Seaside town rids itself of ‘Britain's Magaluf' nickname after huge clean up and council ban on MANKINIS
A seaside town once dubbed 'Britain's Magaluf' stands unrecognisable today after a huge clean-up and a council ban on mankinis.
Business owners and residents say Newquay, Cornwall, is barely recognisable these days, following a determined push to move away from its former 'wild west' image.
The seaside town was once known for its rowdy atmosphere, regularly drawing stag parties, lads' holidays, and booze-fuelled teenage gatherings.
But in 2009, the council finally put its foot down and imposed a no-nonsense 'mankini ban'.
The new law, part of the award-winning Newquay Safe campaign, banned mankinis and other 'inappropriate clothing' — including fancy dress — in public.
The crackdown came after two teenagers tragically died on nights out in the town.
The results spoke for themselves. By 2012, Devon and Cornwall Police reported a 20 per cent drop in crime compared to 2009, with anti-social behaviour incidents plummeting from 685 to just 286.
Long-suffering locals say Newquay today couldn't be more different from its rowdy party past.
Independent coffee shops now line the high street, where the infamous Bertie's nightclub once stood before closing last year.
Families stroll along the peaceful coastline, surfers take lessons, and older residents enjoy bowls with a view of the beach.
Vintage, skate, and surfwear stores sit alongside charming pastry shops.
The only reminders of the old wild days are the arcades still buzzing in the town centre.
Arcade worker Maddie Grover, 25, says that while there are still stag dos, they're 'not as bad as they were at the time'.
She grew up in the town and said the area particularly quietened down after Bertie's closed down.
She said now some clubs don't allow stag dos inside if the attendees are dressed up.
Maddie added: 'The high street is a little bit rowdy in the central area. It's better now, it's calmer, there aren't as many fights.
'We see lots of families because we work in an arcade but we see a lot more families in general.'
Andy, 40, said he was happy the town had shed its former reputation.
The shop worker said: 'I definitely think it's better.
'There's a higher level of respect and there isn't the locals being like: 'Oh God.'
'Silly season, we expect, but it's not something you're dreading anymore.
'You're not dodging vomit on the high street.
'I skateboard from the top of the hill to the shop and there's no longer passed-out people, people who have vomited everywhere and broken glass. It's cleaned up quite a lot since then.
'I just see hungry, happy, high people wandering around in the mornings looking for a good breakfast.
'There are families coming down, and the families that come down have that mentality of: 'I'd love to live here because of how it is.'
'Compared to before, when you would walk down the high street and see six dudes in mankinis and none of them have seen a gym before, and you're like: 'Great'.
He added: 'You still get stag and hen dos, but they've been reined in. There are certain rules and regulations, like the mankini ban. You're not allowed fancy dress in certain bars over a certain time in the evening.
'In the day, if you want to come out and have a stag do and everyone dresses up and has fun, that's absolutely fine, but once it gets past a certain time of night, it tends to knock that on the head.'
Andy, who likes to wear spandex and cowboy boots, complained that the rules were so strict it had meant staff had refused him entry. 'There's a difference between fancy dress and dressing fancy', he said.
In general, he agreed Newquay had 'cleaned up its act'.
'It's entertaining to a certain degree. The way I see it, living in Newquay, if you think you're in the circus, it's a headache; if you think it is a circus and you're just watching it, it's quite funny because you're not taking it seriously.
'It's the only place you have to look up and down a one-way street because you can get run over. On this street, you see it all the time, and tourists will get angry at you for stopping them until they realise they're going the wrong way.
'Fights are fights, it's always going to happen. It's the nature of mixing alcohol with idiots. 'You might not get it to such a grand scale now but it's still going to happen.
'People will smash bottles on the beach.
'I don't care what you do but my mates walk down here barefoot, my friend's kids play on the beach. The beach is for everyone, not just for you to have fun.
'There is a bit of that and locals will bark at people.
'We want you to have a good time but also we want to have a good time, so don't knock the bins over at 3am and wake everybody up.
'It's just goofy stuff and not stuff the police can be running around and dealing with.'
He said tourists were attracted by the 'little town mentality and community'. Andy added:
'Everyone's welcome until they do something stupid and then they get shunned.
'It's a small town; crime is pretty low.'
However, he said there was a problem with second homes - an epidemic across Cornwall.
Locals complain they are being priced out of their picturesque towns by people buying up their houses and raising costs.
Andy added: 'There is a problem with second homes and the council renting out homes to undesirables. I've noticed that quite a lot.
'Families are just shoved in and they then treat the place like crap and then a couple months later they get kicked back out again because the council looks at the state of the place and goes: 'Oh, you're not taking care of this.' That happens quite a lot.'
Peron Wills, a climbing instructor from nearby St Dennis, said he was part of the nightlife when he was younger.
The 38-year-old said: 'It's not as good a night out as it used to be.
'I have been on stag dos here and they were pretty crazy. They have New Year's and Christmas parties still but I think it used to be crazier.
'I don't go out anymore so I just assume nobody does.
'There were always moans in the local papers that Newquay needs cleaning up.. I don't think it's just Newquay; every town has the old versus young.
'Everyone moves away to go and find money. You grow up here and can't afford to live here for a while so you go away and come back when you retire. There's a big age gap.
'There are still clubs around but not as many as there used to be.
'It was always families during the day but don't go out at night.'
Mark Dixon has been in Newquay for 40 years. The arcade worker said it is nowhere near as busy as it used to be, as Newquay would be 'booming' from the Easter holidays until the October half term.
However, he pointed to a trend rising throughout Cornwall - the second home.
Mark, 58, said: 'We haven't got any hotels anymore; most of them have been converted. There used to be a lot of guest houses but now there are second homes no one can afford.
'When I was younger, there were quite a lot of clubs and pubs. Sailors is the only club we have in town.
'Bertie's shut; Hotel Victoria, Prince Albert pub.'
He said the newcomers sometimes didn't understand the small nature of the town.
Mark said: 'People ask us: 'Can you tell me where River Island is?'
'We say we haven't got one and they look at you and wonder how we exist.
'In the last few years there have been a lot of new houses being built. That's the crux of the problem.
'I don't know what all the people here are doing. I assume they all work from home.'
He noticed the high street had changed, with more smaller restaurants.
Mark added: 'It's different. It's a nice place to live.'
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