CWMBRAN came out victorious in an online poll to find the best post-war new town in the UK.
The light-hearted contest was devised by author John Grindrod, who has written on the subject of new towns previously in his book Concretopia: A Journey around the Rebuilding of Postwar Britain.
Taking place in the form of a knock-out style competition on Twitter, Mr Grindrod's 'World Cup Of UK Post-War New Towns' pitted Cwmbran against opponents including Stevenage, Northampton, Warrington, and Harlow.
The final, held on New Year's Day, saw Cwmbran take on the Shropshire new town Telford.
And after 8,140 votes were cast, Cwmbran emerged victorious with 55.8 per cent of the vote.
It’s NEW TOWNS DAY!
— John Grindrod (@Grindrod) January 1, 2021
WORLD CUP OF UK POST-WAR NEW TOWNS – THE FINAL
Happy New Year! Thanks so much to everyone for voting. The semis saw the departure of giants Milton Keynes and Harlow, leaving two post-war new towns to battle it out...
Chairman of Cwmbran Community Council, Cllr Anthony Bird, welcomed the result.
“Thanks to everyone who voted for Cwmbran,” he said.
“We had some stiff competition from some great places, but this just confirms my opinions that Cwmbran is truly an amazing place to live, work, and play.”
The vote also captured the attention of Goldie Lookin' Chain's Eggsy. The band paid tribute to the town in their song The Fresh Prince of Cwmbran.
"Great work and happy new year to all of Britain's new towns," he tweeted after the result came in.
As well as bringing a smile to people's faces over New Year, Mr Grindrod hoped the contest would encourage people to donate to the Trussell Trust food bank charity - via trusselltrust.org.
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