To think I’ve missed out on an exciting life by never living in London?

I was really just having a friendly dig. It’s a London thing.

(Borough Market, the Globe, Tate Modern and Bankside are as near North London as it’s possible to get while still being south!)

One thing that is worth bearing in mind is that I understand why London may feel overwhelming to people who have visited. It makes a huge difference being here when you have your own home to retreat to, all your things around you and lots of time to take in as much or as little as you need over weeks and months and years. You absorb the city experience while doing mundane things rather than trying to max out on experiences.

Suppose it depends on what part of London you live in. Years ago I spent 10 years living in London. Taken in as teenager due to Dad's work but left once I had DC as I didn't want them growing up there.

Community? The local alkies and druggies hanging about in stairwells of flats maybe. Good schools? Well no way would I be sending my kids to any of those near where I lived. Parks again a hangout for those up to no good

I believe they tidied up a bit for Olympics etc ( I was in Newham) but would take a hell of a lot of improvement. I have work colleagues from Whitechapel and isle of dogs and from what I hear those places are not great either

You sound very similar to me, I think we should hang out when we both retire to Clerkenwell!

Sure, but nice parts of South London are very few and far between. And they’re difficult to get to and from.

If you go far enough west the division by the Thames matters less too.

The idea that London is one homogeneous group culturally, religiously and socioeconomically is pretty blood farcical!

It is and something I never said @Cinocino

Asking this question on MN will always always flush out a million London-haters.

I bloody love it and am still here in Zone 3 with a husband and primary aged child.

I love cities though, have lived in London, Hong Kong, São Paulo, Paris, Mumbai and New York.

All my holidays are city breaks to other cities!

I’m from a small town in Scotland. Grew up amongst hills and woods. Bores me rigid. I love theatre and feel massively privileged that I have so much choice within 45 mins of home (tickets funded by my London salary of course). Having travelled so much I love how multicultural London is and how “foreign” certain areas feel, and the range of food. You don’t get that anywhere else in the UK (it’s more subtle than Chinatown or curry mile).

I lived in London for a few years but did every little of the cultural stuff - the cost of living was high, and there was literally no money left for theatre and concert tickets (which are eye-wateringly expensive) or eating out. There were lots of positives - the great public transport, the beautiful buildings and parks, the huge shops… but on balance I enjoy it much more visiting as a tourist but living elsewhere. I think it is a very different experience if you are very rich though - one of my relatives had a job in London as a management consultant earning loads, and had a fabulous time going out and partying and enjoying the best of London without worrying about money.

@FinalCeleryScheme

I have lived in South London for over 25 years. How much time have you spent there?

What can you tell me about Brixton Market or the Great North Wood or the Horniman Museum or Borough Market.

Thought not. You are talking out of your arse.

And as a near life long South Londoner I am really tired of listening to this sort of ignorance.

@TheYearOfSmallThings my parents were attracted to that part of London because it was what they could afford. I haven’t said all change is bad, I just think it’s not a good thing that areas are less diverse and families in social housing are being forced out of London. Some people do think that’s a good thing though.

@FinalCeleryScheme that's funny because Dulwich Village is in the dreaded South London and that's a very very posh area.

In fairness, south London is a hole.

But London north of the Thames is nirvana and people shouldn’t disrespect it.

I sort of get what you mean, I moved to London almost by accident in my early 20s. When I was child free, living centrally with my best friend it was amazing to just be able to do what we wanted when we wanted. We lived like that in summer 2012 and wow, what a time to be in London with the Olympics and the Jubilee!! 10 years on I'm in a 4 bed, married with a child in zone 6 in a beautiful part of SW London but commute into London for work a couple of times a week and yeah, I can see that now we have a ridiculously small house for it's value and we'd be much better off moving north to where our families are from, but I also want my son to benefit from being in London when he's older particularly in terms of ease of transport, not needing to rent if he wants to do an unpaid/low paid internship etc and finding it normal that we can go to major cultural/sporting events easily, as it was always a major expensive operation to do that from where I grew up. I've always said that I'd quite like to move more centrally again once he's flown the nest and we are retired as it'd be good to have instant access to everything as a retiree, but we will see.

I studied and lived in London for 10 years - Streatham, Brixton, West Norwood, Ealing. There were good sides, the ethnically diverse community and the fact I could get just about any nationality food within 5 miles. And the job opportunities.

But it was dirty, crowded, expensive, noisy and had a much darker side. I made very few friends and was glad to leave. If you've already lived in a large city in the UK, I doubt you've missed out on much.

The food choice is a main plus for me. We love eating out. That’s the one thing I struggle with when I visit other fantastic parts of the country. Maybe we are just greedy pigs ;-)

You don’t need to live there. We regularly spend weekends in London plus numerous day trips. Ok, we live a short train ride away but even if I didn’t I’d still visit all the time.

Plus, unless you had a flat on Portobello Rd, Primrose Hill or inside Borough market you would just be living on a generic street within a city, not something from a Richard Curtis film.

I grew up for a bit in west london then family moved further away. Then I moved closer again and then I lived abroad, I do miss all the stuff to do, used to love catching a comedy night etc. But I’d like to live in London with money. If you are really central then it can be great. I wish I had gone to uni in London though, DH did and he had a fabulous time.

Tbf now I’m a lot older I just want somewhere where I can safely go for a long walk and listen to a podcast without being worried I’m going to be mugged or dodging other people.

Three or four times a year to central London is crazy! We go a few times a week. But I guess they are happy in their local area and that’s enough for them.

It's not somewhere I'd like to live. The house prices are ridiculous for a start.

What we need to do is invest in transport, theatre, museums etc. in other towns and cities.

What made London exciting for me was the fact there was such a mix in cultures, socioeconomically, religion etc. It’s more homogeneous now.

The idea that London is one homogeneous group culturally, religiously and socioeconomically is pretty blood farcical!

Op I agree, I could have written this. I will move with you

Seriously?

Why do people think this is OK? Why is it OK for people who usually have barely been to London to be grossly rude about London? The same people would be up in arms if someone said that about Leeds/Bristol/Glasgow/Manchester/Exeter/Cardiff.

Does it make you feel a little bit bigger inside because you have dissed the big city and now everyone knows what a free thinker you are?

By the way I absolutely don’t agree with the OP’s premise that you have to live in London for a bit. London is absolutely an acquired taste and not for everyone. Other cities have much to offer.

But I wish people would grow up and stop trying to show off to each other by saying things like “London is a hole”.

Pathetic.

I was partly raised in London and still have many family members there including siblings. I can't say any of them live a particularly London lifestyle. They generally stay in their own neighborhood going to local shops and cafes. Some weekends they just stay at home the whole time because they're exhausted (London commuting is exhausting).
Maybe three or four times a year they'll go into Central London and do some of the touristy stuff - but so do I and I live in Yorkshire!
Their lives are not much different to mine except they're paying about £2500 a month to rent a tiny flat. We can afford a much bigger house here.
I could understand the desire the live in London if you really made the most of it - but none of the Londoners I know, do.

I love this. It gives me hope.

I understand. I had a chance to move to London ( with work) in my early twenties, which I declined due to just having bought small house in Manchester. Regretted it intermittently through the years - and particularly every time I went as a tourist. Now, my daughter has moved there so I to visit a lot. Still love it.