RESIDENTS in Monmouth are living in 11th heaven according to The Sunday Times’ Trend column.

The national says it is one of the “11 coolest postcodes to move to in 2023”, with a decidedly attractive appeal to “haute hipsters”.

It says: “Has the hipster love affair with Hackney fizzled at last? Is east London toast? A visit to the Welsh town of Monmouth will confirm, yes: the edgy crowd have found a new epicentre.”

It pays tribute to NP25’s “buzzing fringe art and folk scene”, including the Monmouth Festival, which is due to return this summer after a three-year hiatus. And it also says ‘hipsters’ can be found “among the vines at Ancre Hill Vineyard, sipping its award-winning natural wine.“

Locally produced cider is also an attraction to the ‘new crew’, such as vintages produced at the Apple County Cider Co, and it recommends ‘posh nibbles’ at the Marches Delicatessen.

And don’t forget the yoga, says the paper, with local teacher Olivia Clarke’s Yin and Dharma Days and retreats ‘always popular’.

Apparently our ‘laid-back scene’ is ‘pulling in famous faces, such as Bez from the Happy Mondays, and Oprah Winfrey – albeit Bez pursues his passion for bee keeping and making wine from hedgerow fruits closer to Abergavenny than Monmouth, while Oprah’s connection only extends to her production company fiming at the Savoy..

But according to the Times, those ‘in the know’ will reportedly be found dining ‘at the Pig & Apple’ burger restaurant ‘run by a local young couple who quit the rat race’ on Kate Humble’s Humble b Nature Penallt farm.

The article said they had spoken to ‘the experts’ to find ‘the most-wanted addresses’ in the country. Other venues selected were North Berwick, Londonderry, Kelham Island in Sheffield, Glasgow G1, Cley-next-the-Sea in Norfolk, Pett Level in East Sussex, Leyton in East London, Potto in North Yorkshire, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea in Northumberland and Kendal in Cumbria.