We live in real-life Broadchurch but dark reality is ruining our lives, we’re being targeted
BUSINESS owners living in the real-life Broadchurch town have said a dark reality is ruining their lives.
The seaside town of West Bay in Dorset became a popular holiday destination after featuring on the ITV series.
The town boasts several locations which were used for filming the drama – including independent store Harbour Gifts.
On the series, the gifts shop was named Harbour News and was ran by Jack Marshall – who was almost lynched outside the Sea Brigade Hall.
But now the crime show is becoming a reality as the 15-year-old local business has been hit by rampant shoplifting.
Owners Tim and Nicole Attrill have been targeted more than 20 times and have now been forced to refit the entire store to stop shoplifters.
They have also installed CCTV to tackle blind spots used by criminals.
Tim, 41, said: “It is heart breaking. We work so hard to make the shop nice for the bay and for the community
“We know it happens every year and it is an ongoing battle but this year has been so much worse.”
The devastated pair, who recently took over the family business, said unashamed thieves leave empty boxes behind.
He slammed: “People don’t realise we are a small independent business, this affects our turnovers and our livelihoods.”
The issue is now affecting all independent businesses in the West Bay – who have been forced to hike their prices to cover costs.
Nicole said they keep reporting shoplifting incidents to the police but they said there’s nothing they can do as it’s “not a priority”.
She fumed: “We report it to the police but there is only so much they can do as the value of what is stolen is not enough to interest them.
“If something costs £5 the police probably have other priorities.
“I’m not sure if this is happening because of the cost of living crisis but the result is we have to put up our prices to cover our costs, which is the last thing we want to do.”
Nearby kiosk Baboo Gelato had its tip jar stolen from the front window – with the thief caught smirking as he stole the money on CCTV.
Owner Annie Hanbury said: “It was very sad and it is very low to steal tips.
“I feel very sorry for all of our staff, they are all kids working very hard to earn some money during school holidays so it was very sad for them.”
Bridport police claimed that reports of shoplifting in West Bay are low and are taking measures to protect local businesses.
Sergeant Mike Brown said: “We fully understand the impact that shoplifting can have on our local businesses and we are fully committed to working with the retail sector to tackle this issue.
“We do have had a number of successful convictions of shoplifters, but we are not complacent and we will continue to also use all powers available to us in order to deter those who persistently cause issues to shopkeepers.”