I hate Surrey

[BettyBeer]

Is that unreasonable? I properly hate it.
I don't live there but most of my family do. Everyone seems to be obsessed with property prices, extensions and who's in the best bloody school! I even went to a cafe away from my family and the two tables close to us were discussing house prices and where the best catholic schools were.

Sorry if you live there but it just all seems to be greedy, self important twats. Am I wrong to make a sweeping statement about so many people? probably

This thread is interesting! We moved to Surrey 3 years ago after 7 years in London and I can’t say I’ve noticed the keeping up with the Joneses type mentality, except for in one of my friends. If I do notice it I choose not to engage with it, so maybe that’s why I don’t notice so much of it IYSWM? Me and DH are very inward-focussed when it comes to our family and our goals. We do live in a cheaper area compared to all our friends but we could afford more but don’t see the point, so maybe that says something.

Surrey is definitely not all leafy suburbs. Some of the most deprived wards in the country are in Surrey. I worked in one of them. There are also ridiculously over inflated house price areas, that means that only certain people are able to afford to live there.

Can't stand Brighton, full of wannabe hippies, trying too hard to be trendy and cool.

Agreed. We lived there back in the 80s: lots of young creative types and a fresh vibe. It's now a parody of what it used to be.

I have to agree with Bendydick - was a Surrey resisident in carious areas of Surrey for 37 years. Kept myself to myself dodn’t engage with others views !

Look, Surrey is a wealthy county, and lots of people here are wealthy. Of course some are not and there are always exceptions to the rule.

But yes, Surrey mums are a thing. You probably see examples of it all over the country. But I get what the op is saying totally. There’s a definite “Surrey bubble”.

Yes Brighton is a bit shit tbh, no doubt about that. Rough as fuck but with jugglers and lentil weavers who think they are living somewhere really individual...

I'm surprised Bravo have not jumped at the chance to produce Real Housewives of Surrey (Cobham in particular).

Moved to Surrey last year after being priced out of where we lived in SE London and also for convenience to reduce driving time to family in the midlands. I live in the cheaper end of Surrey. It is a bit on the dull side- more spritzers and astras than gin and jags. And a little bit monocultural. It seems friendly (superficially at least) compared to where I was living in London. But the better commute and the size of house you can get for your money won out for me. The type of people the OP is talking about live throughout the Home Counties - not just Surrey.

The speed camera thing is not true! Plenty around where I live.

Please don't come to Surrey and speed through it thinking you've got a free pass!

Brighton is shit. It is also not in Surrey!

I bloody love Brighton.

Moved out of Surrey with a huge sigh of relief 15 years ago. Not a place I enjoyed living at all. The people are much nicer on the whole in the South West.

I live in an affluent town in Essex (although compared with some of my DD's classmates we are peasants ) and recognise a lot of what you describe OP. Someone on my FB posted a photo of their newly extended and renovated house. It is fucking massive. Their bath is as big as my entire bathroom Meanwhile, we live in a small three bed semi!

I've recently moved to a v upmarket part of Surrey. It's a beautiful place to live, but the majority of other mums I've met here all seem to be totally identikit, which I'm struggling with. Where I am certainly isn't the most diverse of areas!

I love the way some people have piled in to defend Surrey by blaming people who’ve moved from London for the behaviour the OP alleges. I don’t agree with bashing a whole county based on a few anecdotes but it’s kind of refreshing that its not about London for once - although some are trying to steer it that way.

Brighton is shit. It is also not in Surrey!

Indeed. It is in E Sussex. However, the OP now lives there and earlier on this thread invited posters to vent their spleen on the city if they so wished.

I don't know Surrey at all really - never lived there (apart from a hellish few months renting in Mitcham, which isn't at all the 'Surrey' you describe ) or spent much time in its environs.

But the perception of Surrey among non-Surrey-dwellers is very much the 'gin and jag' 'Miss Joan Hunter-Dunn' 'Margo and Jerry from The Good Life', thanks to its portrayal in various forms of popular culture.

I guess all those commentators were basing their depictions on something. Easy to seize on one archetype though, and ignore any elements that don't fit it. I don't make assumptions about places now until I've spent time in them. (Which OP has!)

I lived the first 32 years of my life in Surrey. I had a wonderful time! I was into horses and there was the best riding country around us (on top of the north downs). You could ride for miles on bridle paths, lots of open heathland and downs, it was horsey heaven. Then it all went tits up when they finally got round to finishing the M25 in 1986. It was 600 metres from my parents house and the noise was deafening. I had already left home but they decided to move, as did a lot of people blighted by the noise in what used to be a totally silent rural spot. I followed them and some other close friends who had escaped the noise as well. Guess where we all moved to? The Cotswolds!
Surrey had beautiful areas as shitty areas, just like any other county. When I go back, infrequently now, the main change to me is the traffic congestion. It is just SO busy compared to Gloucestershire. I loved my early life, but I just find it sad that the quiet leafy area I loved has been ruined forever.

Surrey is big with nice & not so nice areas like lots of other places. There is a high concentration of wealth there so it probably increases the chance of meeting a dick. Quite a few of my friends have moved from SE/SW London to out there over the last few years. It’s very pretty with lovely countryside & great pubs & whilst expensive your money does tend to go further. However I don’t envisage DH & I doing the same move, we find it a little dull & the longer commuter & more driving puts us off.

I live in London but we go to Surry regularly. I find it a bit suffocating. It feels small, built up and pleased with itself. I don't know why I feel like that and where I got that idea from it's just there

I've never been to Surrey. I've heard its a place people from Essex aspire to move to.

That's a new one on me. Essex is a large county and has its fair share of naice towns and villages (especially in the north) and I've never noticed a prevailing attitude that Surrey is a place where people aspire to move, even in the grotty Estuary town where I grew up!

Lol at Fourfriedchickens description of Brighton.

I actually moved from Brighton to Surrey when I was 10. I must be a right twat according to most

The Brighton now is not he one I recognise. It used to be naturally 'hippy', carefree place full of character with a new age atmosphere. Diverse and full of arty, creative, alternative types. Now it's a busy, dirty, overpriced hectic place but they have commercialised and capitalised on the new age image - so it's so contrived, rather than 'natural', so hypocritical considering you have to be an effing millionaire to live there.

Sorry to be a total pedant but Brighton is not in East Sussex. Sussex is comprised of East Sussex, Brighton and Hove and West Sussex. Three different County councils, education authorities and health commissioning areas.

I love Surrey! House prices are extortionate and we have thought about moving away to enable us to buy but we love it too much! Very spoilt in our surroundings and family and friends! Luckily ours aren't worried about new cars and house extensions - sounds like your Dsister is one of those people you can't stand...

What part do you come from out of interest?