5. Alfred Hitchcock: The Art of Making Movies

One of the most ambitious "edutainment" attractions in the park's original line-up was Alfred Hitchcock: The Art of Making Movies. In the attraction, inspired by the works of the legendary “Master of Suspense”, Universal employees guided guests through recreations of scenes from classic movies such as Strangers on a Train, Vertigo and Saboteur. The cornerstone, though, was the gritty shower scene from Psycho.

In the shower scene, a blonde “starlet” would dress in a full body stocking similar to that worn by Janet Leigh in the movie. The water would then be switched on, with the audience being shown how Bates’ “Mother” kills the young lady with a butcher’s knife. Among the snippets of information shared with guests would be that the scene took some seven days to shoot with a 40-person crew, and that chocolate syrup was used in place of stage blood because it looked better on black and white film.

Shrek 4-D now occupies the Alfred Hitchcock show building.

4. Nickelodeon Studios

One of Universal Studios Florida’s biggest coups was to persuade Nickelodeon, the children’s cable television network, to set up its own studios at the park. Nickelodeon occupied two dedicated soundstages (numbers 18 and 19), and made Orlando its primary center for production.

The studio doubled as a major attraction when the theme park opened in 1990. Batly, Magellan and other popular network characters roamed around the studio. Even the bathrooms were designed to be fun, stocked with Gak soap – made with the trademark goo that was dumped on contestants on Double Dare game show. Even more of the goo was pumped out of a slime geyser in front of soundstage 18.

By 2004, only a single show, U-Pick Live, was being produced in Orlando. Although a further show, SPLAT!, debuted in summer that year, it was the last to be produced on the site. Nickelodeon Studios shut its doors in April 2005, with soundstage 18 being transformed over the following two years into a 1,000 seat venue for the Blue Man Group performers, who began their shows in June 2007.

3. Jaws

Capitalizing on its consulting deal with Steven Spielberg and building on a set-piece from the existing Universal Studios Hollywood tour, Universal decided to bring Jaws to Orlando. In Hollywood, Jaws’ great white shark lunges out of a lagoon at the Studio Tour’s trams. The Florida version of the experience would be significantly expanded and enhanced. Riders would now board flimsy-looking boats, placing them in much greater jeopardy. And just as Kong lifted up riders’ tram cars, Jaws would actually grab the boats with his sharp teeth.

Unfortunately, the Jaws ride proved to be a liability. It closed after just a few months, having cost some $30 million to build. It was completely rebuilt at a cost of a further $40 million, however, and proved to be an enduringly popular attraction until its removal in 2012 to make way for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley.

2. Back to the Future: The Ride

Opened in 1991, Back to the Future: The Ride was Universal's answer to Disney's Star Tours. Ostensibly, the attraction would be similar to Star Tours: a simulated flight through a fictional universe. However, on a technical level, Universal would approach the project very differently to Disney’s Imagineers.

The ride’s plot revolved around the theft of Doc Brown’s time machine by villainous Hill Valley resident Biff Tannen, the movie’s “bad guy”. Riders assisted Doc Brown by boarding another time machine and chasing Biff through the past. The queue wound through the Doc’s Institute of Future Technology, with riders being batched into groups before watching a short pre-show during which Doc Brown explained that on a time travel excursion back to 1955, the young Biff had stowed away in the DeLorean time machine. He was now on the loose, and up to no good. Both Christopher Lloyd and Thomas F. Wilson (who portrayed Biff in the films) reprised their roles, with Biff eventually hijacking the time machine.

Riders boarded recreations of the DeLorean, before being lifted into place in front of an enormous OmniMax screen to begin their adventure. Unlike the individual simulators employed by Star Tours, 12 were arrayed in front of each screen. The system is still in use by The Simpsons Ride, Back to the Future's eventual replacement.

1. Kongfrontation

Another star of the Universal Studios Hollywood tour would have his very own attraction at Universal Studios Florida: Kongfrontation, based on the 1976 version of King Kong. The plot revolved around Kong being on the loose in New York. Guests were informed of this in the queue line, before boarding the Roosevelt Island Tramway to “escape”.

After passing through realistic scenes of destruction, they would twice encounter Kong, before discovering that they had been “filmed” and were starring in a new King Kong movie. The second encounter with Kong would be particularly spectacular, with Kong actually picking up the tram and then throwing it to the ground after coming under fire from a helicopter.

Many fans were up-in-arms when Kongfrontation was closed in 2002. Its soundstage is now occupied by Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride.

Learn more about the history of Universal Orlando

To learn more about the history of the Universal Orlando Resort, check out Universal Orlando: The Unofficial Story - the first book ever to document its creation and evolution, from its debut to the present day. The book is available from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk in paperback and Kindle formats.