The £5 street pills wreaking havoc in seaside town voted happiest place to live as pubs replaced by bedsits for addicts

The Sun

2 days ago

WITH its long sandy beach and iconic historic 'Spanish City' complex offering up first class dining and a champagne bar, it doesn't seem absurd that this north east town was dubbed one of the UK's happiest places to live.
But baffled locals have branded the accolade "a load of rubbish", claiming the 'Jekyll and Hyde' seaside resort is overrun with drug addicts and alcoholics.
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Whitley Bay, in North Tyneside, was ranked third out of 70 areas in 2024 in an online survey which cited its impressive coastline and independent shops and bars.
But locals say there is a stark divide between its hipster high street lined with boutiques and fancy restaurants, and scruffy rundown terraces full of bedsits.
Residents who live in the east of the town - also named best place to live in the North of England in 2023 by The Sunday Times - told The Sun they're sick of being woken up by drunks in the middle of the night.
They also claim the streets have been flooded with pregabalin - a highly addictive prescription-only medication which can induce feelings of euphoria and relaxation, being flogged illegally for £5 a pill - earning the town the nickname 'Pregab City'.
While the famous Spanish City Plaza complex, immortalised in the Dire Straits song Tunnel of Love, underwent an impressive renovation in 2018 and is now home to a fine dining restaurant and champagne bar, other areas of the town are struggling.
Residents believe many are unable to afford the expensive offerings at the iconic domed building, which housed a down-to-earth funfair, amusement arcade and bingo hall up until the 2000s.
Now a cod and chips at the venue will set you back £13.95.
South Parade, which leads from the town down to the seafront, used to be lined with bars and nightclubs and was a hive of activity on bank holidays and weekends.
But now the street is a shadow of its former self and has just one club - the rundown-looking Havana.
Other nightlife hotspots have been replaced by halfway houses, bedsits and B&Bs, many of which are reportedly occupied by alcoholics and drug addicts.
We live in UK's 'worst' seaside town – tourists say it's rundown and crime is a problem but here's why locals love it
Meanwhile the crime rate in the immediate area is three times as high as the national average.
Victoria Knibbs lives in a flat in the area with her boyfriend and dog Sunny.
The 29-year-old team manager said: "Whitley Bay has the potential to be a lovely place. There are really nice cafes and bars on one side of the town, but it's still very run-down on the other.
"We look out onto our street and there is always shouting. People shout up and down from the windows and there's a constant police presence at one of the B&Bs.
We've been woken up at 4am with people shouting drunk in the street and on stuff
Victoria Knibbs
"Every weekend there are police or ambulances down there. Every day you'll have people on the street corners rolling around.
"I was walking to the Metro station the other day and there was a guy trying to pick up his friend off the floor.
"They had both fallen over and were moving at the slowest pace. It doesn't bother me, but you will see this as soon as you leave the house.
"We've been woken up at 4am with people shouting drunk in the street and on stuff."
'Jekyll and Hyde' town
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Just around the corner from Victoria, one couple are seen hurrying down a back alley, as the man downs a can of lager before 11am.
The woman with him is still in her pyjamas as they wander out of sight.
Victoria, who says the town is divided in two, added: "Whitley Bay was voted as this lovely place to live, but if people want to visit there's no good hotels to stay at.
"There are nice spots, but that's the seafront, it isn't Whitley Bay itself.
"I love my flat and the landlord is fine, but the pubs around here bring in a certain clientele.
"The places in this town are either run-down and cheap, or they charge you £20 for a glass of water. It's split into two halves."
Victoria claimed there is "no reason" for her to go to Spanish City as there's "nothing for families with kids and dogs".
"It was built to make it look, how amazing is this place, but you go and there's not much there. In my whole life I've probably been inside three or four times," she said.
"Since we've been living here there have been lots of places we wanted to try but they end up closing down.
"I would love to shop independent and go local, but there's not the investment."
High accolades
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Army veteran Dave Kelly is originally from Northampton but has lived in Whitley Bay for over 20 years.
The 52-year-old is fed up of what he sees on a daily basis, telling The Sun: "You see homeless people and alcoholics all of the time.
"It's mainly young adults who are off their faces on Pregabalin. Whitley Bay is known to be 'Pregab City'.
"The town looks great on paper, especially with all of the investment that got put into the seaside.
"It sounds great when you talk about lovely beaches etc., but it's only that part. There is nothing spoken about regarding the town centre.
You see homeless people and alcoholics all of the time. It's mainly young adults who are off their faces on Pregabalin. Whitley Bay is known to be 'Pregab City'
Dave Kelly
"I live opposite Spanish City and you get travellers coming down there. Just the other week the travellers cut the gates off a park but they just got moved on.
"You get lots of p***heads in the centre, too. The other day we got a group who came along and took the leftover tobacco from ashtrays on the outside tables of pubs and were making roll-ups in front of everyone."
In the 2024 survey from FurnitureBox of the happiest places to live in the UK, only Stratford-upon-Avon and Harrogate were ranked higher than Whitley Bay.
The town was also named Best Place to Live in the North and Northeast in the 2023 Sunday Times Best Places to Live guide.
The paper described the town's high street, Park View, as "one of the best independent shopping streets in the country, with its artisan bakery, brunch spots and microbrewery, as well as more traditional outlets such as the shoe-repairer and the butcher."
What is Pregabalin?
Pregabalin is a prescription-only medicine which has flooded the black market, selling for up to £5 a pill.
The white or orange tablets induce feelings of euphoria and relaxation, but can be highly addictive and even deadly when consumed alongside other drugs, such as opioids.
Dan Brocksopp works as a young persons team leader at PROPS, a recovery service which aims to improve the lives of families affected by alcohol and drug use in Newcastle and North Tyneside.
He said: "Substance misuse, alcohol and drugs, is becoming an ever- increasing problem. With pregabalin, people who are using it should only be getting it through their GP or hospitals.
"It's finding its way into the wrong hands, and then it's getting distributed through the local communities.
"Not a lot of people know the risks associated with pregabs as they've bought it off the street. When a drug is prescribed, the doctor takes into account the patient's age and size and tolerance.
"That obviously doesn't happen when it's taken illegally.
"We are concerned that pregabs are becoming an ever-growing issue alongside other drugs including alcohol.
"Pregabs are being intercepted as they travel through hospitals and GP surgeries. People are getting them prescribed and then selling them on to make a little bit of money.
"They are mainly used to treat epilepsy, anxiety and nerve pain. If someone is presenting themselves to a GP with those conditions, they can be prescribed them.
"With any drug there is a street value. People can make money from them. With epilepsy you'd have to be diagnosed, there would have to be proof of that.
"But high levels of anxiety are hard to prove, so people are presenting with these issues, and realising they can get pregabs. They then distribute them and sell them.
"Like any drug it Pregabs can suppress thoughts and feelings and reduce anxiety. It can also suppress physical pain, and that's what it is prescribed for in terms of nerve damage."
Dan added: "Mixed with other drugs, pregabs become highly dangerous.
"In terms of anti-social behaviour, what we do find is that people tend to act erratically when they are taking illicit substances.
"When the effects of the drug wear off, it can increase insomnia, pain and anxiety. You might be in discomfort which could cause you to make decisions you otherwise wouldn't when out in the community.
"Because pregabs are prescription-only drugs you can sell them for up to £5 tablet, and a lot more inside prisons.
"But also vulnerable people who are actually prescribed pregabs for a genuine medical problem are exploited and the drugs are taken from these people to sell."
'Misspent millions'
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One man, who wanted to remain anonymous, added: "Being named as one of the best places to live is a load of rubbish. It's definitely going downhill.
"This place is all second-hand shops and all of the banks are closing down.
"You see loads of homeless people unfortunately.
"Even little things like the roads. If you look at them you will see lots of potholes.
"They've spent millions on the seafront and the Spanish City, but the investment should have been spread.
"That investment hasn't exactly brought lots of jobs here, only for council workers and contractors from down south.
"If you look at South Shields, you can cycle from there to Newcastle on the new cycle paths they put in.
"But you couldn't do that on this side of the river, and we're closer to the city than South Shields."
Rising crime rates
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According to Street Check data, the crime rate in and around North Parade is classed as high, with 288 reported crimes per 1,000 people. The national average is 88.
In Whitley Bay as a whole the figure is much lower, at 89 crimes per 1,000 people.
Leslie, 70, who didn't want to give her surname, said: "There are a lot of druggies in the guesthouses.
"They have changed a lot of the accommodation to halfway houses where the people are coming off drugs or drink.
"But they're not clean because I know people who live on them.
There are a lot of druggies in the guesthouses. They have changed a lot of the accommodation to halfway houses where the people are coming off drugs or drink
Leslie
"There's no way of policing people using drugs, so it's an issue. Who looks after these people?"
She added: "There are nice parts. Park View, the high street, is good, but there are parts that let the place down.
"Even the pavements are bad. I saw an old lady fall over the other day because it's all uneven and she stumbled and fell.
"There needs to be better investment for things like that."
Around the corner three young men in tracksuits holding a crate of lager are seen hurrying across the street and into a flat, locking the door behind them.
Hotel hell
Brian Place found himself begging on the streets after his benefits were stopped.
The 45-year-old, who lives in a nearby residential home, said: "It is a bit bad around here. The people who get put in the hotels cause trouble.
"It was voted as the best place to live but those people haven't seen the streets or the shopping bits.
"I do think it has started to clam down with the drunks, but it has been bad."
One woman walking her dog through the town who didn't want to be named added: "The people in the hotels gather in clusters.
"You often see them outside Home Bargains with the police outside.
"We used to have lots of pubs and clubs, but at least they were making money.
"We have the Dome, which do good meals, but it's very expensive.
"The stuff they have spent the money on doesn't appeal to everyone.
"If you walk along the streets you can tell where the nice stuff is, for the people with money.
"Then you come into the centre and it's Home Bargains and charity shops."
Tackling anti-social behaviour
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Northumbria Police's Chief Inspector David Morrison, of North Tyneside Area Command, said: "We take every crime reported to us seriously and carry out a number of initiatives across the year to ensure Whitley Bay remains a safe and welcoming place for everyone.
"During the summer months this includes Operation Coastwatch, which involves extra patrols, preventative work on the transport network to disrupt and stop any disorder before it reaches communities, and beach wardens to monitor coastal activity.
"In the first six months of this year alone we saw a 19 per cent fall in the number of reported anti-social behaviour incidents in the town, compared with the same period in 2024.
"We are not complacent, however, and are aiming to build on these excellent results.
"Alongside our partner organisations, including North Tyneside Council, we carry out regular high-visibility patrols to identify any issues and act upon them.
"We remain absolutely committed to tackling all forms of criminality in the community and anyone living in the area who has concerns should contact us so that we take the appropriate action.
"Anyone found responsible for criminal behaviour will be dealt with to the full extent of the law."
Rejuvenation hopes
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Peter Mennell, Director of Housing at North Tyneside Council, said: "Whitley Bay has undergone a major transformation in recent years, with significant investment from the Council and private sector partners helping to breathe new life into the town.
"The seafront has been revitalised, local businesses are thriving, and the town consistently ranks among the best places to shop — a real sign of the pride and happiness people feel here.
"In the first six months of this year, reports of anti-social behaviour in Whitley Bay have fallen by 19 per cent, reflecting the positive impact of regular patrols and joint initiatives such as Operation Coastwatch.
"Our work with Northumbria Police and partners ensures a strong, visible presence throughout the town, and we're committed to building on this success.
"Our Community Protection Team and Northumbria Police work closely with residents and businesses to keep Whitley Bay safe and welcoming.
"We encourage people to come and talk to us at community consultations and events — because working together is how we'll continue to tackle any issues and make the town an even better place to live, work and visit."
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