Wilko Over And Out?

Lumme! Local social media is buzzing with the rumour that Wilkinson, the homeware and hardware store, is about to vacate Ramsgate and head off to Westworld Cross!

I must say, when I popped in for a gold-plated sink plug at the weekend the place did look remarkably bereft of stock. Not only that, but on a trip to Shed City a few hours later, the old BHS store seemed to be in the process of being totally gutted. So perhaps they're moving there?

If the rumour's true it'll be a shame as Wilko, along with Waitrose, is definitely one of the reasons to visit the Millionaires' Playground. I have to admit that just setting foot in the place used to make me physically ill, as it has a Poundland/Aldi quality which assaulted my Fortnum and Mason sensibilities. But d'you know what, dear reader? After nearly ten years in Thanet, I've pretty much got used to slumming it!

Worse still, the T word (Tesco) has been mentioned as a potential replacement. As if we need another one of those. I've got a good mind to tweet our Police Commissioner and ask her to put a stop to it!

More Quality Shopping For Ramsgate

Lumme! It seems that Ramsgate's going to get another pound shop! Or a '99p Store' to be more precise.

According to the excellent yourfannitinnit, the new shop opens in what used to be Woolworths on the high street next Tuesday. With a six figure annual rent to pay, they'll have to sell an awful lot of sticky crap to keep their heads above water. But chain boss Hussain Lalani reckons: 'The public are flocking to our stores and when I say public I mean that in the widest sense.' Er, no, not sure what you do mean there, Hussain. Still, it's 30 new jobs created, so that's not to be sniffed at.

And with a spare mill to invest following the surprise success of my latest blockbuster, Smell the Profit for the Polish Cheese Board, I might just toddle down there and buy a million gross of plastic clothes pegs and attach one to each nipple, and, if I'm feeling really adventurous, clamp another pair to the old Eastcliff Golden Globes. Then all I'll need to do is find somewhere to stick the other 139,999,996!

Full story in yourfannitinnit