The side of Cornwall, UK that tourists don’t see - 8 Worst Places 

So, Cornwall is the second poorest region in Europe (I pretty much knew that, living in Dorset and it having been on the local news a few years back) but has the lowest crime rate in the country. Doesn't that give lie to the claim that poverty is the cause of crime?

As someone from Rotherham I thought all those towns looked quite nice. They were all clean with no fly tipping waste, litter or dog sh*t laying in the street and nothing was on fire😂

The worst thing about Camborne is that not every train stops there on Wednesdays.

Thanks for all your hard work in putting this series together. Well as a 55 year old working class man, it looks to me that we’ve had approximately 45 years of deliberate government underinvestment in our country, that have decimated these working class towns from north to south of this land.

Fun fact about Camborne, in the 18th/19th century the Camborne and Redruth district was the richest mining area in the world. I live in Camborne and I actually got called a "rich Cornish tory" the other day when I was debating with someone online 😂 So many people north of the Tamar bridge assume everyone in Cornwall has 3 houses and spends 12 hours a day on the beach. If only they knew most of us can't even afford to live here, with some of the highest house prices and lowest wages in the country

This series is exposing that at least 20% of the UK is in terminal decline.

I don't live in Cornwall but I've been to plenty of Cornish towns. I've also been to Leicester, Sheffield, Bradford, Dewsbury, Halifax, Boston, Doncaster, London and many more and I can tell you where I'd rather live. It's a sad truth that this country is in decline but that's not limited to Cornwall - it's EVERYWHERE. And it's largely government sponsored damage to the economy coupled with a pathological need to kill all town centres.

I've lived in Redruth all my life. I remember going into town and seeing it when it was busy, with lots of different shops and friendly people. Now there are only hairdressers, cafes, charity shops and random art shops that bring nothing to the community. People are angry now, not only because we are spending more money to live there than other nicer places, but because the people in charge of the town have no idea what they are doing, and you have to travel all the way to Truro if you want to buy a new pair of underwear, socks or shoes. We have a ton of homeless and druggies who get shipped off down here, and then they are left to do whatever they want with no repercussion. Every year there is a new "gang" of kids, who think they can do what they want (probably because the cops do nothing except laugh with them) who throw stuff at the windows of the town shops and peoples flats (mine included) breaking them, which then sit there for years looking like crap. They don't make any building inhabitable, in Town, because they're "Listed Buildings" and then charge people the same, or more, as it is to live in Truro; leaving us to live in a single pane windowed, black mould infested building.

I live in Cornwall and every town you mentioned has a very high, excuse the pun, drug problem. My best mate of 25 years moved to Penzanze and it definitely contributed to his decline in mental health and drug addiction then death!!. Something needs to be done for the whole of Cornwall because the drug problem is in EVERY place!! RIP JOE 🙏

Former mining towns are always grim. Single employer monocultures, where everyone who can gets out. Those left behind duke it out on Saturday nights or get wasted. In their hey day most of them would have been thriving communities, with social activities that go along with employment and money.

Redruth a town so bad they built a bypass to avoid it, then they built a new bypass to bypass the bypass. True story I live here.

I have lived my life near to St Austell and whilst there are some bad parts in Cornwall I really wouldn't want to live anywhere else. The UK seems to be in a death spiral and over the next decade or so I can imagine a huge influx of people trying to escape from the cities.

Lived near Truro my entire life. The list is accurate. Redruth is known as Red-rough for example. But compared to many places around the UK it really isn't that bad unless you decide to go on nights out on Friday / Saturday nights, particularly St Austell. The biggest issue with Cornwall is people don't like change which stops any form of plans being approved. There has been planning for a new stadium near Truro for over 13 years, we still don't have one. Then the Hall for Cornwall, which caters for a small age group of people, was given £18m to refurbish the building. The wrong type of people making these decisions at the Council, only catering for themselves and close allies, much like most of the UK!

The irony is it's a lot worse during the holidays when the people from real turdtowns show up with their turdtown ways.

Ironically, St Austell town centre was knocked down about 10ish years ago for the new White River Place development, which caused the beginning of the decline as people got used to going elsewhere if they could (usually Truro), and the town council put the rents up to claw money back which then pushed a lot of the independent businesses out. Add to it the two homeless shelters with the residents' incumbent problems and you've got yourself a winning TurdTown. I used to work outside of the town centre and my lift would frequently see drug deals going on in the car park, also someone once drove into the carpark of our building, in full view of all the windows, pulled down his trousers and injected something into his groin area. Also had a car left there which was later set on fire as an insurance job. Classy. People used to leave the building in twos, especially in the winter. Also the saying about Bodmin is because of St Lawrence's Hospital, which was a mental asylum. The old building has been demolished but the current hospital still houses all our mental health wards. Hope the chap in the fountain is doing OK.

Your descriptions of each place you mention are very accurate. I met my wife (a Cornish girl) in Newquay in 1967. Then it was a great place with lots of nightlife, fabulous beaches and surfing. We went back in 2017 to find the place where we met. Newquay is now a shit-hole. We lived in London when we married but we then moved to St Austell in 1974. Easily the worst years of my life. Not much work and not much pay - a complete struggle. What was worse, though, was the fact that 75% of people would not speak to me once they found out I came from London. I managed to last three years down there but could not stand it anymore. We came back to London and civilisation.

Being from Kernow, I can concur with the conclusions here. It's very funny, but depressingly accurate. Cornwall has suffered for hundreds of years.

One suggestion : Instead of using average house prices where outliers can throw the results, how about using the median which would give a more accurate account of what most people living there pays?

You got that spot on, just subscribed. Loved the comment from Rotherham saying it all looks nice as there was no fly tipping and nothing was on fire 😂

I was born in Cornwall and moved when I was 18 for uni. Haven’t gone back since (apart from going down to visit family ). There is not much hope or opportunities for me or others my age (I am 27 now). People say to me “oh wow you are from Cornwall!! How lucky!) Feel like they need to see this video. Cornwall is amazing but isn’t all sunshine and roses! This is the accurate real Cornwall.

Really enjoying in these videos. I think you guys a doing a great service highlighting these much forgotten areas.

Well that’s been an eye opener ! I’m from the north and have never been to Cornwall but have often thought that it must be gorgeous and very affluent, never did I think that certain places would as run down as some of the towns featured, especially people doing skag in a church yard with human shite laying about. It’s quite shocking really.

Ive been to Cornwall many many times over the last forty years. In the summer it’s beautiful. But very quite in winter. You have to call a cab to get run over. But all In I love it there. Beautiful roads to drive around on. Fantastic beaches. Great food.

Abslutely loving the channel. I need more content. I'm hooked!

12 7:02 years ago I went to Port Talbot, Wales for a work meeting. I was really shaken by what I saw, the place looked like the aftermath of a war, everything shuttered down and closed with no signs of life. People drinking aimlessly in pubs at 10am and so many just aimlessly wondering the streets lime zoombies (drunk or on drugs). The more places I visited the more I visited over the decade the more I realised that MOST towns in the UK now have this affliction, completely bordered up, shut down and lifeless.

I'm from Hampshire but lived in Cornwall for 2 years. Having lived in other parts of the country too, the wages in Cornwall were by far the worst I'd encountered. You were lucky to get £10 an hour in a skilled position. The next thing I encountered was the phenomenonally high rent and property price in general, in 2017 the pokey 2 bedroom flat I rented was 750 a month. Throw 500 in for bills on top of that . A simple maths equation left me with only pocket change at the end of each month. Your mortgage eligibility in the UK is 4 times your annual salary, so if you earn £10 an hour that's £17000 a year which is a mortgage eligibility of £71000. There are no houses in Cornwall at that price. So essentially you could work your arse off and never be able to buy your own place. I don't blame cornish people for getting on the drugs, they're fighting a losing battle

when you see Poundland boarded up you know theres a problem...great eye opener video..me thinking its all affluent down there..

We always hear about the north south divide but the south west is very often ignored in that conversation

Couple of those towns, like St Austell, are 15 minute bus rides or an hours walk from huge empty beaches and private coves. Not all grim and certainly not like their equivalents up north.

Hello! I am from Redruth! My house was actually in your video... Listen... you were wrong.... Cornwall is FAR worse than you thought xD

That's shocking. I visited Cornwall in the mid 90s camping & it was absolutely fantastic. I went to Newquay, St Ives, St Austell, Lands End. I had such a lovely time. So sad to see a place in decline.

I get these places are quite deprived but it feels pretty horrible to judge the people that live in these places for being poor and uneducated. Especially when the judgy, condescending jokes are delivered in a well-spoken accent by someone that sounds like they were lucky enough to benefit from growing up in a more affluent environment with better education and more opportunity.

I'm in awe of your descriptions. This sort of thing's worth knowing if you're thinking of going somewhere.

I live in Cornwall, and despair at its TV portrayal of an idyllic place to live work and play. Most of it is grim, and even if you live in one of the more pleasant places, a Cornish winter of unremitting wind rain and "Cornish clag"will be sure to get you asking, "what have I done"

Having lived in Cornwall all my life, and not in the touristy coastal areas, i can concur that most of the stuff talked about here is true. Cornwall is a deprived, depressing place where the sun only shines on TV. Wages are poor, house prices are high and opportunities are low. And i can't see it getting better.

If I could add a positive note? Obviously there is a huge difference between living in Cornwall and visiting and I’m just back from my first ever holiday in Cornwall. We picked April to avoid the summertime congestion I’d heard so much about and got lucky with the weather - one really warm day, otherwise cold but dry and generally sunny. Stayed in Newquay (lewinnick Lodge) which has beautiful views across the bay. Night skies were spectacular- full of stars which we never see in London. We love our seafood and by and large Cornwall did not disappoint. Admittedly if I had to return to the tired high street on a regular basis, it might get me down but there’s a lovely harbour and beautiful beaches to distract the eye. Most definitely one of the better seaside towns I’ve been to.

I live in Newquay, it's definately got the best nightlife in Cornwall. There's always a band or DJ in the pubs and some place are open until 4am. We have a zoo aquarium, airport that flys to Europe. Every type of restaurant from fine dining to Pizza Indian Chinese and Mexican plus many others..

Some years ago I browsed the small Woolworth’s in Penzance and found it to be a most depressing experience. Less than half an hour after my visit some poor fellow entered the shop and cut his own throat in front of the shop assistants. I’ve often wondered if he had planned it that way or had just found it to be the last straw. RIP

A very good video to be totally honest and factually correct. We live in Cornwall and have done for almost 20 years. We are fortunate to live out in the sticks and in a remote village where people are friendly and the crime rate is minimal/non-existent. Houses are higher priced but it does reflect the area we live in. Cornwall does have issues - drugs, unemployment, low salaries and a Local Authority that screws us for council tax and wastes it paying their dead wood employees offering little in return, a police force that are only around when there is "an incident" because there are not enough of them to go round, poor public transport links, some teenagers who will never work and who have multiple children under the age of 5 , little chance of a decent paid job unless you are already in one, an overall apathetic attitude because residents cannot get money so alot turn to to drugs and ultimately crime. A lot of areas do need massive cash injections to make them presentable and often viable but dont see that anytime soon. So that is the bad side however there is a good side. The good side is that it welcomes several million tourists each year, it used to be between April and October but now pretty much all year and Xmas/New Year is just as busy as the summer. It has stunning beaches, scenery, lovely people, tourist hotspots along the north coast, a reasonably good road network and brings visitors back year on year - some of whom decide to move here. We are not Cornish but have adapted to the slower pace of life, clean air, friendly and helpful people and a place that we call home. We have lived in big cities and towns, worked in the rat race, had dirty streets, overpopulated places and high crime but do not in any way have that now. I dont worry when I leave my house, I dont revert to crime to make ends meet, have worked all my life (yes I have the ability and intelligence to hold a decent job down) and close my door when I come home and think how lucky I am to live in a nice place, where neighbours talk, a community is there to be part of and crime is low bordering on non-existent. If you are pleasant to people they will be pleasant to you (manners cost nothing), integrate with society and embrace the county for what it is and look for the positives. I live within 4 miles of one of the towns mentioned and it is very accurately portrayed but go a few miles away from those town centres and it opens up a whole new world and one that I am more than happy to live in. The town centres are run down due mainly to rising (greedy shop owners) rents, main street shops trimming resource so getting closed due to online shopping and supermarkets vying for your business so being involved in price wars when they can. Food is food wherever you go but we all need to eat. The overriding factor though is quality of life and Cornwall has this in abundance.

I've just come across this channel and would like to commend you on such a great channel and videos. I absolutely love the channel but it's sad to see the reality of the UK. There are so many bad and rough sh1t holes. I've been aware of this for all my adult life so it's nice to see you making videos highlighting the truth.

Awww, I like Penzance. Theres some great pubs! Very friendly and down to earth people too!

I stayed in St Austell for 3 nights about 5-6 years ago for a wedding. While the town centre is nothing to write home about I didn't find it to be too bad. It was a bit run down, but there were at least a few OK chain restaurants, pubs, and quirky shops. It may have helped that I was there in the height of summer which tends to bring out the best in people and places. Once you stray from the high street though, that's where you see the characters you mentioned - surly looking addicts with beady eyes. I didn't experience any trouble, but I definitely didn't feel too safe either. More than anything there was just an atmosphere that was hard to out into words (which you mentioned), I've only felt that same feeling before in the Welsh valleys and certain parts of London. It's really sad actually, many places in Cornwall just feel totally neglected by the government. It's a shame because it is a beautiful county with some great people

I’ve lived in Cornwall my whole life, this was a very accurate list. I especially agree with launceston- it’s basically the most boring town I’ve ever been to. The only part I disagree with as a local is Newquay- it’s changed so much recently, it’s becoming a really nice area. The tourists are the biggest problem as a lot of them are really stupid, but the town itself has a very good surfing culture and atmosphere. It’s still probably the best place in the uk for summer atmosphere and watersports. Especially the crantock/pentire area of Newquay, it’s really beautiful.

I'm enjoying your videos so far! Thank you. For future instalments, I would like to suggest less focus on the headline crime stats and house prices, and I'd also be interested to hear about the streets, arts venues, restaurants etc. in slightly more detail :). I think a lot of the towns get described as 'run down', with 'not much to buy', and sadly that feels true of... so, so many British towns! My suggestions for these details would be things like food hygiene (often reported in local papers), TripAdvisor nightmares, towns with music venues that exclusively put on 70s covers bands, etc. It'd also be cool to hear about parks, cause I think they can make a town feel relaxing... or like noone cares about it at all. And maybe more about clubs and pubs, which you do mention a bit - though I think there is a distinction between really unfriendly pubs, and pubs with history, where you might enjoy going for reasons other than getting totally wasted! Anyway sorry for the long comment, looking forward to seeing future episodes!

went to Launceston once decided we never needed to go there again. also would regularly drive through Redruth and watch it getting a little more derelict each time

It’s nice to see Penzance on the list, my ex wife went to live there when we divorced. She’s probably the one taking it down the shitter.

Great video thank you, I live in Cornwall (in one of the mentioned towns). I was born here moved away and came back, sometimes I wish I hadn’t, it is a lovely place to visit, in places, but very hard to live. I totally agree with some of the areas you mentioned and would not go there in the nighttime. It’s very sad as some places are so beautiful. Once my grandchildren have grown up I have every intention of moving, finances permitting.

Absolutely love the comedic commentary, made my morning 😂

The moment I saw the first turd towns video I knew Cornwall is coming up soon in the future and I bloody well knew that my home town liskeard was going to show up. A not so proud podium indeed. All the money is going towards a library no one entered even before the restoration and the opening of a Wetherspoons right next door only made the high street a less safe place past 9pm than before. I’m happy with how the video turned out though. Good job mate. 🎉

Penzance definitely has several beaches, they’re just not all golden sandy and more stoney than the north coast. It’s also turned a corner and has lots of fantastic independent shops in the town. Every town is going to get it’s anti social problems and yes, there’s no getting away from the poverty in Cornwall, but I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. You have a variety of shops and can walk 3 miles in any direction and literally be in a completely different landscape each time. It’s awesome.

This is brilliant! Keep putting the emmits off an hopefully we'll have our county back , top work ! Also it's that bad that 90% of the houses down in Cornwall are all owned from people out of Cornwall

As a suggestion, you ought to do a count of charity shops in each town. It's a good yardstick to demonstrate the health of the local economy. Councils would rather throw proper businesses out due to high leases and rent them to charities, than see them shut altogether.

There might well be something in the water in Cornwall. Back in July 1988, 20 tonnes of aluminium sulphate was accidentally released to the water supply for the town of Camelford.

A little way outside most of these run down towns is glorious countryside and nice villages. Even within some of these towns are very upmarket areas. All the government money in Cornwall appears to spent in the Truro area by the county council. It’s like Panem in The Hunger Games. Truro is the jewel of Cornwall. Truro has everything, just like Panem!

Your videos are great mate and funny, when are you going to do Wiltshire, Swindon’s town centre is a salubrious place to frequent 👌🏻

Loved the video 👍🏽 very interesting thank you 😊

My uncle’s funeral was in a massive chapel in Bodmin which then became a Wetherspoons but even that has closed I think. Went on a fantastic bike ride on the Camel trail which starts there and goes to Padstein via Wadebridge which are far more touristy. Still means getting out of Bodmin was better than staying.

I live in st Austell and yes it had bad places but u did not mention the great beaches , great inde cinema ,Eden, heligan, meva, Charlestown, yes a 24 hr supermarket , people who live in st Austell don’t use the town centre we live around it and go elsewhere

I'm dissapointed Truro wasn't on here, but Truro is the city of Cornwall so it makes sense. Awesome video!

Excited to see you come to North Wales at some point. Rhyl, Holywell, Denbigh and Bethesda would all feel at home on these lists...

I came to Cornwall in 1970 and it was a great place to be . It has declined over the years due to the influx of second home owners , tourists and students . So keep these vids coming and hopefully they will all go back from whence they came . It will never be what it once was but i it can only improve !!!

I visited St Austell 50 years ago wow how can a place deteriorate so much 😢same with the other places you featured 😮

I agree about most of these - was really surprised to see Penzance on here, though - not sure where you went, there, but it’s a lovely town! Excellent food destinations, lots of independent shops, plenty to do, an Art Deco salt water Lido and a lovely beach, lovely parks like Morrab and Penlee and several galleries. There are some housing estates, but the centre of town is primarily made up of rather fine Georgian townhouses and terraces.

Love the commentary, keeps me coming back for more. 😂😂

As someone who lives in a village half an hour from St Austell I can honestly say I never go there. You scratched the surface of the amount of visible drug and alcohol use in the town and It's intimidating. When you only visit tourist attractions on holiday you don't see the reality of anywhere.

Great video, well done. The disparity is quite unnerving, I know most of Cornwall reasonably well and once stayed in Padstow for around 6 weeks out of season, quaint but even then (1993.) it was changing and monied Londoners lapping up the fayre of Rick Stein whilst local people continued with their normal lives. Maybe not the best example but I understand why the Cornish can be a little unfriendly at times.

I moved to Bodmin 14 years ago, and it is a bit of a rollercoaster in prosperity, it's currently quite low, the positives are three bed houses are as low as 140k and there very affordable larger houses on the outskirts. It's 20 minutes to the coast either way, has plenty of amenities, good secondary schools and a new college.

What a sad video this turned out to be. I am heartbroken to see the state the Cornwall has got itself in to. When I was a kid I lived for a short time in Bodmin and coming from London I was enthralled with it and never wanted to leave. All the other places you mentioned have good memories for me but now I am close to tears. So so sad.

Been to Cornwall numerous times and it has some beautiful places and I really like it there (I am from East Sussex). Been to nearly all these towns and got to say I agree with you. However we stayed last year at the Bodmin Jail Hotel and it is absolutely fantastic.

Really sad - I remember St Austell from the days of The General Wolfe, Saffron Records, and the Cornwall Coliseum. Seems like the proximity of the Eden Project isn't benefitting Snozzle very much.

I love this guy narrating these videos, absolutely hilarious. 🤣🤣

Cornwalls fkn awesome doesn’t matter where your from in Cornwall you can be at any one of 100 beaches within an hour 💚

We live in Looe and have for the last 10 years for retirement, love it, haven’t regretted it one little bit. There are a few non desirable places but most of it is very beautiful! It’s lovely in the winter, if the weather is good, when the tourists have gone home and the beaches are empty to walk and have a paddle! We live in a lovely community and the people of Looe are very friendly. ❤❤Looe

The media seems to con people about Cornish weather. Met office records show that rainfall is higher than anything on the eastern side of the country.

Sad decline like Most of the UK holiday resorts ...Cornwall was thee place in my era 60s 70s 80s..i had family that lived 10 miles or so outside St Austell ,quaint villages ,to die for beaches,great country pubs ,a feeling of tranquility and safety,fantastic memories that all my family still share at get togethers ....how sad to see such a decline,...having not visited since my grandmother past away 20 years ago ,and the remaining residents..moved out of the area to North Devon...i do hope Cornwall can return to the good times ,but sadly i fear the rot has set in for good...

Born and brought in in the poor part of Cornwall. Sad, really sad to see what it has become. I moved away about 17 years ago and now dread to come back - and come only to see elderly relatives. So much has been wasted by naff schemes perpetuated by useless councils. Who remembers this daubed on Crofty's wall 'Cornish lads are fishermen, and Cornish lads are miners too. But when the fish and tin are gone what are the Cornish boys to do?' A really depressing video but true in an its rawness. By the way Turdtowns, the reason folk say 'going to Bodmin' refers to the now closed St Lawrence's Hospital in Bodmin (that was the workhouse). St Lawrence's was the main hospital in Cornwall for the mentally ill.

Love how you say these towns aren't as bad as the Welsh Valleys, as a former resident of the valleys, i found myself thinking these places looked quite up market!

As someone who has lived in Cornwall for all my life, a lot of the things you've said were really accurate and you've answered a question on what caused the downfall of many Cornish towns. Initially, I quite liked Cornwall growing up but to my surprise, September 2018 was when things went horribly wrong as I kept on facing a lot of issues as a lot of people started to treat me like I didn't matter or my problems were not a priority but luckily I had a support group that made sure things didn't escalate, this is still happening to this day but not as much as it used to back then. Things got so bad that I nearly lost all of my respect for Cornwall and I started to make plans to move out when I'm ready. I really did find it really hard to have something nice to say about Cornwall after 2018 as every time I do find the good in Cornwall, another bad thing happens (welcome to the real world) but back in December 2022, I started to feel like that the bad things that had happened in Cornwall between 2018 - 2021/22 actually did benefit me as I used the hard times to make videos about overcoming problems and hope for a brighter future, although I haven't made any videos like that at the moment, the first set of videos are in the development stage and hoping to release them soon. I would like to thank you for making this video as after 5 years of figuring out what went wrong, I finally have an explanation for what caused the downfall of many Cornish towns as whenever I explain the issues with living in Cornwall, they say that "It's normal for people like me to want to move up-country (Cornish slang for outside of Cornwall) because there isn't much to do down here." which they were right but that was by far not the only reason why I wanted to leave and I think it's safe to say that the decline of the mining industry in Cornwall had a massive impact on modern day Cornwall and why things are the way they are. I do genuinely wish that things don't get any worse in Cornwall and I have learnt that I shouldn't blame the entirety of Cornwall for the problems I've faced growing up there as I have a lot of nice memories and made a lot of supportive friends on the way but instead, condemn the people that made Cornwall look bad as it had affected me a lot. One thing I can say is that you've earned a sub for raising awareness about the dark side of the county and hopefully, the dark side will be a bit more brighter. UPDATE (September 20, 2023): I would like to announce that the 5-year anniversary of me having these terrible experiences whilst being in Cornwall is coming next week and earlier today, I had a talk with one of the people involved in this 5-year long issue I’ve been trying to sort out since the very beginning and turns out that the problems I’ve had these past 5 years was actually caused by a misunderstanding rather than the mines closing down. It really is quite mad how 1 misunderstanding can cause a series of problems for half a decade but what’s important is that it is finally resolved and I feel I now realise what has caused my time in Cornwall to be ruined for the past 5 years. Of course, some of the bad things might still happen and there’s still more steps I need to take for some other problem I faced growing up in Cornwall, I’m still fighting and I’ll always be fighting for a better Cornwall for all (the county’s motto is in fact “one and all” after all) even when I relocate to Bournemouth or Exeter in 2024. I would also like to mention that I still believe the mines closing down did put a huge financial strain on the county especially the former mining towns that are like some sort of wasteland and it’s getting clear now that the decline of the mining industry did have a part in Cornwall’s decline but they was indeed more factors that lead to the county’s decline that has been happing since 2018. You know what they say, 5th year’s the charm.

Ive noticed that all the shopping centres where i live Cosham, Portsmouth, Waterlooville, are mainly Charity, Betting and Poundshops, along with boarded up shop fronts. This has been a continuous trend over the last few years, the lockdowns just added to the situation.

This is typical of a lot of places around the UK away from London, Birmingham and Manchester where these areas suffer from extreme deprivation and poverty and Cornwall is no exception to this especially since the A30 has been almost completely upgraded to unbroken dual carriageway allthe way from the M5 at Exeter down near St. Ives. However, I did stay in Jaywick near Clacton a few weeks ago and despite Essex adjoining the Greater London area, even there was a huge difference between the rich areas of Frinton and Walton on the Naze to the East and Jaywick to the West of Clacton.

Very sad to see the state of St. Austell now, it was a little slice of heaven when I grew up there in the 70's, back when the white pyramids had pointy tops. The lovely people and beautiful countryside repeatedly let down by p1ss poor local and state government. Glad my parents cant see it now, they'd be heartbroken.

Big issues with Cornwall, planning meeting are full of retired people that object to any and all good ideas. I've been and seen it for myself in St Austell town council. The other massive issue, nowhere in the whole of Cornwall has a shopping centre or even any real under cover areas in town centers.

I was born and brought up in St Austell but moved away years ago, and sad to say, you got this spot on. There really are high levels of deprivation and a sense of hopelessness, typified by the drug use. It’s v sad to see, and there are still some delightful surrounding areas, but I don’t see it recovering.

All town centres have been decimated by councils creating yet another retail park 😢

STATUES of "grotesque" dogs cast from old Wellington boots have cost an estimated £30,000 as part of town centre improvements in Redruth. The Tinners Hounds, which the statues have been labelled, were designed by artist David Kemp but have been described by many as a waste of public money. The town centre improvements - costing a total of £5 million - are being carried out by Kerrier district council working with Cormac, a county council contractor. The statues have been cast from old pairs of miners Wellington boots and have been placed on a small stage area half way down Fore Street, Redruth.

I appreciated this, thank you. I'm heading over from Australia in December and touring a few Counties including Cornwall - at least I know which town not to visit and waste my time - Cheers.

I had the good fortune to live in Cornwall for about 12 years (St Ives and Porthleven mostly). I also had the misfortune to live in Newquay for a summer and Penzance for a year. You would only spend time there to a)watch the rugby. b) get drunk and c) bet your mates on who would be next to get thrown out of the pub. (sometimes the thrower would open the door first). Hi to all my friends in Cornwall!

I’m amazed that Callington didn’t get a mention!😵‍💫

'Shove it or I'll hit you with a brick!' Loving this channel

I recently visited Penzance two years ago and I had a good time for two days. The people were so friendly as to drive me around to find a place for me to stay for the night. Even offered to put me up for the night. We found a good bed and breakfast while driving about. Great people there and about. The high street was nice too. Some areas were a bit rundown but kind of charming in a way. So I was surprised to see Penzanze on your list. Keep up the great videos.

When I tell people I love Cornwall (and I genuinely do), I always have to suffix that with “the little coastal villages and coves”. My advice to them is “never visit any of the larger towns inland other than for cheap accommodation”, “don’t spend more than an afternoon in Newquay” and “never drive into St Ives in the summer”. Liskeard however, has two things going for it. You can get a train to Looe (recommended) and you can spend a day in Trago Mills.

Hey........ I live in Launceston 😂.... fun fact, during ww2, some American troops were based here, one evening there was a shoot out between the Black's and White's, you see Launceston locals were OK with black soldiers in the pubs but the white Americans just couldn't hack it, so over a bit of time tension started to grow and there was a gun fight, some of the buildings and the war memorial in the town square still have bullet marks on them 👍

Just subscribed. Can't wait for you to visit and report on more English counties. Nobody else seems to be making these types of honest videos they all regurgitate The Times, or some magazine's top 10 list. I am thinking of moving when i retire so its interesting to get a view of the good and the bad towns. So far Cirencester is top of my list. Lots more travelling and research to do for me though.

As a Cornishman i pretty much guessed all 8, i'm glad St Awful took the top spot. On the population side Falmouth is usually 1st due to the huge influx of students.

So glad you did Cornwall as it's my home county i totally agree with most of what you said especially about st awful luckily I live in hayle which has some really turdy bits but still a nice place overall 😊

And id happily move there tomorrow! Its stunning! There places i expect even before watching the video are the Redruth Camborne area... And tbh its still not as rough as most places... Id love to live down there as the climate is fantastic compared to where i live on the edge of the dales in county Durham... Its cloud city here!

I had to move several years ago. The cost of living is ridiculous. I now live in the North East, decent people up here, but my daughters will not grow up knowing Cornwall, which is a shame, my family goes back to the middle ages in Cornwall.

Lived in Camborne in the early 1990s and it was the same then as it is now, I still go back from time to time with work and to see friends, I also fell in love with Cornwalll back themn and need to go back regularly :). Despite the poverty they were three happy years with the locals being friendly and welcoming. I think I agree with your ranking having visited all of the towns in the last few years. However, there is hope as you point out with the high probability of mining restarting in the county, it would be fantastic to see Cornwall enjoy the prosperity it once had again.

I live in Carbis Bay, and there's undesirable parts of Carbis Bay and St Ives that tourists don't get to see. However, Helston and Truro would've been the other two towns (if it were top 10, instead of 8). As for Camborne, locals say "the seagulls fly upside down over Camborne", "because there's nothing worth sh!++ing on" 😂

'Your water bill is not the one to fear' Trust me, you do if you live in the South West Water region, it's hundreds of pounds higher than it is in the rest of the country, when i lived in Devon, it was around £400 more than in Wiltshire at the time (not sure what it's like nowadays but i'm sure not a lot has changed). Regarding St Austell also, it's actually Carlyon Bay nearby which is quite nice, as is Charlestown.