Look into any fairly recent edition of the Guinness Book of World Records (and some of its specific-topic spinoffs) and you’ll find a lot of records that has LEGO, or its products, involved. Many of these listings would be of “largest builds”, whether they’re official sets or some notable MOCs. One LEGO-related record was recently broken on Guinness in the Middle East. While it’s not just another brick-built structure, vehicle or any fantastical creature it’s instead the biggest awareness message built in LEGO. Conceptualized by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai, UAE, the message touches on the potential dangers of talking on the phone while driving.
Participants of this LEGO building project and the Guinness World Record attempt, include RTA staff and local students. Using an approximate total of 140,000 red and blue 1×1 LEGO brick on a wall lined with white baseplates, the builders formed the RTA logo and an awareness message written in Arabic and English: “Your life is worth more than a phone call”.
RTA head Maitha bin Adai said in an address during the building event that their achievement means to send “a loud and clear awareness message” to Dubai motorists, cautioning them against the risks of using of using phones while driving.
Guinness adjudicators were on hand to measure the statistics following the attempt, and confirmed that the brick-build RTA awareness message at the Dubai Festival City complex is now in fact, the biggest awareness message built in LEGO.
It’s October and the various LEGOLAND Resort theme parks and Discovery Centers around the world are now kicking off their various Halloween-themed celebrations as the month rolls by towards the day itself. Most of these party periods go by Brick or Treat, but even when the name isn’t used, there are plenty of spooky attractions to be had in LEGOLAND.
For instance, LEGOLAND Dubai Resort in the UAE doesn’t have a Brick or Treat label for its Halloween seasonal attractions, but nobody should care once the park is properly dressed up for trick or treating and more starting next week.
The centerpiece of LEGOLAND Dubai’s Halloween “spooktacular” fun attractions is the Cobweb Castle, where the park’s child guests can dress up as skeletons or witches and whatnot (in LEGO style too) and explore the indoor haunted castle with a giant LEGO Frankenstein at the head of a host of other scary monsters.
Other attractions include a LEGO pumpkin patch filled with brick-built Jack-o-Lanterns watched over by Ernie the Scarecrow. Cobweb Castle also has a stage where Halloween costume contests and dance-offs are held. Finally, actual trick-or-treating activities in LEGOLAND Dubai are made all the sweeter by the free Goldbear candies courtesy of LEGO’s Halloween confectionery partner Haribo.
Finally, LEGOLAND Dubai is offering a special LEGO brick during their Halloween events, a commemorative piece illustrated with the occasion on its side. Most LEGOLAND parks in the US and Europe no longer give commemorative bricks, but here’s one to be found in Dubai for the duration of Halloween festivities
LEGOLAND Dubai’s Halloween attractions are on from October 16 to the 31st, All Hallows’ Eve itself. Tourists who might be headed to the UAE at the time with children in tow can try booking ahead for a fun time in LEGOLAND Dubai on their website.
There’s always a great sense of wonder whenever we get to see a large, sprawling LEGO build of an expansive building complex. The scale may be large, like Miniland displays on LEGOLAND, or small but recognizable, like a recent MOC of the Apple Park campus. Then there are the builds just the right size for minifigures, like stadiums or this one.
Ryan “BrickMan” McNaught, LEGO Certified Professional from Australia, has unveiled his monumental Custom LEGO Australian Parliament House MOC just in time to celebrate the complex’s 30th anniversary. This is in line with the founding of the country’s current parliament when it moved to Capital Hill in 1988.
Ryan spend 740 work hours to put together 152,690 LEGO bricks to create a remarkably accurate rendition of the Parliament House, built as it is into the Capital Hill, which was then styled into a landscape that looked like grassy steps.
Both houses of the Australian Parliament were ably replicated in the large build, including a minifigure audience, MPs and Senators present; the latter two being recognizable to any Australian observers.
Not only the house chambers but the Parliament offices were shown in the MOC, all done with painstaking details, right down to the toilet paper LEGO piece in the lavatories.
All these interior shots can be seen from the back of the massive display, which is not walled in so visitors can peek inside. BrickMan McNaught’s commemorative custom LEGO Australian Parliament House MOC can be seen on display at the real Australian Parliament House, Canberra as part of its 30th anniversary celebrations.
In months past LEGO set out to prove their promise that one can “build for real” with LEGO pieces. They proved that concept beyond the shadow of a doubt by trumping their LEGO Technic Bugatti Chiron (42083) set by recreating an actual, life-sized car using only LEGO Technic components and lots of Power Function motors forming an engine. Ever since the reveal and test drive (slower than the real Chiron, but who cares?), the life-sized LEGO Bugatti Chiron built on 1:1 scale has been going around on a grand European tour. It already had two stopovers in Germany – Dusseldorf and Munich – and for its third stop, it’s going to Paris, France next.
And it’s not just any display; the life-sized LEGO Bugatti Chiron will dropping in on nothing less than the Paris Motor Show, where it will have a place of honor next to all those real cars that clock speeds more in line with the actual Chiron’s 248 mph. It’s bound to be the star anyway.
Probably helping is the fact that several automakers are not showing up in Paris: Ford, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen and more. This is more because of a declining interest trend in automobile show participation and not a one-off phenomenon for this.
So LEGO will be sharing the exhibition with the likes of Audi, Ferrari, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes, Porsche, Suzuki, Toyota and many others, up until October 14. That’s a great time for motor-heads and LEGO fans to see the Technic Bugatti up close, a testament to building for real by LEGO.
LEGO has just uploaded its LEGO Store November 2018 calendar, with all its related promotions and events, giving us a glimpse of what to expect next month. Truth be told, there’s nothing much to expect from your local LEGO brand store next in November since its noticeable that gift-with-purchase (GWP), or promotional sets are lacking for this month. And though it wasn’t mention in this LEGO Store Calendar, I’m still counting on the rumorthat the annual LEGO Bricktober minifigures will be made available in LEGO Brand Stores anytime between November and December, so we’re keeping an eye on that.
I guess LEGO, would like to focus more on its Double VIP points and Black Friday deals which kind of makes up to the lack of GWP sets during this month, however, there’s still the usual Monthly Mini Build (Ice Dragon) so that’s something to look forward to as well.
Check out the LEGO Store November 2018 calendar below for a more detailed look at the upcoming events at your local LEGO store.
November 1-30: Double VIP Points for the Month of November
Starting November 1, LEGO VIP members can avail of Double VIP Points for selected LEGO sets, either at your local LEGO store or via vip.LEGO.com. We’ll keep you posted what these sets are once the information becomes available.
November 6-7: The Monthly Mini Build is an Ice Dragon (40286)
In order to sign up, guests must have a registered LEGO VIP email address. If you do not have one, you can create one for free at shop.LEGO.com/VIP. This event has limited space. To reserve a spot, visit shop.LEGO.com/Minibuild-Registration starting October 15. Due to safety and build experience standards, builders must be between the ages of 6-14 to participate. The mini model must be completely built inside the store. Registration is on a first come first serve basis and quantities are limited.
November 23-26: Black Friday Deals
Be sure to check with your LEGO Store for the coolest discounts on select LEGO sets beginning Black Friday (November 23) until over the weekend. We’ll try to inform you about the LEGO sets that’ll go for sale once the info becomes available.
We also mentioned before that LEGO seems to be stepping up in opening more LEGO brand stores across the US just in time for the holidays. Furthermore, the introduction of the LEGO Pop-Up Store concept is a much welcomed one by AFOLs and LEGO fans in general, especially at locations where there’s no LEGO brand store yet. The LEGO Store November 2018 calendar now mentions several LEGO Stores opening in the country. Be sure to check with stores.LEGO.com to learn about their opening dates soon.
LEGO Brand Stores
Ross Park Mall, PA
La Plaza Mall, TX
Haywood Mall, SC
Lakeside Shopping Center, LA
Westfield Galleria at Roseville, CA
Crossgates Mall, NY
Oxmoor Center, KY
Dadeland Mall, FL
LEGO Pop-up Store/Workshops Locations
The Mall in Columbia, MD
Galleria at Tyler, CA
The Shoppes at Buckland Hills, CT
Woodbridge Center, NJ
Perimeter Mall, GA
Smith Haven Mall, NY
Lastly, LEGO is extending the brick-building fun to children who are yet to experience the joy of playing with LEGO bricks. Throughout the month of November and up until the holidays, the LEGO Group will be launching the #BuildToGive 2018 Holiday Campaign.
The idea is for every ornament built out of LEGO bricks either at home or in a LEGO Store, the LEGO Group will donate one LEGO set to charity. An image of this ornament must then be shared on social media platforms with #BuildToGive. The goal is to reach a total donation of 500,000 LEGO sets equivalent to 5 million USD. That’s a ton of LEGO bricks to share around and spread the fun.
The month of November also marks the re-release of the LEGO Creator Expert Vestas Wind Turbine (10268) so this is something to watch out for as well. Though it is a bit pricey as far as the general sentiment of the LEGO community is concerned, the Vestas Wind Turbine (10268) is undoubtedly one of the best LEGO Creator Expert sets there is.
Be sure to stay tuned here at our Brick Show blog for the latest happenings and events in the world of LEGO. Just click on the subscribe button below to receive real-time updates.
Ever since LEGO made the impossible possible by recreating the Bugatti Chiron into a life-sized brick construct with working Power Functions engine, the concept of a large LEGO car as an attraction for special events has become popular. That would explain why a life-sized LEGO Speed Champions Porsche 911 Turbo was found at the WeatherTech Raceway recently.
The racecourse, located at Laguna Seca in California, played host to a special event by Porsche on Friday, September 28, called “Champions in Racing”. That was where they unveiled the limited-production new-age Porsche 935. But another car that drew looks wasn’t even a real vehicle.
Part of Porsche’s display in partnership with LEGO is a nearly life-sized LEGO Speed Champions Porsche 911 Turbo, part of a dual-set with the 911 RSR (with set number 75888). Unlike the aforementioned Bugatti Chiron model, made of the same kind of LEGO Technic pieces as the official set (42083) but more, the 911 Turbo was not only immobile but not even made of actual LEGO bricks.
In addition to the Speed Champions upsized Porsche being made available for photo-ops, LEGO also included a LEGO build zone, where kids could construct to their hearts’ content while the grownups watched the race on the WeatherTech Raceway with the actual new-age Porsche 935 participating.
Just to make things clear, the 935 that raced at WeatherTech Laguna Seca was based more on the Porsche 911 GT2 RS. Only 77 units of this 935 were produced and all will be going to the carmaker’s VIP customers.
While quite a number of new LEGO Branded Stores are on the verge of opening across the US this coming November, but out west across the Pacific, one particular flagship store has opened in what can be considered LEGO’s newest frontier: the second LEGO Brand Store in China will now cater to LEGO fans in Shanghai, making LEGO’s branding and presence even more felt in this side of Asia.
While LEGO has long been a rising presence in the Chinese retail scene, thus far it has not got on the branded store bandwagon with other international markets of the iconic toy brand. The one LEGO Store in the country before this was in Disneyland Shanghai. Finally, that has changed with the opening of this next LEO Brand Store in China.
Outside of the theme park and right in the urban center of the city itself, China’s second LEGO Branded Store finally opened its doors to eager shoppers in People’s Square of Shanghai’s Huangpu District. Occupying two stories, the new flagship has an attention-getting general design theme: The Future of Shanghai.
LEGO China General Manager and the LEGO Group Senior VP Paul Huang, was pleased to welcome families and shoppers saying. “Our store brings more opportunities for Chinese children, parents and LEGO fans of all ages to explore the many different LEGO products and experiences while enjoying a truly unique and high-quality engagement with the LEGO brand.”
Among the interactive features of the LEGO Store Shanghai are free-play Future City building tables featuring customizable brick-built skylines of future Shanghai, “Immersion Portals” for LEGO City and Ninjago with 3D experience booths, and even a rare Mosaic Maker machine for creating personalized mosaic portraits (40179), priced at 999 Yuan ($145).
Not only will the new flagship LEGO Store be a boon for Chinese LEGO buyers, it can also be a major draw for tourists to Shanghai who probably haven’t made plans to go to Disneyland.
LEGOLAND Windsor Resort has been quite busy in recent weeks. Last month they opened their first “Total Sensory Space” for the benefit of their guests with special sensory needs. And of course, they’re gearing up for the start of the annual Brick or Treat festival this coming October. That’s all a lot of exhausting work. Perhaps it’s so much work, in fact, that LEGOLAND Windsor, or rather its parent company Merlin Entertainments, is looking to hire any LEGO builder in the UK with good enough skill and confidence in said skill to work as a LEGO Model Maker for the park.
It’s said that all brick-built models in LEGOLAND Windsor, when taken apart, will amount to more than 90 million individual LEGO pieces. That pretty much tells you what mount of work a newly minted LEGO Model Maker can expect when he takes up this job at LEGOLAND.
What’s more, the new modeler’s first major undertaking with LEGOLAND Windsor is the building of “spooky new models” to decorate the Brick or Treat “Haunted House Monster Party” attraction. They can expect to be putting together “creatures crawling in search of blood to terrorize your neighborhood” once they get hired.
And it will be a quick hiring to be sure. Applications sent to Merlin Entertainments for the new LEGO Model Maker at LEGOLAND Windsor will only be until September 28, at 11:59 PM. Whoever gets hired can enjoy a competitive salary, an employee’s 40% discount on LEGO products, 28 days of holiday and 20 free tickets to all Merlin Entertainments park attractions.
Early this month, we covered a single LEGO MOC display in Fort William, Scotland at the UK. It was a brick-built historical recreation of an ancient Scottish hillfort. That was just one display. But this month two other Scottish historical sites will soon be hosting their own multi-display LEGO exhibits. These are the Brick History and Brick Wonders displays, both composed of LEGO fan creations by LEGO artist Warren Elsmore and his team. Brick Wonders is set to debut in Stirling Castle this coming Saturday, September 29, at the former Scottish Royal Residence and tourist attraction Stirling Castle.
Brick Wonders will feature brick recreations of “amazing sights from around the world”, with equal emphasis on historical locations and modern-day complexes. As seen in the photo, they can range from old-style housing to aircraft, space shuttles and other vehicles.
In the meantime, Warren Elsmore’s other LEGO MOC exhibit, Brick History, is straightforward in its subject matter. It’s described as a journey through some of world history’s pivotal moments, from Pompeii to London Bridge to Mozart to Martin Luther King. The display kicked off just this weekend, September 22, this time at Fort George, Highland.
Both Brick History and Brick Wonders are included in the usual admission price for visitors at their respective venues of Stirling Castle and Fort George. Brick Wonders will remain at Stirling until January 23 of next year, while Brick History will finish off at Fort George earlier, on January 6.
There’s really no doubt now, that LEGO has fortuitously timed the introduction of so many elements of their total brand that their respective anniversaries – in multiples of ten – fall on the same year. Thus this 2018 they (and we) celebrated 60 years of LEGO bricks, 40 years of minifigures, 50 years of LEGOLAND (Billund’s opened in 1968), and 10 years of LEGO Ideas too.
That’s right; it’s been ten years since that wonderfully ingenious platform for the LEGO building community to submit designs that might become official LEGO sets came to be under its original name of LEGO Cuusoo.
Now, to celebrate yet another important milestone to the complete history of LEGO, a big exhibition is being held at LEGO House in Billund, Denmark. This exhibit showcases actual builds of the various models submitted throughout 10 years of LEGO Ideas, while not passing review, did receive 10,000 enthusiastic supporters needed.
The selection of 10K submissions, now called “Product Ideas” in the platform’s parlance, comes from 11 countries all over the world. The builds range from vehicles, to buildings, to creatures and robots galore, and a testament to the intense imaginations that fired up those who submitted them to LEGO Ideas.
LEGO House will keep the exhibit up until October 8, and it can be (thankfully) viewed in the Home of the Brick’s free-access area. Or you can view photos of the displays at LEGO Ideas’ official blog, alongside information and interviews with their respective creators.
