To wonder why people increasingly refer to places not in London as 'in London'

[redpipe]

I genuinely don't understand why people say they live in London when in fact they live in a town within the M25.
Croydon is not in London is it? Nor is Kingston. I never remember people referring to these towns as London years ago. Is this a new thing?

M25 is irrelevant as it was only built about 30 years ago.

Waddon is not in surrey despite what someone might want to write on an envelope.

God, even thornton heath has Surrey in the postal address!

Melfort Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey, CRx 7xx

It isn't what they want to write, it is the actual postal address!

Richmond is London, it used to be surrey but isn't anymore. It's called LBRUT I.e London borough of richmond upon Thames.

Addington Police Station, Addington Village Road, Croydon, Surrey CR0 5AQ

Not Croydon LONDON. Croydon SURREY.

I live in richmond borough, the area I live in used to be Middlesex. Middlesex no longer exists but according to Internet address guessing stuff it still does. Same thing when my home town changed counties about 20 years ago but internet sites still give it the old county that no longer exists. These hints take decades to get through to people as is thread has proved!

Is that how people define what is London then? Postal addresses? That's quite interesting then as I remember when I moved from Barking to Romford my flat you wrote to Flat so and so, Romford, Essex but when I moved there I went onto Tesco's website to get the address to our nearest one (which was about a five minute walk) and the address was listed as Tesco Extra, Main road, Romford, greater london! I paid council tax to the london borough of Havering and was in zone 6 i think but I always told people I lived in Essex when i was asked or put that on forum profiles etc.

London Luton airport always makes me snort - it's 30+ miles from London. Bless their aspirational little socks but it's two counties and a 35 min train journey away.

London expanded but the postal addresses haven't changed, what's so hard to get?

www.surreycc.gov.uk/recreation-heritage-and-culture/archives-and-history/archives-and-history-research-guides/the-administrative-boundaries-of-the-county-of-surrey

Even surrey says croydon isn't part of surrey!

London postcode = London (n, NW, se, sw, w, e)

London borough = greater London (ie edgware is in London borough of Barnet but has a ha postcode, and is on tube network.)

I believe in 2016 the post office will no longer go by counties just postcodes so should help people move on.

I live in Bromley had get sick of the argument. I didn't grow up here but I don't care what anyone says or the post code left over from 1965- it's London! It is officially the largest London borough. and I voted for the Mayor of London. We are within the M25

In 15 mins I can drive to Greenwich through Lee and Lewisham one way or Croydon 10 mins the other way. 15 mins on the train to Victoria.

Bromley looks and feels like suburban London. It has the most curry houses of any part of the UK- one for every 853 residents. I love curry!

I lived in Kent for a while to and Kent to me is Edenbridge, Canterbury, Ashford, Maidstone etc. It takes quite a while to get used to the fast pace of life here and most people like my husband commute into the centre of London for work. Bromley is huge- incoroprates Bromley, Beckenham, Orpington, Penge, Petts Wood, Downham, Sidcup Chiselhust and the Biggin Hill area.

It's NOT sodding Kent! Greater London should be a county in itself.

edam Southend airport is listed as "London southend to"

Looks like much of the map, political etc changes gap happened 1965 so still need a bit longer for everything else to catch up.

LRD

On reporting the trial of Lee Rigby's killers last week, Radio 4 referred to 'Romford, London'

I lived in Kingston for the last four years, it is most definitely a London Borough.. though it still didn't feel like 'real London' to me! Although I adored it, I must say.

I'm a northerner and I define anywhere that people are surviving the recession and benefitting from any surviving part of the economy (i.e. banking and finance) as London. Anywhere that people are getting substantially screwed is not

edam - what about 'London Stansted'?! I always felt so sorry for poor tourists who flew in expecting London to be, you know, right there ...

amberleaf I just realised I missed out quite a vital part of my post!!

All the way to london she was telling everyone to stay close to her as she will lead the way, she's from london and knows her way round etc etc.

It was pretty embarrassing when it turned out she really didn't have a clue!

:O really miracle! I've heard on the news places like Ilford and Barking being referred to as London but not Romford. All though my Nan always wrote my birthday cards to Dagenham, London and they'd still get to me. Generally though it was wrote as "Dagenham, Essex"

London expanded but the postal addresses haven't changed, what's so hard to get?

Really the only thing that expanded was politics. Local boroughs etc.

The place names haven't changed.

if I live in Surrey why do I pay London taxes in Sutton?
Surely I should be paying it to Surrey County but.. errr I don't live in Surrey county!

go and ask politicians why they gave us right to vote for Mayor of London and representatives for GLA

Also (and give me different definition)...
Greater London is an administrative area, ceremonial county and the London region of England

I think we would be better off paying fewer taxes to Surrey County and then OP would be right in telling me I live in Surrey, but for now I am afraid you are wrong.

Also if you look at postcode areas listed in
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London

If that entry was wrong - I am sure people with greater authority and knowledge than you and me would have that changed.

if you look at postcode areas listed in
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London

If that entry was wrong - I am sure people with greater authority and knowledge than you and me would have that changed.