Love it or hate it?

[Reg Smeeton]

I fucking love Swindon, I love the people etc. I moved back to Swindon from Canada for a reason when my family still lives in Toronto. I love Swindon and anyone who hates it can fuck off as far as I am concerned. My Nan and Grandad (god rest his soul) have told me many great stories about Swindon and how it used to be.

 A good point .....well made

[flammableBen]

As someone who has been braught up in Swindon it really pisses me off when people who live here,work here and bring up there familys here slag the place off,why do i feel like this.....obviously Swindon isnt the culture capital of England and the place has its many downsides like other towns and citys,so why do i get peeved when people slag the town,and i just want to say live someware else then!

 A good point... well made.

although not really. A lot of Swindon struggles from being new. And most of those bits aren't very interesting. Add to that a lack of ambition from the council towards the way they organise 'town', and there's not much there.

Old town is ace. And whenever I stick up for swindon it's the first thing I point out.

a better point well made.

[mattboyslim]

As someone who has been braught up in Swindon it really pisses me off when people who live here,work here and bring up there familys here slag the place off,why do i feel like this.....obviously Swindon isnt the culture capital of England and the place has its many downsides like other towns and citys,so why do i get peeved when people slag the town,and i just want to say live someware else then!

 A good point... well made.

although not really. A lot of Swindon struggles from being new. And most of those bits aren't very interesting. Add to that a lack of ambition from the council towards the way they organise 'town', and there's not much there.

Old town is ace. And whenever I stick up for swindon it's the first thing I point out.

What the man said.  I lived in Old Town pretty much my whole life, aside from uni, and I do miss the pubs, and the inevitable knowledge I'll see people I know if I go out.  My career has taken me elsewhere, and whilst I love where I am know (no coincidence I chose somewhere that 'felt' like OT) I still get a satisfying feeling coming down the A419 of a Saturday lunchtime.  There are many things that Swindon lacks, but it has plenty of things to commend it IMHO.[/b]

[Noel Gallagher]

It seems to me that every so often a town becoems fashionable for the Lonodn based media to take cheap digs at it used to be Luton not sol long back and places like Sunderland and Hull in the north havhad the same treatment. Swindonians should count themselves lucky I mean  have you ever been to places like Dunstable.

[Arriba]

my family are pretty much swindon born and bred(mums side for sure)
my great grandad(nans dad) was a train driver.drove most famously the king george the 5th(its at steam)and we have photos of him on various engines.
and my nans hubby ie my grandad was a guard for 40 years at swindon station.he was pictured in the adver aroud 74-6 holding a brolly over the queen during a visit to the town.he died in 77 and i have no memory of him
but i have seen alot of this nation, and believe me swindon is not bad at all.

[Peter Venkman]

My story is similar to Arribas, mums family moved to work in the railways in 1855 from Amesbury, eveyr generation including me worked in the rail works.

I have lived in many places and Swindon is vasty underrated, you only realise how much you miss it when you arent there.

Its my spiritual home and will always be my home.

In the words of Madness....

"I never thought I'd miss you half as much as I do"

[BrightonRed]

I'm a proud Swindonian but I'm also a realist.

I just don't think that for a town of it's size it has anywhere near enough to offer it's residents. I've lived in Brighton since September 2001 and in terms of nightlife, restaurants, pubs, comedy, live music and shopping the two places are incomparable.

I do think that Swindon is crying out for a University becuase I think it would stimulate growth and improvement in the above areas but it also needs a council which considers things other than new homes, chain stores and profit generation. I once read a two page spread in the guardian? Which said that Swindon was becoming one of the cocaine capitals of the country for no other reason than there are endless people earning well in the town with nothing elso to spend their money on - it seems plausible to me.

[Luci]

I have no links in Swindon and no family brought up here however was born here!

Mums side Ireland

Dads side Exeter

[Maidenhead Red]

swindon is alright by me.i'd like to live on the coast myself(south devon).but london, brum,slough,liverpool etc etc etc, the list is endless of shit holes that swindon kicks its arse.i'm kinda proud of my town really.

Slough really is a shithole.

I don't live in Swindon but my Dad does and I like it there

[pauld]

swindon is alright by me.i'd like to live on the coast myself(south devon).but london, brum,slough,liverpool etc etc etc, the list is endless of shit holes that swindon kicks its arse.i'm kinda proud of my town really.

Slough really is a shithole.

I don't live in Swindon but my Dad does and I like it there

What arriba said. Next time you feel like slagging off Swindon, go and "live" (or exist would be a better phrase) in Bracknell for nine months. As a non-native who moved here voluntarily, believe me there are many worse places to live.

[Iffy's Onion Bhaji]

Only thing that's lacking is variety of nightlife, which is my only gripe with the place.

Ha tell me about it I lived in Lechlade for about 7 months before moving to Cocknyville talk about fucking boring.

Those trips to Londis to get cashback are a thing of the past now then?    

[Gazza's Fat Mate]

don't live in swindon but have a two year plan which will hopefully allow me to move down there can't wait! swindon is good compared to most places!

[swindon_chick]

I thought this thread was going it be about marmite  :?

[Bogus Dave]

I like swindon because its home, its were my mates and family live, and i (sort of) know my way around it.

But theirs nothing really unique about it is there?

[Ardiles]

I first moved to Swindon in the early 1980s when my Dad was posted to RAF Lyneham and then lived in the town, on & off, for 12 of the next 17 years.  In 1999 I moved up to London and, while I still have Swindon connections (including close friends and a football club) I have no plans to move back.

While I was living in Swindon, I was a staunch defender.  I am less so now, and find myself a great deal more critical of the place now that I have left.  That said, I also believe that when you live somewhere it's not the bricks & mortar of a town that matter most.  Architecture and facilities are all secondary to relationships and community - and for me Swindon always scored highly on the latter two despite scoring poorly elsewhere.

If I can have a short whinge, my greatest regret for Swindon is that it could be so much better than it is.  When I first moved there in the early 1980s the place was undeniably on the up.  There was a buzz.  Things were changing and growing and, even as a 10 year old living in Freshbrook, I remember feeling as if I was part of something quite impressive.

But I can't help feeling that the momentum has been lost, and that for a town of its size Swindon should be doing so much better.  In 2008, Swindon is still talking about possibly building a university campus, possibly building a concert venue, improving the town centre.  All these things should have happened more than 10 years ago.  So much potential, but a long way to go as well.  I have friends living in West Swindon who have not set foot in the town centre for years.  That can't be right, can it?