Remembering Folkestone: collective nostalgia and sense of place in the English seaside resort

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper investigates perceptions of place in Folkestone, UK, through the lens of a nostalgic image of seaside resorts that continues to influence the town’s future. These perceptions are connected to the physical seaside structures that form a sense of place, which is both local and formed by external forces. This vision of the typical English seaside resort more generally can be seen to create an image of an England that once was, and many seek to return to. In-depth interviews were carried out with people who lived in or visited Folkestone when it was a popular resort. This paper focuses on the significance of Folkestone in the imaginations of this population, how this forms a sense of place, and ultimately, what of this should be preserved. It reflects on participants’ sentimentality towards Folkestone and the English seaside, identifying the key themes that characterise this. Ultimately, through an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of participants’ experiences, this paper suggests that their love of Folkestone and longing for its past is rooted in a frustration with the present and is secondary to their wish for it to let go of this past, and for Folkestone to reinvent itself towards a more prosperous future.