My historic city’s turned into henpocalypse hell – I get splattered with vomit & flashed, it makes Ibiza look tame | The Sun
LEAVING a restaurant after a family dinner in the centre of York, Shany Hagan, should have been looking forward to a relaxing stroll through the historic city and enjoying the evening air.
Instead Shany, 49, takes a deep breath and prepares to navigate a "hen-apocalypse" – a war zone of hen and stag parties which take over the city every weekend.
Speaking exclusively to Fabulous, the mum-of-one said: “Forget a nice wander through York, I battle with a sea of pink tutus, costume veils and party sashes.
“I’ve witnessed plenty of boozed-up brides lying in the road or vomiting and even peeing in the street.
“I rarely make it home without being splattered with vomit or being flashed by an over-excited hen party.
“From Thursday to Monday morning York’s town centre is turned into party-central by brides and grooms who make Ibiza look like a kids party.
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“Don’t get me wrong, I love a good party and am not a prude but these parties have gone from controlled to crazy.
“York has gone from historic fun to ‘hen-apocalypse’ and it’s happening every weekend, forcing families like mine to sell up and move.”
Celebrity artist Shany isn't the only York resident complaining about the wild hens and stags.
Earlier this year small businesses and residents complained that York city centre had become a "no-go" zone at nights and on weekends due to wild stag and hen parties.
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York Council has published guidance for stag and hen parties to prevent locals from becoming even more disgruntled urging visitors to be respectful including reminding them not to wee in the street but to “use public toilets and loos inside the venues they visit”.
Local campaigners say the guidelines are cringeworthy and not strong enough and Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central, has called on the council to do more including special stag and hen zones to prevent even more devastating damage to the area.
A GoHen poll revealed York is in the top ten of Hens Party locations coming in at number nine with Bath, London and Brighton the top three locations
Hens and stag parties have exploded in popularity since Covid with studies showing people want to make up for lost time
Since Covid, the GoHen poll show Google searches for hen parties have increased by ninety percent.
The study showed more brides than ever before having multiple hen parties for friends in their hometown, away hen parties in places like York – famous for its iconic Minster, Roman city walls and cobbled streets – overseas hen parties, and more subdued gatherings for older relatives.
The multi-party hen plan is being driven by social media and Instagram bragging rights.
More than 75% of engaged couples now have bachelor and bachelorette parties and a study by Theknot.com discovered 92% of hen parties are overnight events and last two days.
The GoHen survey discovered the majority of hens are still preferring a UK celebration, with two-thirds or 67% of brides-to-be having at least one hen party in Britain.
The number of women attending a hen party has risen 13 per group in 2022 to fifteen in 2023 and the average spend is £242 power person
The polls also revealed hen parties are likely to be more debauched.
The GoHen study revealed hen events are four times more likely to have some element of nudity on their pre-wedding weekends than stags.
While the explosion in hen and stag parties benefits business for local residents in popular party locations like Shany it’s causing major problems.
She admitted: “I have been forced to sell my home in the city centre and move out of town to a quieter area because of the hen and stag parties.
“I used to own a four-bedroom house in the city centre but I sold it and bought a detached cottage on the outskirts because the noise of partying tourists was too much.
“I was devastated to leave the house. It had lots of great memories for my family.
“It was where my son grew up and I’d decorated it to just how I wanted each room to look.
“It was hard selling it knowing I was forced out by the hen-pocalypse.”
According to Shany she is not the only York local selling up and moving out of the city centre
She added: “Many of my friends and colleagues are selling up.
“You can't park because of the increasing number of visitors and there’s little chance of getting a good night’s sleep over the weekend.
“People love visiting York because of its history.
“But it is also popular because it has four hundred and twenty pubs and bars which makes it a magnet for boozy Brits.
“We also have the Micklegate Run, an area in York which has 48 pubs which sell cheap drinks and attract visitors from all over the world.”
Shany is keen to encourage young party-goers to have a bit of decorum.
She said: “I am shocked so many women of all ages just drink themselves silly, strip off and run wild.
“Some of the groups I have seen are still drinking at 11am in the morning. I can't imagine the hangovers they must have on Monday when they go back to work.
“Frankly girls, it's a bit embarrassing, one minute you’re binge drinking and flashing everyone and then next you’re dressed in white walking up the aisle.
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“It’s time to re-think the wild parties or zone them off into special areas.
“I doubt very much that the hangover’s worth it.”
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