An American author who has travelled extensively around the world has said that Blackpool is the ‘weirdest place’ he’s visited.
In a hilarious Twitter thread, Jeff VanderMeer broke down why he found his visit to the seaside town so bizarre.
The author’s Tweet has now been shared by hundreds of people – who are mostly in agreement.
Jeff wrote: “Weirdest place I’ve ever been, btw, since it’s coming up in the news… is Blackpool, England.
Blackpool. Credit: Unsplash
“That includes over 40 countries I’ve been to. Absolutely and unnervingly at the top of the list.”
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He later explained: “Look, take too many tweets to explain why.
“Maybe the combo of sleazy and family-friendly, the weird night vibe of jubilation and violence.
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Weirdest place I've ever been, btw, since it's coming up in the news… is Blackpool, England. That includes over 40 countries I've been to. Absolutely and unnervingly at the top of the list.
“The donkeys on the beach. The effed up types of architecture shoved together in the same buildings. The slapping thing at the end of alley.”
Even those of us who love the north west town have agreed that it is a bit of an odd place to visit, when you put it like that.
Many locals have been sharing their own favourite quirks, like one person who mentioned the swimming pool whose letters have fallen off, leaving it the ‘heated i door swi ig poo’.
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this is such slander blackpool is a bit weird but also if ur a kid the whole place is basically a wondrous theme park. and there’s the famous heated i door swi ig poo https://t.co/Fjh1YWIh2opic.twitter.com/s40KTB5Mon
Another wrote: “I went there with 300 people for a conference in Feb 2018 – someone put a welcome banner up on a motorway bridge (???), we were the only people in town and I truly thought we were going to be hunted and eaten by locals.”
Someone else theorised: “That place is basically a gateway to a hellish dimension that isn’t quite all the way open yet. That’s what the lights are about. One year, they’ll get the configuration right and when that happens we’re doomed.”
One person, who has read Jeff’s book Annihilation (later turned into a film starring Natalie Portman), pointed out: “The author of f***ing Annihilation, one of the weirdest & most disturbing novels I’ve ever read, says that Blackpool is the weirdest place he’s ever been…”
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Another Twitter user said: “When an American dunks on somewhere in the UK, there is usually a lot of “U WOT M8?” in the quote tweets. Not this time.”
Featured image: Unsplash
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Home Bargains has announced a special two-day closure of all UK stores
Emily Sergeant
Home Bargains has, once again, announced it’ll be closing all its UK stores on both Boxing Day and New Year’s Day this year.
And it’s to make sure staff get a ‘well deserved break’.
After what has been yet another busy year for the retail industry, many workers have been left feeling like they could do with a little extra time off, which is why Home Bargains is following on with what has become a now-annual tradition by shutting up shop on two bank holidays.
All of our stores will be closing for Boxing Day & New Years Day.
Announcing the move in a post on social media, the discount retailer confirmed: “All of our stores will be closing for Boxing Day and New Years Day. We would like to thank all our colleagues for how hard you have worked this past year, and want you to relax and enjoy the Christmas break with your loved ones.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time the retailer has kept its doors shut on bank holidays.
Many shoppers will recall it has made the same decision to give hardworking staff a break every year since 2019.
Explaining a little more about the decision taken to close all its stores, Home Bargains said: “As a family-run business, we know the importance of being together at Christmas with those we care about most, now more than ever.
“This is our way of saying thank you to our colleagues for their continued hard work and dedication.”
Featured Image – Geograph
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Two Greggs in Manchester will be serving their breakfast menu in the evening next week
Emily Sergeant
Who says breakfast has to end at 11am?
In news that’s set to be music to the ears of breakfast lovers in Manchester, Greggs is giving them exactly what they want.
We all know that brunch is a ‘thing’ by now, so now it’s time for brinner to make a name for itself instead, as Greggs has teamed up with Heinz to bring its much-loved breakfast menu back for tea time, kicking off from 4pm onwards.
The move comes as a new survey has found that the majority of Mancs (69%) admit to enjoying eating breakfast food in the evening, saying it’s ‘convenient and comforting’ – even ranking breakfast as a ‘more important’ meal than tea, as well (38% vs 36%).
Two Greggs in Manchester will be serving their breakfast menu in the evening next week / Credit: Greggs (Supplied)
Greggs says it has ‘lost count’ of the amount of customers that have tried to order breakfast items after the usual cut-off time, especially in Greater Manchester.
But luckily for those breakfast-loving Mancs, they can finally get their favourite breakfast and sauce pairing long after the morning rush is over next… but only at two Greggs branches, and only for a very limited time.
On Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 October, the Heinz x Greggs Brinner collab will be available at Greggs St Mary’s Gate and Greggs Oxford Road, from 4-7pm only.
“We’ve lost count of the number of customers who have tried their luck ordering breakfast after 11am, so when Heinz came to us with the idea of making Brinner a reality, it felt like the perfect excuse to give the people what they want,” explained Zoe Harris, who is the Customer Director at Greggs.
“And let’s be honest, a Greggs Bacon Roll just wouldn’t be the same without a squeeze of Heinz Tomato Ketchup.”
Daisy Jackson -
10th February 2022 
