Colossal Squid
Returning video tapes
Today I paid a trip to Mid/West Sussex outpost East Grinstead, just on the border with them Surrey lot. Here are my findings:
It was shit.
Despite some half decent olde architecture and historical buildings the town looks dilapidated and uncared for. Furthermore as a destination for shopping it is a total waste of time with a high street boasting only mobile phone shops and a large 99p store where the Woolworths used to be. All the former Thresher premises (of which there are many) are empty shells with no new tenants and even the splendid old Midland bank building has lost its HSBC tenants and is now home to some beggars from the Rotary Club who molest passers by for donations. It's criminally shit.
You'd think in somewhere so depressing and gloomy there'd be plenty of watering holes to drown your sorrows in but NO, the few measly pubs that are there are beyond dreadful, if they're even open. I had a pint in the only hospitable looking place, a recently refurbished Youngs pub called The Ship, where I was the ONLY customer. It was uncomfortable as the seats had had the cushions ripped off them and stolen.
Where once was the well stocked independent record shop Jingles is now some two bit nothing shop and I wandered the entire town centre only to discover that there isn't a single place to buy cd's or records anymore. In fact the only store with any suggestion of entertainment was the Blockbuster video on the high street. It was also empty, not just of customers but of stock too.
What a depressing little town. It left me wondering whether I'd even choose to live there over the miserable pit of Burgess Hill. I concluded that at least Burgess Hill is close to Brighton so has ONE redeeming feature, which is TWO more than East Grinstead has.
So what Sussex towns or villages have you been less than impressed with?
And don't just say Crawley because everyone already knows that's shit
It was shit.
Despite some half decent olde architecture and historical buildings the town looks dilapidated and uncared for. Furthermore as a destination for shopping it is a total waste of time with a high street boasting only mobile phone shops and a large 99p store where the Woolworths used to be. All the former Thresher premises (of which there are many) are empty shells with no new tenants and even the splendid old Midland bank building has lost its HSBC tenants and is now home to some beggars from the Rotary Club who molest passers by for donations. It's criminally shit.
You'd think in somewhere so depressing and gloomy there'd be plenty of watering holes to drown your sorrows in but NO, the few measly pubs that are there are beyond dreadful, if they're even open. I had a pint in the only hospitable looking place, a recently refurbished Youngs pub called The Ship, where I was the ONLY customer. It was uncomfortable as the seats had had the cushions ripped off them and stolen.
Where once was the well stocked independent record shop Jingles is now some two bit nothing shop and I wandered the entire town centre only to discover that there isn't a single place to buy cd's or records anymore. In fact the only store with any suggestion of entertainment was the Blockbuster video on the high street. It was also empty, not just of customers but of stock too.
What a depressing little town. It left me wondering whether I'd even choose to live there over the miserable pit of Burgess Hill. I concluded that at least Burgess Hill is close to Brighton so has ONE redeeming feature, which is TWO more than East Grinstead has.
So what Sussex towns or villages have you been less than impressed with?
And don't just say Crawley because everyone already knows that's shit
