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The Guardian - UK

Lifestyle

Daniel Lavelle

‘Times have changed’: is the writing on the wall for the British seaside postcard?

Darryl Blackpool PTA

A postcard and souvenir shop along the seafront in Blackpool — A postcard and souvenir shop along the seafront in Blackpool Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian

A trip to the British seaside may not always have been something to write home about, but these days you might struggle even if you wanted to.

At the Little Gems gift shop in Blackpool town centre, all the usual seaside wares are on display – beach towels, plastic buckets and spades, sticks of rock – but one item is notably missing.

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