To nominate as the country's worst town centre....

[moogster1a]

...Rochdale.
Good God it's a god forsaken place. There appears to be half a dozen payday loan shos, a few poundland things and some mobile 'phone shops.
It's got so bad that even maccy d's has shut down.
It's only redeeming feature is that Gabbots farm is still clinging on.

Hartlepool is the Big Smoke to people from Peterlee!

Dontask I live near Scarborough. I avoid it at all costs. I hope you don't have to move there.

I work in bracknell - it is a shithole.

Having said that Basingstoke (or Basingrad/Basragrad as it's known it the office) apparently makes Bracknell look upmarket so that must be heinous .

Oh shit LeQueen, my mum's trying to move there

dontaskwhereilive Scarborough does not have a 'small' M&S, it's quite large. Bridlington has a miniscule M&S. Scarborough also has Matalan, 2 Argos's and a lot of well known (albeit on the small side ) chains, including quite a large TK Maxx , Next and Debenhams, and they are all in the town centre! Also there are those on the industrial estate: Next Home, Brantano, Currys/PC World, Dunelm Mill,Pets at Home etc. I really don't recognise the place you are describing!

Plus you have the seaside on your doorstep. What more could you ask!?

This is a wonderful thread. It has made me feel grateful that my nearest town centre is Gravesend. You won't see a comment like that every day.

Gotta say I don't recognise Scarborough from that at all! Quite like a poke round the shops there. Jamdonut, I think we are the Yorkshire Coast cheerleaders

Yay!!!

Has anyone mentioned Edinburgh?
They've ruined it with the fecking tram works, cant figure out day to day where the buses stop, never know where you will be diverted to, mutter mutter mutter

moogster1a lovely Cheshire I'll grant you Northwich is NOT lovely Cheshire. As for mutants, you have never been in most of the shops then or met the infamous Johnny Depp woman in Winsford.

It'sStillBloodyBetterThanAshtonTiggaxx

Stafford

Ah, Waspie, Basingstoke is lovely. Not in the 'roman city/full of history' sort of way, but it is a fab shopping centre, with loads of shops and restaurants etc. Easily accessible, too. Pretty vibrant and not at all boarded-up!

Naaarich - it's a rought noice city hint it.

I went to Scarborough a few years ago and thought it was quite nice. Has it gone really downhill?

HillyWallaby, that's a masterful tour of the shitholes of the south east you've produced there. YY on Feltham and the whole of the "wrong side of the Chertsey".

Sorry, don't really agree with either Scarborough nor Southport for being worst lovely seaside fronts and what appear to me to be really thriving shopping centres. Yes OK they have the usual fruit machine shops, cash converters, Poundland's etc, but what town doesn't these days?

imogengladheart how dare you desparage the men o gala waters,
but it's true, the one way system is the road to nowhere in Gala

Melrose has lost its heart... unless you go left left right left....
if you pass the beware of children and peacocks sign you're on the wrong road

Well, I suppose I'm just used to a different atmosphere. I was there in the early morning and I saw a fair few drunks to be honest and a raid on a flat. I found it a depressing atmosphere.

And I didn't see the shops I tend to sort of 'rely' on. But maybe I missed them Is there a Laura Ashley or a Monsoon? I get a fair few bits there for the girls. Also no Lakeland and I love lakeland.

I just saw phone shops - although yes I did see the Matalan.So that will be handy. My older child is spitting feathers about a lack of H&M and GAP and moaned she couldn't find Neals Yard stuff

Guess I'm a city girl at heart.

Oh I also didn't mention but I also found it really difficult to access with a wheelchair. Loads of shops didn't have electric doors or enough space. That's probably an old town thing. Although we could get in Costa if they opened both doors. The M&S cafe was just too damn small for the chair we were bumping into everything.

Internet shopping will save me.

Sorry that was Scarborough town centre I was on about.

S'ok the only Monsoon in gala was when it rained

they do have a Tesco now though