The last resorts
THE struggles of the English seaside have been well documented. From being the height of fashion in the Victorian era, many of these pearls of the coastline now lie deprived and decaying, long abandoned by the tourists who once flocked to them.
And while government policies recognise urban and rural Britain as distinct from each other, coastal communities have had no such special treatment, being largely left to their own devices.
However, according to a new book by Peter Williams, The English Seaside, in many cases this has been to their benefit, as the resorts’ individual attempts to forge their own futures has given them a character of their own, often far removed from the corporate blandness afflicting the rest of the country.
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Hide AdSo, as harsh economic reality restricts the freedom that families once had to flee these shores, it is perhaps time to enjoy once again the sheer oddity of England’s seaside resorts in all their eccentric charm.