º£½ÇÊÓƵ

A new 'escape room' experience is set to open early next year in north Birmingham as the popularity of the attractions shows no sign of slowing down.

Father and son team Chris and James Bartlett are behind Escape Time which will open in a former office building in Chester Road North, New Oscott.

The pair will draw on their experience of running audio visual and production company JDB Events and involvement with to open the first escape room in the town.

James, who is also an actor who has appeared in Hollyoaks and Doctors, said the pair were keen to tap into the rising popularity of the games which challenge visitors to solve puzzles in order to escape from themed locked rooms within a set time frame.

"There's nothing like this here at the moment and the plan is to get this one up and running and then expand into other properties in north Birmingham," he said.

"We're hoping to offer something a bit different from what's already out there by drawing on our background experience in events.

"We've been trying to open in Sutton Coldfield for around six months now and have looked at several different properties. The building has been vacant for a few years and a lot of work is necessary to create the rooms and bring it up to scratch."

The two-storey venue, which will create up to ten full- and part-time jobs, will initially have two rooms, whose themes are yet to be revealed, but more are expected to be added once the venue is up and running.