Our town is one of the most depressing in Britain...because we were cursed 70 ... trends now
Residents in a once-thriving market town now voted one of the most depressing in Britain have blamed the relocation of its war memorial for its demise - claiming it has brought a 'curse' upon the area.
Locals believe the decision to reposition the cenotaph nearly 70 years ago to a church graveyard broke a historic covenant and has resulted in ill luck for the Hampshire town of Andover ever since.
They are now calling on the council to put the monument - which was paid for by the relatives of soldiers from the First World War nearly 100 years ago - back in its original place.
Paul D'Arcy said the monument in Andover was 'dragged' to a graveyard in the 'dead of the night' and has contributed to the demise of the town - described in recent polls as one of Britain's 'most depressing'.
The 54-year-old believes returning the cenotaph back to the town centre - 'where it belongs' - would enable locals to pay respect to the monument and save it from vandalism.
Residents in Andover, Hampshire have blamed the relocation of the town's cenotaph for the area's decline
Townsfolk believe returning the monument to its original place would help save it from vandalism and enable more people to pay their respects
Paul D'Arcy has collected 7,000 signatures for his petition to return the cenotaph, which was repositioned nearly 70 years ago, to its original position
Locals believe the relocated monument has had an impact on the town, which has seen several household names including M&S shut shop in recent years
In a 20-year campaign to see the memorial relocated, Mr D'Arcy has amassed thousands of signatures in a petition and said he won't give up until he sees it reinstated.
The cenotaph was originally erected in the town centre on May 5, 1920, to honour the sacrifices made by residents during the First World War.
It remained on the High Street until August 1956 when it was moved to its current location at St Mary's churchyard.
Mr D'Arcy, who was 'born and bred' in the town and enjoys magnet fishing as a hobby, said: 'They put it in the back of a tractor and dragged it to the graveyard.
'It doesn't belong to the council, it belongs to the people. By removing it, they broke the covenant.
'The reason they were doing to move it in the first place was because they were going to extend the Guildhall - and that never happened.
'Because the families of the soldiers paid for it, it belongs to the people - not to the council.'
Mr D'Arcy believes the break with the historic covenant made by the 'townsfolk' is behind Andover's decline, with the area having lost several household names in recent years, including Marks and Spencer.
He said: 'The town itself started off like a London overfill town. It filled up and then it had a really nice shopping centre and everything back in the 70s and 80s and now it's just cafes, charity shops and pubs.
'If you walk around the town centre, a lot of the shops are empty. All the major retail brands - the big boys - they have all moved out the town. There are a lot of vacant empty shops.
'I think if it was in the town centre, more people would show more respect for it - being it's part of the British Army, I think it should be put back.'
Mr D'Arcy first learnt of the 'travesty' involving the cenotaph from a local historian in the early 2000s when he was working in a bar.
Alongside other passionate locals, he set up a market stall for several months and campaigned to have the monument put back into the town centre.
He said: 'We had a market stall in the middle of the town and had people come along and sign the
