Sweet-toothed thieves steal charity boxes, cash and chocolate from Notarianni Ice Cream in Blackpool

The shop on Waterloo Road was broken into last night.

Thieves took change from the till, donations from a 'Hug In A Bag' cancer charity box, and chocolate the parlour has used in its nationally famous sundaes since its opening in 1937.

They also cut the wiring on the shop's CCTV cameras.

Manager Luca Vettese, who is the great-grandson of Notarianni's founder Luigi Notarianni, said: "We don't leave any valuables in the shop for this reason. They've just taken whatever change was left in the till and the charity goblets for Hug In A Bag. Bizarrely, they robbed a lot of chocolate bars so they must have been hungry - a lot of Ferrero Rocher and crispy M&Ms. They left the Kinder Bueno so they must not have liked them.

"It's just a lot of inconvenience for what they took. A bit of change and a charity box amounting to just a hundred pounds, and a few chocolate bars. For that they destroyed our CCTV, they broke into the shop and we have had to close for the day.

"Things are hard enough as it is, but these things are sent to test us and you have just got to crack on.

"What's been lovely is the support of the community. Straight away we had people calling us asking if there was anything they could do. Tesco down the road offered to bring us free lunch. We have got some kind friends down making us a new door as we speak."

Notarianni will remain closed today while staff clean up the mess.

Anyone who knows anything about the break-in is asked to contact police with information on 101, quoting the log reference LC-20201009-0412.