South-North Differences

[TryingNotToWaddle]

I've recently moved and so far everyone I've met is scared of the capital "because of all the crime and terrorism", is on the right of the political spectrum, a 'loose' Christian, thinks being vegetarian is weird, vegan is impossible and stupid, husbands are useless at childcare and cleaning because it's for women, etc etc

I'm not saying I think different views are wrong... each to their own! I just feel terribly out of place. Everyone seems so cookie cutter up here

AIBU to hold out hope that It is just the people I've met and there are people up here with other views?

Yeah, us northerners are a notoriously right wing bunch.

Are you Liz Jones?

So have you moved North or South? Not clear. Is that what Mancunians or Glaswegians or Devonians think of London.

Seems as if you have written off a whole area with just as much prejudice as you claim to have encountered. If you moved near me with view like that and an attitude to all my neighbours I' be unlikely to befriend you.

My views are my views, (none of those you mention - I am a vegetarian for a start), but I'd be unimpressed with someone who wrote off a whole area as being beneath her.

I moved up North about ten years ago after growing up in the South. I haven't met anyone here who's scared of London - on the contrary, going down to London for the weekend is commonplace.

I work with more vegetarians than I can be bothered to count up. I can't comment on the 'loose Christianity' or who does what in terms of household management because it's not something I ask people about, but the rest of your post doesn't tally with my experience - and I don't live in one of the cities, either.

I think OP just needs to meet a few more people .

I'm from the North and moved to the Middle. Keep looking OP, the lentil weavers are just a bit harder to find in unfamiliar territory. A lot of the family and friends I left behind are pretty 'cookie cutter', but there are people down here like that too. It's probably more that you had a comfortable social bubble before, you just need to find that again.

My DM didn't weave lentils but she did bung them in with the mince. North-south fusion food?

You sound quite sheltered to have written off a large chunk of the country.

I'm a gay leftie vegetarian (practically vegan ) rural northerner.
I must obviously need to name change as I am so unusual.

However, you can keep London, I have been a few times and it is not for me at all. I like open spaces and clean air. I would not make sweeping statements about the people from London however as I realise they are not a homogenous mass with one viewpoint!!

It all depends where you live, there are huge differences between Hebden Bridge and some of the posh suburbs of Leeds for example.

For the love of God please just tell us where you've moved!

The county at least, please.

Hahaha Royston Vasey and Liz Jones. You posters are inspired

I live in Hull and almost everyone I know loves going down to London, we are members of a London.club and get down at least every couple of months or so for a night or two.

I'm from Yorkshire but have lived in London and Oxfordshire too, the only fairly consistent difference there is a consensus on amongst my acquaintance is that northerners are more likely to strike up a conversation with strangers than Londoners.

Conversely, I've found some London natives incredibly ignorant about the north. When my older brother moved to London in the 1980's and people found out he was from Yorkshire, he got a lot of sympathy about how difficult it must be for his family with the [miners'] strikes. He was a former public schoolboy brought up far from the pits in a fair degree of comfort. It's like us up north assuming Londoners are all pearly kings and queens or wealthy bankers. Bizarre!

I think the attitudes described OP might have been more true of previous generations, and in rural communities. We had a hell of a job getting my grandma's boyfriend to visit us in Yorkshire as he was of the opinion there was nothing worth seeing south of the Tyne Bridge. The only time he'd ventured south before he ended up in a Japanese POW camp!

I moved from London to the South West and initially everyone I met was either Huntin' fishin' and shootin' (killing things basically) or had never left the village. I think it's city and provincial but you will find your soul mates. Join things you're interested in. Invite everyone round. It will get better and your children will make friends and so will you.

Whatslove have you been to Richmond Park or Hampstead Heath?

All you self-styled Northerners: give ear and hearken. The North begins at the Tees. Durham, Northumberland, Cumberland and Westmoreland (none of that damned "Cumbria" nonsense; I mean by the boundaries before 1972). Yorkshire and Lancashire are the better end of the Midlands.

lazy no, why? I have been to Hyde park.

Wingmirrorspider they'll be in trouble if they've moved there and aren' t Local.

Sounds like some parts of Wigan, to be fair.

But Wigan isn't even representative of the NW.

If you were living a long time where you lived previously you'd probably got to know "like minded" people and didn't interact that much with others, whereas in a new place seeking friends you're speaking to all and sundry! And haven't found people who share your views yet.

Love the Northern folk. I've lived up here for years, and whilst I go to London occasionally for visits, I would hate to live there. It's just so unfriendly, hectic and expensive, but I guess equally there are Londoners who dislike the way of life up here too. Depends what you want out of life.

Sorry FrancisCrawford and I stand corrected. The North of England= begins at the Tees. North of Northumberland and Cumberland the woolly mammoth still roams . . .

My father once got into a fight in a pub in Inverness during the War for calling an Orcadian a Scot which the Orcadian regarded as an insult

I happily escaped to the North many years ago. I live in a vibrant, muti-cultural city and find the attitudes of people in small stockbroker belt towns extremely provincial when I return for a visit. Poor things have to get on a train to London for the theatre, opera, ballet or anything a bit exciting. They kid themselves that I live in a cutrural wasteland. I do not and I have easy access to proper curry.

Well, as long as there's proper curry nothing else matters, does it?

It can be a huge culture shock in many ways moving from a Southern city to a small Northern one. I was flummoxed for a good year after moving up, even though I originate here.

It's always harder moving across country as an adult, I think, anyway. And can take a good while to find your tribe. But you will find it. I love London, and tend to visit monthly, but wouldn't move South again unless I had a ton of cash.

I'm originally from the North but been in London for nearly 20 years now. I'm a bit neutral when it comes to supposed Northern friendliness. I don't like being referred as love or hun or any other faux chuminess that people use in my home town. Often people in my home city, like my mum, can border on the intrusive when they strike up conversation with strangers.

I went with her to a hospital appointment and she made the woman sitting near us uncomfortable with her questioning of why she was there. It's a fine line between making polite conversation and nosiness and I think sometimes up North it tips into the latter