But they do have a cast bronze monkey at the entrance to the inner marina (just inside the revolving dock gates).
My stepdaughter moved there for work and we were quite prepared to hate the place. Granted that like, any town, it has its scruffy areas but the new marina is very impressive and curiously peaceful for a stroll. The area to the north of the port, called The Headland, is almost like another little town, with cobbled streets, a pleasant promenade along the seafront and an impressive church. Seaton Carew is the nearest you'll get to a beach resort there and you can do a spot of ship-watching from the beach if you have a decent pair of binoculars. The infamous Ghost Ships are moored further round by Seal Sands which, coincidentally, has its own colony of seals.
Hartlepool is OK, certainly compared with some of the depressing places along the coast between there and Newcastle. Just don't drink the beer...................or mention monkeys in any pub!
DM