‘Insane’ article about Aberaeron has readers in stitches

“Not only is Aberaeron a town, it’s also an electoral ward.”

What do you do when asked to write an article about a place you know nothing about?

For the website MyLondon, the answer seems to have been to log on to Trip Advisor and Wikipedia and do your best.

The finished article called ‘The stunning village in Wales that will make you feel like you’re in a wonderland’ has had readers from Wales in stitches.

Among the errors included are that Aberaeron is in Pembrokeshire, includes attractions that are in Aberystwyth and Cwm Rheidiol, and that it’s “unusual” for seaside towns on the Wales coast to have harbours.

“There are many things to do in Aberaeron,” the article says. “You can go for a walk along the Quay Parade, explore the Aberystwyth Mystery Treasure Trail or visit the Vale of Rheidol Railway.

“The town also has a horse riding stables called Rheidol Riding Centre, where you’ll be able to have a go at horse riding.

“However, if horse riding is a bit too adventurous for you, you can opt for a peaceful afternoon at the wildlife park, The Magic of Life Butterfly House.”

The attractions described are 20 miles away in Aberystwyth and Cwm Rheidiol.

Aberaeron town and county councillor Elizabeth Evans noted that it would be great to visit the town described in the article.

“Would be great to go horse riding, but the stables don’t exist,” she said.

‘Awful’

The article is also stitched together with a number of vague statements such as: “Many communities around the world get together to coordinate house painting in this way.”

Speculation has ranged from it being written by someone on work experience to being generated by AI.

Others noted that the wording seems to be very similar to the town’s Wikipedia article in many instances.

“This was definitely not written by a human – an algorithm trawled the Wikipedia and spat this out,” Pamela Koehne-Drube commented. “It practically screams machine generated.”

An actual quote from this insane article:

“Located between Aberystwyth and Cardigan in Ceredigion, Wales, Aberaeron used to be spelt in English as Aberayron.”

And:

“Not only is Aberaeron a town, it’s also an electoral ward.”https://t.co/Qei9ClmmSY

— Owen Williams 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿  (@OwsWills) September 25, 2021

“That is the most awful writing I’ve ever read. It’s like a 7 year old’s ‘What I did over the holidays’, but without the charm,” Sue Archer added.

Others pointed out that the website seems to be full of similar articles about picturesque towns and villages across the UK which bear little evidence that anyone has visited them.

The article ends with the line: “If Aberaeron sounds like your next adventure, you can travel from London by doing a 5 hr 10 minute drive via M4.”

Which seems to have been too far for MyLondon to travel.

“Tell me you haven’t been to Aberaeron without telling me you haven’t left London,” Rob Thomas commented.