FROM: Disney P.I. Published As Uncovered

The Case for Calling Epcot's UK Phone Booths

Just when I think I know everything there is to know about Disney World, the Disney P.I. comes up with something new: did you know that you can call the phone booths in Epcot's UK Pavilion and talk to whichever random Disney guest answers?

- by Debra Peterson, July 28, 2011

Times and technology have changed since I first hit the streets as Disney P.I. Notebook in hand, I used to check in with clients using the nearest payphone in the parks. I'd pick up the receiver, throw in two bits, and offer my latest reports on the magic.

Today, I still carry a trusty notebook - disguised as a Disney autograph book so as to not arouse suspicion - but have little use for the payphone. Like many others, I rely on my cell phone.

Walt Disney World Payphones and Public Phones

I'm glad payphones are still present at Walt Disney World theme parks and resorts. It's comforting to know I have the option in case my battery dies and I don't have the time to visit Guest Relations, with my on-site "Gal Fridays". And it's good to see so many phones offer a TTY (TeleTypewriter) system for guests who need such assistive devices.

I know payphones might be useful for other guests as a cheap option for those making a local call using coins. (My informants tell me not to use a credit card or call outside the local area unless you have a high-roller client and an expense account.)

I've even found Disney public phones and payphones to be convenient for making a last-minute Advance Dining Reservation in order to follow a suspect to a favorite watering hole. I simply find the nearest public phone and call WDW Dining, for free, by pressing *88. Stopping at a pay phone is a classic way to conduct surveillance, after all.

Generally, though, when I walk by a Disney payphone, it's something I admire from a distance, something I see as a nostalgic bit of technology and not a means of communication.

Call the Epcot Phone Booths

Except when I'm at Epcot's World Showcase at the United Kingdom Pavilion or at its neighbor, Canada.

I am drawn to these British red telephone boxes, originally designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, every time I'm in Epcot. I simply have to stand at one. Oh, I don't compare myself to Superman. But if I did, the booths might be where I imagine transforming into Disney, Super P.I. You might say the phone booths are my Kryptonite.

Yes, those three red phone booths in the U.K. call out to me ... literally. And to other Disney guests. They are working phone booths with incoming phone numbers. Other guests, and people from around the wider (non-Disney) world, can call the booths' numbers to see who will pick up for a bit of spontaneous conversation.

Curious enough to reach out and touch someone? Try using one of these numbers:

U.K. Phone Booths

• Right Booth: 407 827-9861
• Left Booth: 407 827-9862
• Center Booth: 407 827-9863

Canada Phone Booth

• 407-827-9884

For a call to be completed, naturally, a Disney guest has to pick up the phone. That doesn't always happen, and callers may hear a busy signal (guests often pose for photos, receiver in hand) or a fax-machine sound after a half-dozen rings.

Dialing Up the Disney Magic

But that uncertainty is part of the magic and the mystery of the phone call. The caller never knows who is going to answer or when, while the receiver doesn't know who's calling or from where. And neither party can predict what surprises a conversation between strangers will hold.

For this investigator, the Epcot phone booths are one of those unexpected pleasures. The phones are a bit of interactive fun very much in the spirit of the Payphone Project, which promotes random contacts among strangers. And that idea itself is very much in the spirit of Disney.

So, my future informants, be ready. If you're in Epcot, and one of the phones in the red booths begins ringing, answer. It might just be me, asking for information to solve another Disney mystery. I'm sure you'll be willing to help.

Until next time, consider me on the case.

More: DISNEY, P.I.