Collecting broken glass. For fun.

Seaham's big draw is sea glass, which is broken bottles from the old glassworks, washed smooth and picked up by tourists. The harbour's nice and there's a giant soldier statue on the front. Then you pay to park, North Terrace is rammed, and there's aggro down the beach and at the marina.

The deliberate fires come in at ten times the typical town's rate, the bins at about twenty-four times. The vandalism's more than twice the typical town's. Seaham's own conservation area is officially at risk. The sea's rated Good. They'll be selling the bins as sea glass next.

The editor, with a pocket full of old bottles