What do you think of as “London”?

[CruCru]

On another thread I got into a discussion on which places are London and which are actually somewhere else. I think that only places with a London postcode are in London, otherwise they are in the Home Counties. However, quite a few people disagreed with me as they said that they lived in an outer London borough. I didn’t want to derail that thread (which was about something else) so thought I’d start my own.

To my way of thinking, if I sent a letter addressed to someone at 123 Their Street, London, Their postcode, it would only be sensible to do so if they actually live in London. If I did that for someone who lives in Harrow, Croydon or Kingston, doing so would cause confusion (but it might still arrive if the postcode was correct).

What do you think?

But the OP was about postcodes, not perceptions.

And no matter how much someone would love to think/perceive that they did/did not live in London, it is 100% possible to give a definitive answer.

I lived and worked in Harrow for a number of years. No one I knew considered that they lived in London.

I think my OP was rather about perceptions though. If I am told that someone has moved to Croydon, my perception is that it isn't in London. Mainly because it doesn't have a London postcode but also because I've been there and see it as a separate town. Other people's perceptions are that I am wrong and that any place which falls into one of the London boroughs is in London.

@PinkArt it wasn't 80 years ago, but when I lived in Harrow/Teddington (1980s and 90s) I just used the address that I was told when I moved in. In both cases the official postal address included the word "Middlesex".

Interestingly if I go into google maps now and type in my old addresses, neither the word "London" nor "Middlesex" comes up. It's just the name of the road followed by Harrow/Teddington.

However if I search for a property in Rightmove, Teddington and Harrow both come up under Middlesex.

Yes, I put Middx down on my address but even as a child in the 70s I knew it didn’t actually exist and I lived in London.
It’s certainly true that some people I knew were quite insular. Doesn’t change the fact that Harrow is in London!

But why think in terms of perceptions when there is a carefully thought-out administrative structure?

I mean, if I tell you I’m married you can’t say “oh but I perceive you to be single”.

I don’t think these are the same sort of thing. Only you can know if you are married (unless I or someone I know was at the ceremony).

The thing with whether or not someone lives in London is that you can ask if they do and they’ll say no, they live in Croydon. That they get to vote for the London mayor doesn’t mean they see themselves as living in London.

What kind of dimwit votes for London Mayor but says “no” when asked if they live in London?

Hmm. Cos there are a few grass verges in some parts? And it has a garden centre?

No. Because it's shit.

Someone who sees the place they live in as being separate from London. Even the government, when giving the addresses of the Visa and Immigration Service and Support Centres, puts one of the offices in Croydon and gives the address as 2 Ruskin Square, Dingwall Road, Croydon, CR0 2WF. There’s no mention of London.

Do they think the London Mayor just “looks after” some other bits of the UK out of the kindness of his heart?

I lived in Enfield about 15 years ago and my address came up as ‘Middlesex’ then too. I still considered it London, of course (because it is) but Middlesex does seem to still exist for postal purposes.

ETA sorry @Fifthtimelucky I quoted you by mistake. I meant to quote @PinkArt!

O/T but you don't actually need the County on a post address... its only the postcode and house number/name usually!

When DD did some small talk with a professor at an university open day and was asked where she lives, she answered, Bromley, SE London.

Not Bromley, Kent which is our postal address.

Because noone in the Midlands has any idea where Bromley is.

Not often but sometimes you do. It’s like when a PP mentioned how annoying it is having to write “London” and then “Greater London” on online forms which have town, city and county set as a requirement.

Your perception is factually incorrect though 🤷🏻‍♀️ so rather than repeating it over and again, it may be time to acknowledge that and move on?

OP you seem weirdly obsessed with trying demonstrate that Croydon is not in London.

Whatever your own perception, and anecdotal suppositions, I know loads of people who live in Croydon, and will say they live in Croydon, London or both depending on context. Same for people who live in Kingston with its KT postcode.

Same as I will say I live in London, England or Britain , depending. All being true.

You think that the London Borough of Barnet is in Hertfordshire? Funny that the residents of Barnet pay their council tax to their London borough town hall and the Greater London Authority, not a Hertfordshire council.

Never mind that parts of Barnet border Camden!

A hill I will die on is that Bromley is Not Kent. There are a proportion of Bromley residents who think it makes them sound fancy or justifies their 4x4. Parts of Bromley have an SE postcode. Crystal Palace for example, could not be thought of as Kent...

Anywhere where you vote for the mayor is London. You don't need to be within the sound of the Bow bells.

Ha ha, yes very true @Dinnerplease. I’ve had lots of people over the years say ‘but you don’t sound like you come from London’. Well no, I don’t sound like a cockney because I’m not from the East End. I sound just like all the people I was brought up around, in north London. No Bow Bells in sight 😀

I was born in LB Sutton and now live in LB Croydon. My Dad and my DH commute 'up to town' (Central London), not The City (that would be the Square Mile 😁).

But I have always lived in London - my friends say they live in London. I live close enough to the edge that I socialise with lots who don't live in London. People are very clear on the difference.

London always has been a collection of towns/villages, each with their own character. That doesn't mean that Croydon isn't part of London - of course it is, but it has a different character to eg Chelsea, Kingston, Hampstead etc. Even the Borough of Croydon has areas with very different characters.

Exactly anywhere that you vote for the Mayor, have ULEZ, the freedom pass and here is the kicker defined by the London Governmental Act

within that you have inner London and Outer London

it is all set out very clearly

Living in Cornwall, visiting my friend in Staines I always say I'm going to London! She always says it's not London.

But from the point of view of someone living in Cornwall, Staines feels like London to me - I can get on the train and be at Waterloo in 20 mins! Also as someone living in Cornwall, Staines feels very cosmopolitan, nice restaurants etc.

That’s because Staines isn’t in London. It’s a town in Surrey with good commuter links.