A PLAN to open a tourist attraction dedicated to serial killer Fred West with "swings and rides" and "a big dipper" has caused outrage - but the whole thing was a hoax.

Twitter account @LettersOfNote posted a picture of a letter penned by a Mr E Firth which was said to have been printed in the Wilts & Glos Standard in December 2011.

The letter suggests opening a tourist attraction named Westworld devoted to Gloucestershire's most notorious man, convicted murderer Fred West, as a "shot in the arm" to the county's economy.

Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard:

However, the letter was never published nor received by the Standard, and thus appears to be a hoax created purely for comedic value.

But hundreds of people believed that Mr Firth's letter was genuine, and actually published by the Standard, and they blasted the Westworld idea as sick and completely inappropriate, understandably.