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Original poster

Terror alert - trip to London

209 replies

Rainydayss · 15/11/2021 19:16

Has the recent news made you anxious about going to big cities? I'm due to go to London the end of this week and I feel uneasy about it, I cant decide if to go.

OP posts:
Ted27 · 15/11/2021 22:06

@Rainydayss

I come from Liverpool. I don’t live there now, though my family still do.
I’m 56, this country has always had terrorism threats.

When I was growing up in the 1970’s we had bomb drills , like you would fire drills, because of the IRA.
Terror will always be with us, we just see it more now.

mellicauli · 15/11/2021 22:08

I've gone into London every week day for the last 32 years. Previously I in Belfast during the troubles for 3 years. Never seen anything. You'd be so very unlucky to run into any trouble. It could just as easily happen wherever you live.

Sparklfairy · 15/11/2021 22:11

I live in a city on high terrorism alert. I'm 2mins walk from what is assumed would be the "target". The council fairly recently had mechanical bollards put in to stop driving attacks in the city centre.

Life still goes on. I walk around the city most days and don't feel any more or less worried than any other time.

Iggly · 15/11/2021 22:16

It’s hard OP. I work in London and have had a couple of “near” misses in my head. Eg I was minutes away from the London bombings in 2005 (I was travelling on the tube) and walked the same route in 2018 along the Westminster bridge but was held up that day.

And actually yes, after the 2005 attack my friends, peers and colleagues were hugely shaken. For some of us, it took a lot to travel on the tube again. I remember having panic attacks and getting off tube trains and it took me a long long time to be comfortable again.

Seeing the Liverpool attack has reminded me that actually we aren’t 100% safe and yes it’s in the back of my mind as to what I would do. So I don’t wear heels when travelling and do think about where I stand on trains etc for quick exits.

Iggly · 15/11/2021 22:17

@VanCleefArpels

Take chance of a terrorist attack, or a meteorite hitting Harris’s, is no greater than it was this time last week, last month, last decade. It’s just one if myriad risks we weigh up every single day as we go about our business. Statistically you are far more likely to come to harm crossing the road and being struck by someone on an e-scooter
Really. While the chances are low, I don’t think they’re comparable tbh.
Tealightsandd · 15/11/2021 22:21

@DontTellThemYourNamePike

Some people are horrible on here. It's natural to be wary following a very recent atrocity, especially given the headlines about the terror threat being 'severe'.

I grew up in Belfast where the terror threat was off the scale and we just had to get on with things, but that didn't make us complacent ... or rude about other people's fears. And now that we're accustomed to peace of a sort, a bomb attack would probably make me quite anxious.

This.

As a Londoner, I agree it's unfair to dismiss someone's valid concern about terrorism.

That said, as pp have pointed out, millions go about their business just fine every day in London and our other big cities.

And currently, with the pandemic, there's more risk in the UK from going into a shop or your kids being in school than from a terrorist. Remember that 1000s a week are dying with Covid.

You'll most likely be absolutely fine if you decide to go OP but it's ok to change your mind. If you do decide to come, I hope you have a lovely time.

Tealightsandd · 15/11/2021 22:24

or your kids being in school

In case of misinterpretation, I don't mean so much a danger to the kids (who are low risk from Covid), I mean as a transmission risk into the wider community.

Forgothowmuchlhatehomeschoolin · 15/11/2021 22:26

Jesus op people are fucking nasty on here sometimes.
I don't live in a city and actually when l heard the news thought if we are on high alert then l will keep a low profile for a while. If l needed to go into the city, it wouldn't stop me but l am not going to deliberately go in if l don't need to.
Your feelings are perfectly valid.

Itsbeen84yearss · 15/11/2021 22:26

You’re getting a pasting here. It’s hard when you’re anxious. My dd is on a trip tomorrow and I’ve already rang and asked what their security arrangements are. Part of me just wants to keep her home

eightlivesdown · 15/11/2021 22:35

No. People just get on with life.

Original poster
Rainydayss · 15/11/2021 22:37

Thanks for the more balanced views, there are some lovely people on here.
Im a single parent so a bit of anxiousness comes from that aspect of leaving my child without a parent..but yes there are risks in everyday life. However I will 'get a grip' and not bother anyone with my neurotic thoughts.

OP posts:
Bobsyer · 15/11/2021 22:39

No. I live within spitting distance of Liverpool Women's Hospital and my husband is friends with the hero cabbie.

But still no. I get why someone might, but I am not.

Tealightsandd · 15/11/2021 22:48

Don't let people stop you asking for advice OP.

It's completely understandable why you might feel a little nervous. Terrorism is terror... terrifying.

Flowers
JellyfishandShells · 15/11/2021 22:54

It’s a great time to go to London at the moment - the tourist levels are still way down and many workers are still at least partially WFH which makes going to major sites much more comfortable than when the streets are packed. I live in an outer borough and am heading into town tomorrow to go to some specific shops and enjoy a visit to my favourite St James’s Park.

I’ve experienced, directly and indirectly, terrorist incidents over the years and they were awful. I am sad that my lovely city is blighted by people who use it as a theatre for their own twisted obsessions and hatred. But I would not want to live anywhere else ( and I’ve lived in other countries and in other parts of the UK)

Don’t make the trip if you are feeling jittery, OP - you won’t get the best out of it if you feel anxious all the time you are here.

campion · 15/11/2021 23:08

I just saw on the local news that 169 people were killed on my region's roads last year. This was an improvement apparently -for obvious reasons.

No one suggested we should stop using roads, though you're much more likely to be involved in an accident than a terrorist incident. Much.

TheCategoryIs · 15/11/2021 23:15

A couple of months back that gun man went beserk in a suburb of Plymouth. You never know when you might be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and you can't really live being constantly anxious like that. I often think a terrorist would cause more dramatic impact now in a small place where it's completely unexpected. It might be you could seek some help with your anxiety.

Bouledeneige · 15/11/2021 23:26

I'm in London and I'm currently hiding in an air raid shelter. Which I think is a better approach than the Finsbury Park massive who are arming up up as a people's militia. It's gone mad here.

Dunno why since the terror attack happened in Liverpool.

RhubarbCustardy · 15/11/2021 23:28

I would be too OP. I lived there during the ira bombings and it was awful. There's no need for the vitriole thats on here though. You were only asking for general opinions. Ignore them. Do what you feel happiest doing.

hannsmum · 15/11/2021 23:33

@Rainydayss

Thank you for those who are helpful. I will go and enjoy myself, I just wanted opinions not a backlash of angry comments - probably also ranting on the covid threads to people who may be anxious.
Sorry people on here can be real nasty at times

Terror attacks can happen anytime though I don't think I would be nervous this time since I've been consciously anxious since Manchester's bombing Thanks

I don't necessary feel any different

Hope you enjoy your stay x

hannsmum · 15/11/2021 23:36

*necessarily

Southwest12 · 15/11/2021 23:59

I got on a train in Liverpool this morning and came to London. London is so quiet compared to pre covid, and Lime Street had a very heavy police presence, including some adorable sniffer dogs. Nothing feels any different, apart from the ticket prices on Avanti have gone up, but probably can't blame that on terrorism!

EdgeOfTheSky · 16/11/2021 07:30

People who live and work in places that are perceived to be more of a risk have to apply logic: scale of the city, rarity of risk in comparison, randomness of time (in fact the risk his highest on the day of the attack….IF you are right there, on the dot… not elsewhere, the following day) etc.

Anxiety can be exasperating, because it is not founded in logic, and people have as much right to be exasperated as they have to feel anxious.

OP, I am glad you are coming, London hasn’t been the same without visitors, the Capital City belongs to everyone, and I hope you have a great day.

ThePoisonousMushroom · 16/11/2021 07:41

Anxiety can be exasperating, because it is not founded in logic, and people have as much right to be exasperated as they have to feel anxious

Exactly this.

AuntieMarys · 16/11/2021 07:50

Going tomorrow for a few days, and again in 2 weeks. Lived there for years. Not even giving it a moment's thought.

EdgeOfTheSky · 16/11/2021 08:16

Also, the people saying “no, I live here” are answering the OP’s question which was “ Has the recent news made you anxious about going to big cities?”.

Logically, this should be re-assuring to the OP: that millions and millions of us go about our ordinary daily lives in London and never witness any of the incidents seem on the news, from stabbings to full scale terrorist attacks.

Answering the question and giving the facts is not vitriol, or being a dickhead.

It is helpful to explain about the possible presence of armed police, and other things that may come as a surprise. Bag checks will probably be increased.