Christmas tree branded ‘worst in Britain’ by disappointed locals
Residents of a Welsh city have voiced their dismay over a towering Christmas tree installed by the local council, with one declaring it could be Britain’s worst festive display. The imposing structure in Newport city centre has left some locals feeling let down by this year’s seasonal offering.
Critics have pointed out that the tall, slender tree is artificial and adorned with malfunctioning lights. The debate surrounding the tree near Newport’s high street was sparked by Conservative campaigner Michael Enea. Following his social media post last week, numerous others have joined the discussion, with Mr Enea asserting the tree has become “talk of the city”.
He explained: “I’ve been campaigning quite heavily lately for improvements to Newport’s city centre. I have to say the Christmas tree isn’t helping. It must be one [of] the worst in Britain. It’s quietly been the talk of the city among locals.”
He expressed disappointment that the city centre’s tree wasn’t genuine and noted that the non-functioning lights create an uneven appearance after dark, reports Wales Online.
“Some prefer the old fashioned Alpine or Scandinavian tree we used to see,” he continued. “Yes, a real tree. There’s been a lot of criticism over the metallic trees we have seen in the city over the last five years or so.
“To make matters worse, the current tree now has an entire section missing where its lights have just gone off. There’s a big blank patch in its middle of the tree. You’d think the council would fix it but it’s been like it for about two weeks now.”
Newport local, Christine, expressed her disappointment with the city centre’s Christmas tree: “At the moment it’s quite disappointing because it is only sparsely lit. I’m sure if it was lit all the way up it would look much better, but it’s disappointing at the moment.”
She added: “The only other I know of is down near the Christmas funfair [near] John Frost Square, near Friars Walk. That’s much nicer, largely because it’s fully lit. At the moment this one is not a good advertisement.”
Debra King praised the decorations at the nearby Friars Walk shopping centre, stating: “The only time it (the tree) was ever full was the first year it was out. I work like 100 yards from the tree – very poor show. In other news, the polar bear over in Friars looks fab.”
Mike Lyons criticised the display, saying: “You’d have thought the person who had the budget for the lights might have spoken to the person who was choosing the tree.”
Another local, David Peck, described the tree as “pretty poor”. He said: “At night time it may look better if all the lights are working, but I could have quite easily walked past it and not really made any sort of sense of it.”
Nevertheless, the tree succeeded in spreading some seasonal joy for shopper Steve on Monday. He commented: “I think it’s really nice. It makes a change for them to put something nice up in Newport.
“They have had trees up over the last few years but it’s just been the same old decorations and stuff like that. It’s nice…It makes a difference in the night time when it’s dark and everything’s lit up. It does look nice, got to be fair.”
Newport council has been contacted for comment but had not yet responded at the time of publication.
