zone.

In just a few days – September the 4th to be precise – Disney will open its latest major theme park ride. Tokyo DisneySea's Tower is going to be in the park's American Waterfront section and like all Disney attractions, this one went through sever amendments before the final storyline was agreed. An early version of the Japanese ride featured that land's icon, the S.S. Colombia. This take on the Tower story included a huge farewell party for passengers of the ship's maiden voyage. After the joyous evening, the ship sailed the next day. But delight would turn to terror as the great liner sank almost immediately with the loss of all passengers and crew. A regular occurrence in Japanese folklore sees the spirits of the dead revisit the place that they were last happy. This was to happen in the Hollywood Tower Hotel, as the hotel was swiftly closed due to the unexpected spectral activity. But time has passed, and now the long-abandoned hotel has been opened to visitors again. It will come as no surprise though to learn that some of the restless spirits had settled around a certain elevator….

It's a nice twist on the story, and one that's particularly suited to the culture it's situated in. But it's not the one that's going to be unveiled in September. The newest ride at Tokyo DisneySea will feature a completely new storyline.

The new ride's mythology will be based around the fabulously named Harrison Hightower III, a New York billionaire and adventurer. Harrison built the Hightower Hotel, but after his disappearance in mysterious circumstances in an elevator up to his penthouse suite, the hotel was closed and now stands abandoned. It does though still retaining much of its original splendour though; So much so that the New York City Preservation Society has recently re-opened the building after thirteen years, and now plans to hold a series of public tours.

But the Hightower experience won't be like that in any of Disney's other Towers. Instead of the preshow library and Rod Serling's TV introduction, the "tour guide" will lead guests into Mr Hightower's magnificent office, where they will present a special recording that the missing host made just before his disappearance. Then the lights are dimmed, leaving only the illumination coming through a beautiful stained glass window. The message, delivered by Hightower's own voice coming from an old phonograph, will explain the story of how he came across the Idol and was blinded by it's beauty; so much so that he simply had to have it. It was only later that he discovered that it was cursed. He goes on to warn that all visitors to the Hightower should be very wary, but at that moment the Idol itself mysteriously appears on a bookshelf from out of nowhere, its eyes glowing malevolently. Suddenly the office is plunged into darkness and lightening shatters the stained glass. When the lights come back on again, the missing window is revealed to be the doorway to the Hightower's hidden vault, stuffed with artefacts that the explorer had "acquired" during his travels. And behind a secret sliding panel they will be ushered into Harrison Hightower's own private elevator.

Once the ride gets going it won't be that different to the Californian attraction, except that instead of encountering the spectral group that were lost in the Hollywood Tower, the ghost that riders see this time will be Harrison Hightower being sent into another dimension by strange beams of light that shoot from the Idols eyes.

And then those blazing eyes turn to face the elevator....

There are quite a few construction pictures of the ride on the net, and I'm sure there will be opening day photos and video available soon enough, but I thought you might appreciate these two pieces of concept art showing DisneySea's latest addition.

So pretty soon we'll be able to ride a forbidden elevator in four of Disney's five current resorts. That only leaves Hong Kong Disneyland without one. Surely it can't be that long before they too decide to take the plunge? Let's just hope that whatever they end up with is better than the 1997 Tower of Terror TV movie starring Steve Guttenberg.

Shaun Finnie is the author of "The Disneylands That Never Were", a 250 page book that details over fifty years of rides, attractions, hotels etc that Disney have designed but never built. Further details can be found at www.lulu.com/shaun_finnie