The UK’s ‘most depressing’ seaside town named by tourists as locals hit back

A UK seaside town in an area of the country beloved by staycationers was named as the most depressing in Britain – prompting a furious response from locals.

Each year satirical website ILIVEHERE website polls readers on the places Britain most deserving of the title and and tell them why, producing a top 20 of the worst, according to those surveyed.

Falmouth, a town on the coast of Cornwall in southwest England known for its beauty and rich art scene was given the dubious honour this year, despite it’s “vibrant” atmosphere, the outlet said.

Announcing the result back in February, ILIVEHERE said: “The power of social media and word of mouth is what propelled Falmouth to No.1.

“Falmouth was a reader entry and rapidly started to challenge the mighty Peterborough, beating the Cambridgeshire synonym for depression by just 27 votes in the last 12hrs of voting.”

Another fired back: “Who believes these soul destroyers?”

But other commenters agreed poll, claiming Cornwall as a county was “boring all over”, accusing the holiday hotspot of being “all fur coat, no knickers”.

In response to the criticism, ILIVEHERE said: “We have to admit, we know absolutely nothing about Falmouth. We googled it, it looks picturesque but we’re sure it’s a facade it trades on, and who are we to question the wisdom of the crowd?”

Suggesting the area had been a victim of gentrification, the website added: “Hell we might even take a trip to this Cornish port and stay in an AirBnB that is now owned by a London landlord that a local family once lived in, to take in what we imagine is a sterile socially cleansed fishing theme park for DFLs,” the outlet added.

Falmouth clearly divides opinion, having only recently been described by TimeOut as Cornwall’s “cooler town” with the outlet ranking it ninth on its 15 best places to visit in the UK.

The presence of campuses from both Exeter and Falmouth universities gives the area a younger feel – but it has regardless retained its beautiful cobbled streets, folky music scene and breathtaking sea views.