I live in East Yorkshire near Hull and it is somewhere that I would never want to move away from. There are lots of towns and villages, countryside, beaches (Hunmanby Gap being my favourite), marinas. The people are extremely friendly and Hull is such a multicultural city it is fab. The university is excellent, healthcare is brilliant and is always improving. Property prices are fairly low in comparison with the bigger cities meaning you could afford a car though the cost of petrol is probably alot more than is USA!
I am biased but East Yorkshire is one the most beautiful areas in our country.
Aw thanks again guys for providing such lovely answers!
Not to throw another wrench into the works but does it affect things much if I'm gay? In America, generally anywhere outside big cities tends to be very religious and homophobic. I always thought of the UK and Europe as a whole as a tolerant place that's moved beyond that, but maybe some people from those areas like the North, Bristol, Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland, Ireland etc could give some insight? London seemed very pro-gay when I went.
Aw thanks again guys for providing such lovely answers!
Not to throw another wrench into the works but does it affect things much if I'm gay? In America, generally anywhere outside big cities tends to be very religious and homophobic. I always thought of the UK and Europe as a whole as a tolerant place that's moved beyond that, but maybe some people from those areas like the North, Bristol, Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland, Ireland etc could give some insight? London seemed very pro-gay when I went.
Many of my friend in Hull are gay and don't face any kind of prejudice or hate crime. There is really good gay scene but if you're not into the whole scene thing that is fine too. In Hull, anything goes, you can be gay, straight, TV, black, white, pink, purple, fat, thin, catholic, wicca, buddist...like i day multi-cultiversal and very diverse.
Aw thanks again guys for providing such lovely answers!
Not to throw another wrench into the works but does it affect things much if I'm gay? In America, generally anywhere outside big cities tends to be very religious and homophobic. I always thought of the UK and Europe as a whole as a tolerant place that's moved beyond that, but maybe some people from those areas like the North, Bristol, Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland, Ireland etc could give some insight? London seemed very pro-gay when I went.
Definitely wouldn't be an issue at all.
London obviously has the biggest gay scene but pretty much every big city has a vibrant gay culture. People often say Manchester is the second "gayest" city after London, but in my experience, it's overrated - Liverpool's scene is far better (although Manc beats the pants off Nottingham ).
I'm going to be completely biased and recommend my wonderful home city of Liverpool. As others have mentioned, it's one of the most cultured in the country! Great arts and music scene. Fantastic history (most museums and listed buildings outside London). Unique local culture completely different to anywhere else in England. Friendly people. Big enough to have a good amount of "stuff" (just under 1.5 million people in the metro area) but not scary-big like London. Decent transport system (buses could be better but it has an underground (subway) like London and Newcastle).
It's also close enough to Manchester/Salford that you could live in Liverpool but work in Manchester. Also just over 2 hours away from London by train.
Aw thanks again guys for providing such lovely answers!
Not to throw another wrench into the works but does it affect things much if I'm gay? In America, generally anywhere outside big cities tends to be very religious and homophobic. I always thought of the UK and Europe as a whole as a tolerant place that's moved beyond that, but maybe some people from those areas like the North, Bristol, Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland, Ireland etc could give some insight? London seemed very pro-gay when I went.
Wow-thanks for all the responses guys! Sorry, just got in from class so hadn't been able to respond back earlier.
It's great to see everyone be so passionate about their cities--really expanded my view on things. Liverpool, Bristol, Brighton, Glasgow, Oxford and Cambridge sound great! The only problem I have is weighing the cost of living vs. owning a car. A lot of my friends that live in DC or New York don't have to own cars because the public transport system is so good, which is definitely something I'm looking for in a city *unless* the cost of living is low enough that it justifies owning a car (which I presume is much like here?). At my uni, the transport system is just like that, where there are adequate bus systems, walking paths, bike lanes, etc and I love it! But back home in the suburbs, a car's needed to go pretty much anywhere. So, I know London's got great transport, but what about Brighton, Bristol, Newcastle, etc? How many of you in those cities own cars?
Oh and a quick sidenote--I don't intend to move over there to exploit the NHS at all. I don't have any medical issues and haven't been to my GP for anything but the odd cold or vaccination since I was 10! I don't know if that's what people were trying to get at or what, but just wanted to clear that up..
If you want excellent public transport to the point you don't need a car, it has to be London. That's not a sugggesiton, its really your only option. Nowhere else in the country has a public transport system quite like it.
The good thing about London and its tansport links is that you don't actually have to live in the city. Remember, Greater London is huuuuuuge! You'll be able to find a nice, small place to rent somewhere in the suburbs, yet still be 30 minutes from the west end by tube.
You can literally move around London and feel like you've moved to a different city. There's nowhere quite like it. You may learn to hate it after 20 years or so, but I've never met anoyne who's moved to London and not loved the shit out of it!
Research the London boroughs and get an idea of all the different places you could live. It's a big city, you'll definitely find somewhere!
Also remember; if you plan to spend the rest of your life in the UK, there's plenty of time to move to different places. London is a good place to start.
If you want excellent public transport to the point you don't need a car, it has to be London. That's not a sugggesiton, its really your only option. Nowhere else in the country has a public transport system quite like it.
The good thing about London and its tansport links is that you don't actually have to live in the city. Remember, Greater London is huuuuuuge! You'll be able to find a nice, small place to rent somewhere in the suburbs, yet still be 30 minutes from the west end by tube.
You can literally move around London and feel like you've moved to a different city. There's nowhere quite like it. You may learn to hate it after 20 years or so, but I've never met anoyne who's moved to London and not loved the shit out of it!
Research the London boroughs and get an idea of all the different places you could live. It's a big city, you'll definitely find somewhere!
Also remember; if you plan to spend the rest of your life in the UK, there's plenty of time to move to different places. London is a good place to start.
Thanks for the info--and that's a really good point. I mean London should be thought of like a group of places to live, rather than just London right?
Do you know what neighbourhoods are good/bad/expensive? From what I can gather, Notting Hill/Chelsea/Kensington are the posh, expensive places but I would love something kind of close to Central London or Zone 1. I remember missing a bus stop once, going out to Zone 4 and then getting really scared really fast. Not saying all of Zone 4's like that, of course. But it's hard to figure because I feel the good and not-so-good parts are more intertwined than in say NYC, where it's very obvious that Manhattan's good and the Bronx is bad, end of.
You know, looking back at that paragraph, I wonder if any of it makes sense lol
I think it's exaggerating to say the only place you can live without a car is London. Yes, London has a good transport system but everywhere has regular buses and a train station unless you live in villages. We are equipped more for public transport than I believe the US is.
Zone 1 in London is very expensive, most that work there live in the suburbs and commute in. If you want to live more centrally to the nightlife and not much travelling to work then I personally would pick another smaller city. There are plenty of places you can be in London in an hour or so, it's a small country.
Your best bet is have a holiday here and travel around a bit, see where appeals to you. You can also have a look at the towns mentioned online. Like any country you will find good areas and not so good. Crime figures also vary from place to place if it's important to you to feel safe and easy going.
Many of my friend in Hull are gay and don't face any kind of prejudice or hate crime. There is really good gay scene but if you're not into the whole scene thing that is fine too. In Hull, anything goes, you can be gay, straight, TV, black, white, pink, purple, fat, thin, catholic, wicca, buddist...like i day multi-cultiversal and very diverse.
Yeah, thats great and all...but come on, you know full well Hull is a dump. Its hardly comparable to Oxford, London or Bath! High crime rate, dire architecture, unfriendly locals. Wasnt it voted Crappiest town in the UK or something?
I think it's exaggerating to say the only place you can live without a car is London. Yes, London has a good transport system but everywhere has regular buses and a train station unless you live in villages. We are equipped more for public transport than I believe the US is.
Until recently I lived in a small city. A lovely city with some really beautiful architecture. I lived on an estate on the edge of the city with a good bus service that stopped at 6pm. So anything I wanted to do after that time, I had to walk to or take expensive taxis. I went to an evening class. The adult education centre was the other side of town. It took me nearly an hour to walk there and the same back. I would do that in the summer but it was a real struggle to make myself do it in the winter.
Zone 1 in London
... is where I now live and it doesn't compare. It's easy to get around at any time of the day or evening.
Lots of people who have cars have no idea what it's really like to live without one. For me, London is the only place to live without a car.
Brighton is very well known for being the 'gay capital' of the UK - it has a thriving gay scene, you wouldn't encounter any trouble with that whatsoever (I live there part of the time for uni and know plenty of gay people who chose it for that very reason!).
It's also very easy to get around Brighton without a car (I don't have one down there) because it's quite a small city and has great transport links. The buses are very frequent and go all over the place, both within the city and out of it (there are nice coastal routes which run all along the South coast). And of course there are brilliant train links up to London (only takes 50 minutes) and to the rest of the South.
I originally come from London (well, the suburbs anyway), and live there when I'm not at uni and would highly recommend both cities, but if you want to live right in a city centre you will find Brighton much more affordable. Living in central London is very pricey, and you would probably have to live out in the suburbs (which is fine, it's easy enough to get into London - the tube is fantastic, but it sounds as though you want a proper city experience). Feel free to PM me if you have any further questions about either London or Brighton!
I would vote Newcastle since it's my home town but keeping in mind that you want to work in media OP then I'd have to say that my current home city - Cambridge might suit?
It's easily walkable with loads of cycle ways and, if the local council get it sorted out, then it will have a guided bus system that means you can get around the town without a car. There is, should you need a car or a van, a Streetcar scheme so you can pay an annual fee and have access to cars round the city that belong to the plan. Loads cheaper than owning a car.
Cambridge has avoided the worst of the recession so it still has local employment within the city (thanks to our science park, home to Microsoft) and 40 minute fast train connections to London Liverpool Street and Kings Cross - both lines are being invested in by the rail network over the next few years. It's cheaper than London to live yet easy to get to for a night out and to get to other parts of the UK as both London stations are on the majority of the Undeground lines. King Cross is being regenerated with a new development called Kings Place that is home to media related businesses.
I can't comment myself on the gay scene here but my mate who is reports that it's alive, well and very friendly!
Wherever you chose to go, hope the move goes well.
I'm a Southerner, but not a huge fan of London, it's OK, but overrated
Personal favourite of mine is Newcastle, fantastic city, great people. Lots to do too and really friendly locals. In fact it's a lot more friendly up North IMHO
I'm a Southerner, but not a huge fan of London, it's OK, but overrated
Personal favourite of mine is Newcastle, fantastic city, great people. Lots to do too and really friendly locals. In fact it's a lot more friendly up North IMHO
Why thank you! And also agree, Cambridge is friendly but you have to work a bit harder at getting to know people but then the upside is that it's transient society thanks to the University. But yes, Newcastle is very friendly, never alone in the place.
Trying to build the data from here into a graph and database so I can go back to it. Keep it coming--it's really appreciated!
I'm doing a semester-long study abroad next year in London with my uni, so that'll definitely give me an opportunity to take a little holiday around the country either on little weekend trips to places in the South or visiting some of the Northern cities after the programme ends...but I'm really looking forward to it nonetheless.
Thanks for the info--and that's a really good point. I mean London should be thought of like a group of places to live, rather than just London right?
Do you know what neighbourhoods are good/bad/expensive? From what I can gather, Notting Hill/Chelsea/Kensington are the posh, expensive places but I would love something kind of close to Central London or Zone 1. I remember missing a bus stop once, going out to Zone 4 and then getting really scared really fast. Not saying all of Zone 4's like that, of course. But it's hard to figure because I feel the good and not-so-good parts are more intertwined than in say NYC, where it's very obvious that Manhattan's good and the Bronx is bad, end of.
You know, looking back at that paragraph, I wonder if any of it makes sense lol
Notting Hill/Chelsea/Kensington are deinfitely places to avoid if you don't have a lot of money!
One thing to remember about the zones, though, is that they are rings around London. Zone 4 is not the same all the way round. As for where I'd suggest to live, well I've lived in London all my life and I don't know all the areas well! It's a big place.
A god way to look for places woudl be to take a look at the tube maps. For instance, if you wanted easy access to Oxford Street, then consider somewhere on the Victoria, Bakerloo or Central lines. Look at zones 3 and 4, as this wil give quick access into the city, but be far enough out to not cost the Earth. As a rule of thumb (and some might disagree) I'd say East is cheaper than West.
For instance, maybe look at Leyton or Leytonstone. Stratford might also be a good option, but prices might start to soar there as its so close to the Olympic village. If you want to be a bit further in, maybe try Bethnal Green or Mile End. You can walk to Liverpool Street from Bethnal Green and you've got places like Spitalfields Market and Brick Lane round there, which are great places for a night out. Most of these places are on the Central line, so you've got tube runs to Liverpool Street, Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road and very short changes to get to Leicester Square and Covent Garden.
It's worth noting that new transport links will become available down the line when the new crossrail link is completed. Unfortunately, I'm not sure the route that is going to take, but its worth considering that the trnasport links are improving all the time. So when you finally come over here, you may have even more options available.
Was wondering if anyone has opinions on Essex btw?
When I saw that Only Way is Essex promo for ITV2 it made me think of Jersey Shore, but I LOVE the accent and between David Beckham, Dermot O'Leary, Olly Murs and now Matt Cardle, I don't know if they can produce anyone bad.
Comments
I am biased but East Yorkshire is one the most beautiful areas in our country.
Not to throw another wrench into the works but does it affect things much if I'm gay? In America, generally anywhere outside big cities tends to be very religious and homophobic. I always thought of the UK and Europe as a whole as a tolerant place that's moved beyond that, but maybe some people from those areas like the North, Bristol, Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland, Ireland etc could give some insight? London seemed very pro-gay when I went.
Many of my friend in Hull are gay and don't face any kind of prejudice or hate crime. There is really good gay scene but if you're not into the whole scene thing that is fine too. In Hull, anything goes, you can be gay, straight, TV, black, white, pink, purple, fat, thin, catholic, wicca, buddist...like i day multi-cultiversal and very diverse.
Definitely wouldn't be an issue at all.
London obviously has the biggest gay scene but pretty much every big city has a vibrant gay culture. People often say Manchester is the second "gayest" city after London, but in my experience, it's overrated - Liverpool's scene is far better (although Manc beats the pants off Nottingham
I'm going to be completely biased and recommend my wonderful home city of Liverpool. As others have mentioned, it's one of the most cultured in the country! Great arts and music scene. Fantastic history (most museums and listed buildings outside London). Unique local culture completely different to anywhere else in England. Friendly people. Big enough to have a good amount of "stuff" (just under 1.5 million people in the metro area) but not scary-big like London. Decent transport system (buses could be better but it has an underground (subway) like London and Newcastle).
It's also close enough to Manchester/Salford that you could live in Liverpool but work in Manchester. Also just over 2 hours away from London by train.
I'll give you the guided tour if you come visit
http://gay.brighton.co.uk/
Brighton for you:D
If you want excellent public transport to the point you don't need a car, it has to be London. That's not a sugggesiton, its really your only option. Nowhere else in the country has a public transport system quite like it.
The good thing about London and its tansport links is that you don't actually have to live in the city. Remember, Greater London is huuuuuuge! You'll be able to find a nice, small place to rent somewhere in the suburbs, yet still be 30 minutes from the west end by tube.
You can literally move around London and feel like you've moved to a different city. There's nowhere quite like it. You may learn to hate it after 20 years or so, but I've never met anoyne who's moved to London and not loved the shit out of it!
Research the London boroughs and get an idea of all the different places you could live. It's a big city, you'll definitely find somewhere!
Also remember; if you plan to spend the rest of your life in the UK, there's plenty of time to move to different places. London is a good place to start.
Thanks for the info--and that's a really good point. I mean London should be thought of like a group of places to live, rather than just London right?
Do you know what neighbourhoods are good/bad/expensive? From what I can gather, Notting Hill/Chelsea/Kensington are the posh, expensive places but I would love something kind of close to Central London or Zone 1. I remember missing a bus stop once, going out to Zone 4 and then getting really scared really fast. Not saying all of Zone 4's like that, of course. But it's hard to figure because I feel the good and not-so-good parts are more intertwined than in say NYC, where it's very obvious that Manhattan's good and the Bronx is bad, end of.
You know, looking back at that paragraph, I wonder if any of it makes sense lol
Zone 1 in London is very expensive, most that work there live in the suburbs and commute in. If you want to live more centrally to the nightlife and not much travelling to work then I personally would pick another smaller city. There are plenty of places you can be in London in an hour or so, it's a small country.
Your best bet is have a holiday here and travel around a bit, see where appeals to you. You can also have a look at the towns mentioned online. Like any country you will find good areas and not so good. Crime figures also vary from place to place if it's important to you to feel safe and easy going.
Yeah, thats great and all...but come on, you know full well Hull is a dump. Its hardly comparable to Oxford, London or Bath! High crime rate, dire architecture, unfriendly locals. Wasnt it voted Crappiest town in the UK or something?
Where did you go? I go out in Birmingham most weekends, depends what type of pubs / bars / clubs you like to go to really?
Until recently I lived in a small city. A lovely city with some really beautiful architecture. I lived on an estate on the edge of the city with a good bus service that stopped at 6pm. So anything I wanted to do after that time, I had to walk to or take expensive taxis. I went to an evening class. The adult education centre was the other side of town. It took me nearly an hour to walk there and the same back. I would do that in the summer but it was a real struggle to make myself do it in the winter.
... is where I now live and it doesn't compare. It's easy to get around at any time of the day or evening.
Lots of people who have cars have no idea what it's really like to live without one. For me, London is the only place to live without a car.
It's also very easy to get around Brighton without a car (I don't have one down there) because it's quite a small city and has great transport links. The buses are very frequent and go all over the place, both within the city and out of it (there are nice coastal routes which run all along the South coast). And of course there are brilliant train links up to London (only takes 50 minutes) and to the rest of the South.
I originally come from London (well, the suburbs anyway), and live there when I'm not at uni and would highly recommend both cities, but if you want to live right in a city centre you will find Brighton much more affordable. Living in central London is very pricey, and you would probably have to live out in the suburbs (which is fine, it's easy enough to get into London - the tube is fantastic, but it sounds as though you want a proper city experience). Feel free to PM me if you have any further questions about either London or Brighton!
It's easily walkable with loads of cycle ways and, if the local council get it sorted out, then it will have a guided bus system that means you can get around the town without a car. There is, should you need a car or a van, a Streetcar scheme so you can pay an annual fee and have access to cars round the city that belong to the plan. Loads cheaper than owning a car.
Cambridge has avoided the worst of the recession so it still has local employment within the city (thanks to our science park, home to Microsoft) and 40 minute fast train connections to London Liverpool Street and Kings Cross - both lines are being invested in by the rail network over the next few years. It's cheaper than London to live yet easy to get to for a night out and to get to other parts of the UK as both London stations are on the majority of the Undeground lines. King Cross is being regenerated with a new development called Kings Place that is home to media related businesses.
I can't comment myself on the gay scene here but my mate who is reports that it's alive, well and very friendly!
Wherever you chose to go, hope the move goes well.
Personal favourite of mine is Newcastle, fantastic city, great people. Lots to do too and really friendly locals. In fact it's a lot more friendly up North IMHO
Why thank you! And also agree, Cambridge is friendly but you have to work a bit harder at getting to know people but then the upside is that it's transient society thanks to the University. But yes, Newcastle is very friendly, never alone in the place.
I'm doing a semester-long study abroad next year in London with my uni, so that'll definitely give me an opportunity to take a little holiday around the country either on little weekend trips to places in the South or visiting some of the Northern cities after the programme ends...but I'm really looking forward to it nonetheless.
Here's a graph of how the 'vote' stands so far. I included people talking about multiple cities.
Notting Hill/Chelsea/Kensington are deinfitely places to avoid if you don't have a lot of money!
One thing to remember about the zones, though, is that they are rings around London. Zone 4 is not the same all the way round. As for where I'd suggest to live, well I've lived in London all my life and I don't know all the areas well! It's a big place.
A god way to look for places woudl be to take a look at the tube maps. For instance, if you wanted easy access to Oxford Street, then consider somewhere on the Victoria, Bakerloo or Central lines. Look at zones 3 and 4, as this wil give quick access into the city, but be far enough out to not cost the Earth. As a rule of thumb (and some might disagree) I'd say East is cheaper than West.
For instance, maybe look at Leyton or Leytonstone. Stratford might also be a good option, but prices might start to soar there as its so close to the Olympic village. If you want to be a bit further in, maybe try Bethnal Green or Mile End. You can walk to Liverpool Street from Bethnal Green and you've got places like Spitalfields Market and Brick Lane round there, which are great places for a night out. Most of these places are on the Central line, so you've got tube runs to Liverpool Street, Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road and very short changes to get to Leicester Square and Covent Garden.
It's worth noting that new transport links will become available down the line when the new crossrail link is completed. Unfortunately, I'm not sure the route that is going to take, but its worth considering that the trnasport links are improving all the time. So when you finally come over here, you may have even more options available.
When I saw that Only Way is Essex promo for ITV2 it made me think of Jersey Shore, but I LOVE the accent and between David Beckham, Dermot O'Leary, Olly Murs and now Matt Cardle, I don't know if they can produce anyone bad.