An author has launched a blistering attack on Colchester describing the town as "soulless" and its soldiers as "alcoholic wife-swappers".

In his book Playing At Home, Sheffield writer John Aizlewood said Colchester was full of "dope-smoking, short-skirted, skittish loud women".

There was "nothing of sufficient interest to entice weary travellers off the A12", he added.

The book has sparked a storm of protest among community figures and Mr Aizlewood was branded "an ill-informed peeping Tom".

He visited the town in 1997 to watch Colchester United play Scarborough for research for his book, which takes a Rough Guide-esque look at all lower division club grounds and their surrounding towns.

The four pages of observations that result show he was not impressed.

The chapter starts off: "Colchester's tag-line is 'the Oldest Recorded Town in Britain'. That word 'recorded' gives it away.

"The obvious truth is they don't know, they haven't got the guts to call it the Oldest Town in Britain."

He adds: "There's nothing in the way of community spirit. Layer Road, Colchester United's dingy ground, lies opposite a soulless estate of military homes.

"It nestles in a middle class estate (cheap too, as homes next to the firing range and trigger-happy squaddies from Sunderland ought to be) where two cars are the norm."

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