The Knowhere Guide

Best and Worst in Poole, Dorset*

Poole, Dorset Triumphs and Tragedies

Favourite Building

• Barclays Building - you can control the world from the top..... so says the rumour
• Would be Poole Power Station if not demolished.
• Any of the Old Poole Buildings.
• Gents Toilet.Only because it has a ceramic mural on the outside wall which commemerated the 50th anniversary of D Day causing such a rumpus in Poole because it cost £12000.What price art anyway?
• Barclay's Bank building. A huge concrete thingy.
• The quay - superb.
• The Old customs house.

Demolish It Now Building

• Poole Arts Centre - and you can shoot the "architect" while you're at it. What happened in the '60s and '70s? Every town has the same crap buildings from this era.
• The and dolphin centre and bus station are an eyesore. The latter smells of urine.
• The one you first get to on the Quay, it looks shit but could be a good place to build a club.
• The so called piece of Art on Poole Quay which is the tall blue metal pile of 20th century crap called Sea Music.
• ... my old school - Seldown but I see it has been demolished! Also the Arndale - a concrete sarcophagus from the 60s!
• The Bus Station, 1960's concrete overgrown cow-shed. It better go soon before some heritage (heritic more like)bod decides it should be "preserved" as some declining example of it's type !
• Barclay's International - a monstrosity!!!
• That big disused concrete silo on the Quay.Just what are the Council doing about it.
• Poole Arts Centre. It looks bloody awful from the outside despite an internal make-over. I mean, an orange and brown sign!!!
• The Dolphin Centre. Without a doubt.
• Most of the city center away from the quay.

The Best Things

• Poole is a town of contrasts. Parts of it are despised because of its 60s thoughtless architecture whilst other areas are the finest living areas in the entire country but at a high price tag. Poole is worth living in because what Poole does not provide, Bournemouth and the Dorset countryside do. Poole/Bournemouth/Christchurch/Ferndown/Wimborne are treated as one city by the local residents. That's 15 miles of unbroken sandy beaches. If you haven't visited this area then do so.
• The natural beauty. Where else in UK do you find so much in one county?
• Going by car to Bournemouth - escaping for a GREAT night out.
• New High Speed Ferry to Cherburg in 2001 ... almost halving the crossing time ...
• New yacht haven down at Poole Quay has started .... and it won't be long before the portacabin hut apology for a berthing office disappears too ... they've demolished the old Poole Harbour Commissioners building on the Quay ... and going to bring the Guildhall back to use as Poole Pottery Museum and Tea Rooms ... and they're going to revamp the Arts Centre ... and open 2 new Hotels .. Holiday Inn Express (90 rooms Nov ist 2000) and Premier Lodge (126 rooms May 2001)
• The harbour is now the worlds biggest natural one following those Aussies building all over theirs.
• The beaches, the people, the pubs and the close proximity of Bournemouth.
• Fantastically beautiful beaches and harbour. Bournemouth's older (750 years plus versus 150 years)classier, quieter and nicer neighbour.
• Being the birthplace of British Airways is nothing to be proud of - i've flown with them at least 8 times to and from South Africa and not once have I said that was a great flight!" Virgin next time for me, thats for sure!
• Living in a Holiday resort all Year round
• The Beach. Windsurf babes at Sandbanks. The harbour.
• The views of the inner harbour match that of any sight on the whole planet, the best places to appreciate it are either around the top of Evening Hill on the road to Sandbanks, Constitution Hill which is a view point at a place often refered to a "Sea View" and has a pub of that name opposite. Anywhere on the North-Eastern side of the Purbeck hills gives a view across the harbour towards Poole and is a beautiful area in it's own right. Crossing the mouth of the harbour on the chain ferry and walking along Studland beach, round the point (beware nudists may be seen in this area)and onto the small village of Studland. The walk is probably about 2 miles and you can get refreshed either in the sea, in the cafe or in the pub before returning.
• Thursday night Jazz on the quay during the summer. second largest natural harbour in the world, with an average depth of three quarters of an inch!!! and the birth place of British Airways (formerly BOAC) The old town still remains authentic in many ways. World championship indie cars built in Poole at Penske Racing. Home of the SBS Special Boat Service. The only operational 'Chain Link' ferry in the country, even better now it's bigger!
• The choice of eating places , the ferry to France,loads of pub quizzes. Great beaches good views.
• the beach in the summer at shre road by the catamarans fantastic!!!!
• Sandbanks beach is amazing and the view from Evening Hill over the harbour is wicked.
• Corfe castle, Sandbanks,
• Tower Park which has the following attractions:
  • Ice trax
    Bad news: Ice Trax (Tower Park) has closed [8.96], meaning that the nearest skating rink is now in Basingstoke!
  • Calanders restaurant
  • Ten Pin Bowling
  • Pizza Hut
  • Quazer
  • Splash down
  • The Venue Night Club
  • Drive Thru Burger King
  • Midland Bank
  • Tesco
  • A boat trip to Brownsea Island for the day is excellent although a little expensive.
• Poole Harbour: Excellent for windsurfing, one of the best, if not the best place for it in the country! Large, shallow, open, calm waters. Poole Harbour Board Sailing for all your windsurfing needs
• Beautiful looking place.

The Worst Things

• The sculpture on the quay and the bus station.
• Ending up in Poole on a Friday night! Very sad and dangerous.
• The miserable gits who moan at every proposed change ... 5 sad geezers spend there life writing to the Echo No Yacht Haven / No to the Pottery Scheme / No to Weaterspoons / No to Yates / No to Motorbikes on the Quay on Tuesdays / No to noisy fireworks on Thursdays / no to people enjoying themselves .. wot they dont get is that they like it the way it is ... but if folk like them had run the town .., it would still be an old gas works down the Quay and a good night out would be going down the Legion ...
• There isn't a decent club.
• 'Naturalised' locals who, having discovered the beauty of the place and 'settled', want to 'pull up the drawbridge' and keep everyone else out!
• Boone's hardware store has stopped selling machetes.
• Tourists. Hoards of Pissed-up wankers invading the pubs in the summer.
• Rockley Sands - sad sad sad.
• That Tesco at Tower Park is rubbish!
• Holiday traffic - sunny days and the beach is out unless you get up at the crack of dawn. Lack of any type of "cafe culture" in the pedestrianised High Street after 5:30, especially for a town with "proud links" with France.
• The loss of Saddler Yachts, Lack of decent gigs in the Art Centre, grockles in the summer, local's seem trapped in the summer. The best beach in the area at Sandbanks and Shore Road, Too busy and unreachable if you're a 'Local'
• The locals dress sense.What must the French think when they come over for day trips.Disgusting Fish and Chips unless you "Know".Too many poll tax dodger homeless beggars .Constantly being stopped for "A Survey" by Scientologists
• ugly cross bred mutations
• Gypos everywhere, especially the Dolphin Centre.
• NO ROCK BARS! All the people are too desperatley trendy
• Kid of messy here and there (and everywhere....)
• Tourists (during the summer).
• House and flat prices are extremely high, a 2 bedroomed flat on the horbour will cost between 200-450 thousand quid !!
• Small Town Centre
• Poole is a complete shithole. That's all there is to tell.
• Dodgy people.
• Pubs along the sea front can be a bit rough.

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Last updated: 2008-07-06