A major new multi-sensory experience packing a historical punch and plenty of heat will get pulses racing and temperatures rising at the London Dungeon when it opens on 21 May. Marking the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London, 'Escape the Great Fire' will recreate the drama of one of the world's most famous disasters with live actors, themed settings and sizzling special effects.

Guests will be transported back to London's Great Fire (2 September 1666). The sparks from Thomas Farriner's bakery in Pudding Lane have set the packed timber houses of London alight and the city has become a raging inferno. The flames are so hot that cooked pigeons are dropping out of the sky, the streets are running with molten lead and St Paul's is burning to the ground. Londoners are fleeing the Capital, piling into boats on the river to escape the destruction as panic sweeps the city. Intrepid guests will find sanctuary in the house of the Lord Mayor and meet his faithful servant whilst the carnage unfolds outside.

Boom! The deafening sound of gunpowder explosions suddenly fills the air and screams ring out in the nearby streets: the fire fighters are blowing up houses to stop the fire spreading – and the Mayor's house is next! As the heat rises and the stifling smell of smoke permeates the air, the flames begin to creep under the door, quickly engulfing the room as the house begins to collapse. Guests will need all their wits to escape un-singed!

Those who do escape the fire will have plenty more scares (and a fair few laughs) in store as the London Dungeon unleashes 1000 years of London's dark history in 19 shows, featuring some of history's greatest rogues and villains, two thrilling rides and plenty of edge-of-the-seat surprises.