A UK city that was “buzzing” 15 years ago is now being “left to rot” with dozens of shops and office buildings left abandoned.
But, says podcaster Joe Fish, there is still some “serious money” still in Plymouth – concentrated in its “millionaire’s row” of luxury yachts.
Along Union Street, the once-bustling thoroughfare connecting the city centre with Plymouth’s all-important naval base and docks, many of the shops now stand empty. “I would say 70% of the stores here on Union Street are closed,” Joe says.
“As recently as 15 years ago, this area was thriving, but now it’s completely dead.”
The city’s historic Palace Theatre, which in its time hosted performances from an incredible range of entertainers from silent movie icon Charlie Chaplin to superstar DJ Sasha, now stands empty. “You wouldn’t see this on the continent, a grand old building just left derelict and allowed to rot,” Joe explained.
Most of the traditional retail businesses are long gone, with a gigantic Debenhams store standing empty as testament to the decline of the Great British High Street. In its place are what Joe calls the “usual suspects – vape shops, storefront casinos and a disproportionately high number of barbers”.
“Isn’t it funny that no matter where you go in the United Kingdom all of the shops might be closed but the gambling shops are always open,” he remarks.
The abandoned shop doorways now seem to be just dormitories for the city’s homeless. “So many of the shop doorways here in Plymouth city are filled with homeless folk,” Joe adds.
“There’s an overwhelming problem with homelessness here, in the city of Plymouth, and there’s a huge problem with poverty too, with one in three children living below the poverty line.”
Plymouth has a proud naval tradition dating back to the days of Sir Francis Drake, who launched his fleet from here when the Spanish Armada threatened the south coast. But today, Plymouth has some of the highest rates of homelessness in the UK, with many of the poor and destitute being ex-servicemen.
But just a short walk from all this deprivation lies Plymouth’s marina, lined with luxury yachts with upwards of £400,000 apiece. “There is some huge wealth here,” Joe says.
It can cost £10,000 just to rent a “parking space” at the marina for a year, and the boats also need regular expert maintenance and pricey insurance, even if the owners aren’t paying for a full-time crew.
“There’s some serious wealth in Plymouth alongside some serious poverty,” Joe continued. “This little corner of the marina seems to be like millionaires row.”
Meanwhile the countless derelict buildings are used by rough sleepers – one former office building, the increasingly derelict Mayflower House, made headlines after the body of a homeless British Army veteran was found there in 2020.
With some of the poorest areas of Europe standing just a short walk from the luxury marina, the story of Plymouth in 2024 really is a tale of two cities.
