On the heels of a prominent Canadian fitness influencer recently journeying to a Welsh town dubbed the ‘UK’s fattest town’, residents have now hit back. The influencer blogged his observations in a video titled ‘How Much Weight Can I Gain in the World’s Most Obese Town?’
Ebbw Vale in South Wales acquired its unfortunate reputation due to widespread health issues, including obesity and an abundance of takeaways, with 73% of the town’s eateries being fast food establishments. 80% of the people living in Ebbw Vale are considered overweight or obese.
Hailing from Toronto, Canada, YouTuber Will Tennyson recently made the lengthy trip to the former steel town nestled in the South Wales Valleys to examine why the town’s residents were battling drastic health challenges.
Ever since the content creator’s video went live, residents of Ebbw Vale have felt a gamut of emotions, and now they’re speaking up.
One resident in her late twenties told MailOnline: “We are not a freak show for people to laugh and joke about. People have bad diets here because of poverty, not enough education and no work. It’s easy to say people in Ebbw Vale are making bad choices, but for some, they have no choices.”
Jay Brown, a factory production supervisor, told the publication: ‘It shows the town in a bad light and highlights a flaw in Ebbw Vale which is a nice town. There’s a reason why it’s Britain’s heaviest town, it’s down to a lack of education and understanding. Some people might think it’s laziness but there are other factors at play, a lot of people here struggle with health issues.”
Having grown up in the town, 21-year-old Jack Bailey told MailOnline: “It’s a bit extreme, this YouTuber comes over at 10 stone and goes back making out he’s weighing 20 stone. That’s not good for Ebbw Vale or for him. I appreciate he’s Canadian but there’s a lot more obesity closer to home for him. America has many more fat people than Ebbw Vale. The problem we have here is that people can’t afford to eat healthy meals. It’s cheaper to have takeaways.”
The youth continued: “One of the pizza shops offers six pizzas for half price one day a week, you can feed your whole family on that.”
Heron Foods’ duty manager, Sarah Leverage, who participated in Tennyson’s 40-minute vlog, told the publication: “There have been three different content providers here because it’s the fattest town in the country. It doesn’t help the reputation of the town but it may shine a light on the problems we have here. It’s a bandwagon, they come here and ask us the same questions. But Will Tennyson did feel sorry for us, he could see there’s nothing for people to do here, people are depressed and fed-up.”
Ebbw Vale born and bred currency trader, Jordan Jukes, 30, who also took part in the Canadian YouTuber’s vlog, told MailOnline: “It’s bad but he didn’t trash the town completely — he said it was lovely but set up to fail and he’s right. We have one greengrocer and dozens of kebab shops. I think his video has brought a little bit of truth but there are plenty of towns in the UK like Ebbw Vale.”
Speaking to the publication, a grandmother shared her observations: “The younger generation have stopped cooking for their children, they rely on takeaways and we’ve got plenty of choice. My niece has two kids and they’ve never tasted home cooked food, not even beans on toast. They have something from Greggs for breakfast, a snack at lunchtime and a takeaway at night. My niece says she’s too busy to cook but it’s become a way of life here.”
A mobile phone shop manager also shared his two cents: “People don’t cook at home because they can’t be bothered. Cooking at home isn’t being passed down the generations like it used to be. It’s also to do with the poverty here, the fact that we have been abandoned by successive governments. There is no financial input, there’s nothing here and people have given up hope.”
One determined Ebbw Vale resident, 31-year-old Scott Marshman, spoke to the MailOnline about his health journey, revealing he’s lost 10 stone the hard way — by cutting out kebabs and opting for a healthy diet for the first time in his life. Scott shared: “I was the same as everyone else, I lived on kebabs and greasy takeaways. I’d have a kebab for lunch and a Chinese takeout for tea. But I changed my ways. I eat clean. I buy produce from the greengrocer and cook for myself.”
He continued optimistically: “Like a lot of people around here I’m unemployed but I’m enrolling on a nursing course. There are opportunities if people want them. Ebbw Vale has a terrible reputation for obesity and unemployment but it isn’t all bad. I wouldn’t live anywhere else.”
In his vlog, Will can be seen arriving at his hotel and being told by the receptionist: “We are known as the fattest town in Britain. There’s not an awful lot to be honest with you. There isn’t a great deal around here other than kebab shops and vape shops.”
The next day, while wandering about the town, he observed: “They were not kidding about the kebab houses, they are actually everywhere. We probably passed 15 on the way here.”
When the YouTuber ventured into the local McDonald’s, where patrons can endure waits of up to 30 minutes for service, he observed: “The place is absolutely packed. I was walking the town and I was like, ‘Where is everybody?’ They are all here. This must be the unofficial town hall. Just a constant stream of cars and inside it is ridiculous.”
The content creator’s conversations with other townsfolk starkly highlighted Ebbw Vale’s economic struggles, with one woman — who had shed over nine stone in the past year — pointing out: “Obesity is normalised and everybody here is obese. It is a lack of education and social normality, and the environment you are living in.”
A young man talked to Will about his challenges with unemployment and shared how it led him to forgo gym visits for two years, opting for cheaper meal options due to financial constraints. At a point in his vlog, Will told his audience: “A lot of people here don’t have jobs. They are living off the state. The cheap food is absolutely crucial for them to survive. They can’t afford the healthier foods which is why there is only one green grocer in the entire town.”
“I feel really bad for the people that are here. It is all they know and you only know what you know and they are brought up on the same habits as their parents and it is a generational trickle down effect.”
Will’s overriding sentiment was one of empathy, and in wrapping up his vlog, he reflected: “24 hours in the UK’s most obese town was eye-opening. People here are kind of trapped.”
He concluded with a poignant observation: “They have limited choices to be healthy and breaking the norm is extremely difficult and when financial troubles are in the mix, it isn’t about health, it is purely about survival and putting food on the table.”
