Daredevil grandmother Jackie Smith has been appointed as Alton Towers’ first-ever Chief Thrillseeker.
This role will see Jackie reviewing the theme park’s most daring rides, including Nemesis, to ensure they meet her thrill-seeking standards. She’ll also take part in the Thrillseeker Summit, which takes place biannually.
Testing theme park rides may seem like an interesting career move for a 72-year-old, but Jackie has spent a lifetime taking on thrill-seeking jobs and daring feats.
In 1972, she became the first-ever female Red Devil, which is the name given to the British Army Parachute Regiment’s Freefall Display Team.
She was also the first woman to win the Regiment’s red beret two years later.
Jackie has completed over 5,000 parachute jumps in her lifetime and even once jumped off El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.
She most famously parachuted into Meadowbank Stadium in Edinburgh to open the 1986 Commonwealth Games, despite being four months pregnant at the time.
Compared to everything else Jackie has done through the years, her new role at Alton Towers is relatively normal.
Experienced writer and journalist James McKean leads the daily editorial output at StaffsLive. To contact him, email news@staffslive.co.uk
