HSBC, 38 High Street, Exeter

This main branch of HSBC - its main bank for the city of Exeter - is awful. Dreadful. This is the 'capital city' of Devon and the south west, as the city council keep reminding us (particularly on their entry signs to Exeter), yet this bank's main branch is like a corner shop.

It is on the corner next to Saint Martins lane, with Tact (the employment agency) on the other side, in a post-war brick building with green marble along some of the walls. One cashpoint machine on the outside.

It has over-sized glazed doors, heavy, bulky metal frames painted white. Yet, the interior is tiny, the size of a corner shop. Then there are only three counters - plus a couple for the bureau de change - and little interview rooms/boothes on the opposite side. The floor is that type of 1970s 'hundreds and thousands' style of fake marble tiling.

Finally, the staff are fine, certainly polite and efficient enough, but there is the awful, overloud din of Jermini over the loudspeakers, that awful, incessant ranting of the presenter accompanied by the modern pop music.