We live on the UK's most colourful street – it looks like a vibrant paradise but it's hiding a dark secret | The Sun
RESIDENTS on Britain's most colourful street say its vibrant façade hides a dark secret.
Purple, yellow and green houses – some covered in murals – stretch out along cheery Elm Street in Cardiff, Wales.
Residents say the jolly designs, including a massive World War 2 tribute and a Caribbean beach mural, lift spirits in the community.
Sheryl Chetcuti owns a turquoise-coloured home daubed in a South African 'Ndebele' tribe design that represents "celebration".
She told The Sun Online: “My daughter’s boyfriend was a songwriter and it took him over two weeks to do; it wasn’t easy.”
Ms Chetcuti was one of a small group of residents who began the transformation of what was then a drab red-brick road of terraced homes.
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The community entered the whole street into a Cardiff in Bloom competition on a whim and incredibly, they won.
It wasn't long before other homes jumped on the mural bandwagon.
One house boasts an epic World War Two scene of a Spitfire squadron flying through a sunset above a treeline and a field of poppies.
The goose bump-inducing work is a tribute to the resident's father, an RAF pilot in the Second World War.
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Not far down the 200 metre road sits a property painted in shades of blue with a huge palm tree and banana plants in the front garden.
Unsurprisingly, it is known as “the Caribbean house”.
Marketing executive Lauren Sourbutts, 31, whose terraced three-bed home is painted bright blue with a pink door said its always easy to give directions to her house.
And she added: “After a long day at work, the vibrancy of the colours when I get home really lift me.
“I wouldn’t live anywhere else.”
DARK SECRET
But despite its colourful face, the reality of life on Elm Street,in the Splott area of Cardiff, can be a nightmare.
One resident, who did not want to be named, told the Sun Online: "There is a lot of crime around here – well above the average.
"So, despite the extrovert facades on our homes, we like to keep a low profile."
The local area recorded over 152 crimes in November 2022 alone, according to South Wales Police.
These included 43 violence and sexual offences and 25 criminal damage and arson incidents.
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But despite the unsettling backdrop, the resident insisted Elm Street is "a bright spot even on the dullest of days".
They added: "When I walk home and turn into Elm Street, I feel my spirits lift instantly. It’s that kind of vibe.”
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