# What's Hartlepool like?



## superdodgy (Jan 2, 2007)

I saw a job vacancy in Hartlepool for a games tester. I'd really like to apply, but I don't know much about Hartlepool (only what I read at thisishartlepool.co.uk and wikipedia). And I just read on an old u75 thread that Hartlepool was a "rough place". Hmm... What do you think?


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## Donna Ferentes (Jan 2, 2007)

It's prettyy awful, to be honest, marina or no marina. I went to a lot of football games there - and a couple of chess tournaments - when I was living in Newcastle a few years ago and I walked a round the place a fair bit. The main street really is Tumbleweed City, Arizona and the estates are desperate.

I would have liked to like it, since it's too easy for Southerners to come up to small Northern towns for a short while and say how awful they are. But it's not good. It does, at least, have some sort of public transport - station, reasonable buses - so you're not trapped like you are in some places.

Still, first seven games I went to at Victoria Park, 'pools won them all without conceding a goal. In that respect at least it was like Barcelona. My scarf is hanging up here and gets regularly worn.


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## superdodgy (Jan 2, 2007)

That doesn't sound too good.


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## zoltan (Jan 2, 2007)

Its cheap.


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## Fez909 (Jan 2, 2007)

It's got a surprising amount of millionaires living there considering the dump it is.


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## Error Gorilla (Jan 4, 2007)

The location for one of the happiest days of my life.


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## Mallard (Jan 7, 2007)

It's a much maligned town. A lovely Victorian/Edwardian area with a couple of large and excellent parks at West Hartlepool only about a 10 minute walk from town. Old Hartlepool (or the ancient borough) boasts some fantastic architecture and a couple of great pubs. There is probably nowhere with better fish and chips in the country. Oxford Road and Verills (on the croft, Old Hartlepool are outstanding).

The town has improved massively in the last 10 years with decent algerian and italian food as well as two really good indians. The marina is great as is the museum of Hartlepool which is due to get even more stuff with the arrival of the tall ships.  




			
				Donna Ferentes said:
			
		

> The main street really is Tumbleweed City, Arizona and the estates are desperate.



 That would be the last thing I would say! If I was making a criticism it would be the exact opposite particularly during the evening. To say the 'estates are desperate' is cliched bollocks thrown at the town all the time. In actual fact they are no worse than anywhere else and the standard of council housing in the town is much better than most places. The 'desperate estates' include schools like English Martyrs one of several now sending 'desperate estate' kids to Oxbridge. 




			
				Donna Ferentes said:
			
		

> I would have liked to like it, since it's too easy for Southerners to come up to small Northern towns for a short while and say how awful they are. But it's not good.



Of course you are right the Victorian elegance of the Headland or the Ward Jackson area is much more awful than lovely Hackney, Slough or Southampton. I'd ignore regionalist rubbish like this myself.





			
				Donna Ferentes said:
			
		

> It does, at least, have some sort of public transport - station, reasonable buses - so you're not trapped like you are in some places.



You could even park your yacht or boat in the marina (the largest on the east coast).





			
				Donna Ferentes said:
			
		

> Still, first seven games I went to at Victoria Park, 'pools won them all without conceding a goal. In that respect at least it was like Barcelona. My scarf is hanging up here and gets regularly worn.




There's tapas in the town so it could get mistaken for Barca


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## kupa (Jan 16, 2007)

A thread about Hartlepool and no-ones mentioned the Monkey?


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## Mallard (Jan 16, 2007)

kupa said:
			
		

> A thread about Hartlepool and no-ones mentioned the Monkey?



He's the mayor and a let down. Whatever happened to the free bananas for school kids. H'Angus was suspended for a bit a couple of seasons ago for 'simulating sex' with a Scunthorpe fan


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## kupa (Jan 16, 2007)

Oh Aye, forgot about him.  I was refering to the one they hung during the Napoleonic wars. 
I believe legend has it that a french ship became wrecked off the Hartlepool coast line and the ships monkey swam ashore. As the ppl of Hartlepool had neither seen a French man or indeed a monkey, the monkey was mistaken as being french. It was tried, sentenced and then hung for being a french spy.
So what ever people think of Hartlepool, it sure is worse if your a monkey.


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## free spirit (Jan 17, 2007)

hartlepool - well I guess as mallard appears to be trying to point out, it probably ain't as bad as it used to be, and could be good if you're after a bit of time out from big city hecticness or maybe startinga family or something, but if you're wanting anything approaching decent nightlife forget it.

Got a mate who moved back there to live with her parents after going travelling and while in some ways it did her good, settled her down and got a proper job etc. she can't wait to get out of there, and that seems to be the reaction of most peeps with a young outgoing outlook on life.

There are ok public transport links to newcastle / middlesboro (think) but they tend to stop dead early in the evening so if you want a night out you'd best be ready to call it quits by 8.30 ish or face a 50 quid taxi fare home.

there's nowt particularly wrong with the place in terms of bad estates etc. definately no worse than most other places, just a bit crap on the old going out front... depends what yer after really


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## Maidmarian (Jan 17, 2007)

I went to school there (now demolished) & it was pretty desperate, but , as Mallard says it's improved a lot (but there was much to be improved.)


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## Anspaugh (Feb 14, 2007)

Its not so bad, clone retail parks and a decent cosmetic investment

Nearby Seaton Carew has been used as the backdrop of bomb ruined France in a new Keira Knightley movie...read into that what you will...its got a nice power station too...


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## nino_savatte (Feb 14, 2007)

Anspaugh said:
			
		

> Its not so bad, clone retail parks and a decent cosmetic investment
> 
> Nearby Seaton Carew has been used as the backdrop of bomb ruined France in a new Keira Knightley movie...read into that what you will...its got a nice power station too...



That will be Seaton Carew* nuclear power station.* I've been there...I asked why there so many dead fish were floating about in the intake...I didn't get an answer from the tour guide.

As for Hartlepool, no thanks.


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## Fez909 (Feb 15, 2007)

<pedant>

Hartlepool Power Station, actually.

</pedant>


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## nino_savatte (Feb 15, 2007)

Fez909 said:
			
		

> <pedant>
> 
> Hartlepool Power Station, actually.
> 
> </pedant>



Sure but it it nearer to Seaton Carew - non?


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## lemontop (Feb 15, 2007)

Anspaugh said:
			
		

> Its
> Nearby Seaton Carew has been used as the backdrop of bomb ruined France in a new Keira Knightley



Wasn't that in Redcar? I went there in the summer and was really confused as to what was going on. Half of the buildings on the sea front had been demolished. Was quite weird.


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## DownwardDog (Feb 15, 2007)

I am a native Hartlepudlian and when we did the YouTube Your Home Town thread I found these gems:

http://www.urban75.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=5061597#post5061597

Just gives you a flavour of the new life that awaits you.


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## Anspaugh (Feb 15, 2007)

lemontop said:
			
		

> Wasn't that in Redcar? I went there in the summer and was really confused as to what was going on. Half of the buildings on the sea front had been demolished. Was quite weird.



No, its always like that in Redcar  

I think your right actually


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