So bored of 'we left our life in the UK' influencers

[Prenoden]

Seem to be so many now. 'We left our life in the shitty UK for a dream life in [insert any sunnier country]. I'm not actually following these, they just seem to pop up on my social feeds uninvited.

Content on a lot of them is boringly similar, contrasting dull grey skies of previous life vs them now sat on a beach sipping from a coconut with clichéd POV captions.

Obviously everyone is entitled to do what they like and move wherever but why does it always have to be contrasted in this way? As if everyone is crazy for staying in UK. Every place has pros and cons and a lot of these sunny places aren't all they're cracked up to be.

A friend moved to Spain a decade ago in search of this kind of idyllic life and although the weather was lovely etc they said the bureaucracy was terrible, the school system was appalling and once her partner lost his job and couldn't find another that pretty much ended it and they willingly moved back.

Before anyone asks, I'm not bitter because I am stuck on this island. I like it here, it's not perfect and if you watch the news it's all negative, but I live in a lovely town, we have a nice network and I work remotely 4 days a week which is flexible with DC, earning enough money for what we need but always budget etc.

I do think Brexit was a terrible mistake though and the country has been in decline since. We will come to see it as a historic mistake but at the moment the far right loons seem to have a grip on setting the narrative (even though Brexit is their fault).

It's ironic that a lot of these new life influencers are now in sunnier EU countries that Brits could have easily moved to at the drop of a hat before Brexit but now it's a lot harder and bureaucratic, a lot of them create content about how to navigate visas etc. It's like it's become more desirable because it's not so easy anymore.

I actually have Eu citizenship thankfully so can still move to Southern Europe if I wanted to but the economies don't seem great so unless you're retired/ digital nomad it doesn't work. Climate change is also a worry a summers getting hotter everywhere and I wonder what that will mean in 10- 15 years.

I completely agree with you.There is so much to like about our little country .Like you we live in a nice town near the sea. I can't travel abroad (recovering from Cancer) And all people say is they know of cheap Insurance .I am happy having a holiday here! We have friends who have emigrated, and its a mixed bag. High costs of Medicine, and hospital treatment .Missing home and so on .

Maybe it’s your algorithm on social media? All I seem to see are influencers talking about how much better the UK is in comparison to the US!

Climate change already taking its toll, we have family in Portugal and they have loved it there for about 12 years but they're now moving back and climate change is definitely a large part of that decision.
Right now there are four major fires within 50 miles of them, and lots of small villages are being evacuated.

I like the UK and I think we're very lucky, and have been so for many years, compared to a lot of places; socially and politically and climate-wise. I enjoy travelling and I appreciate other cultures and peoples, but I'm glad to live here.

They always think its great until the country they move too has many wild fires due to climate change, so over it.

The indigenous people want out and everyone else wants in 😂

They'll be back when they need support. Or the NHS.

Yes the climate is very worrying, every year seems to be a new record temperature. It all well and good seeking life in the sunshine but what's the point if its far too hot to be outside?

At least with a UK sunny day of 24 -25 you can still be outdoors without getting sunstroke

The right wing press are deliberately painting a picture that everything is awful here to sow division/ fear / anger

Yes not sure what's causing it, I do get some of those UK vs US ones too. Why does everything have to be a constant comparison though?

The ones that annoy me most are when people try to paint Dubai / Saudi Arabia as some sort of heaven compared to UK.

I’m dreaming of moving to Scotland to get away from the heat.

Dubai must be packed to the rafters with people on laptops.

I know someone who moved here for the weather. 👍🏻

if they are influencers then dont follow them, if there are friends etc then unfollow or hide them

It's not only the "right wing" press. It's the press in general. The left-wing press also sows division, fear and anger - just about different stuff. Tragically, those three words are how the media makes money these days...

I was once told by an FT journalist (a fairly neutral paper compared to most and owned by a Japanese co-operative) than he was increasingly pushed for "impact, not insight".

Literally no one is pointing Saudi Arabia as a “haven”.
One post on MN last week does not a trend make.

Yes the beaches are simply wall to wall with bikini clad lap-toppers. Can’t get to my jet ski for love nor money.

They are probably trying to publicize their consultancy services for people moving to the EU - services that weren't necessary before Brexit.

You aren't really in their target demographic because you have an EU passport, and seem currently too privileged to care about the UK going to hell in a handcart.

I explained in op I don't follow them, they appear in my feeds

I've seen content painting SA as a bright/ sunny alternative to the UK. Was pretty shocked

And Isn’t that ironic.

Why is the UK going that way though? Because we keep voting for useless politicians and things like Brexit that are against the interests of most everyday people. This is what was voted for, these are the consequences.

Next election we'll probably end up with Farage and Co who'll pimp the country out to their American billionaire mates and ruin us. At that point I probably will emigrate tbh

It’s certainly bright and sunny.

I think people need to realise a lot of things about media - both print and online - nearly all of it has an agenda and we have far more media owners keen to see Farage and his bunch of weirdos on a white charger riding on or even the Tory’s than we do raving about anything centreist or left of centre. That’s because it would simply become dog eat dog and people with lots and lots of cash will once again be able to buy up cheap assets and do nice little deals with not much scrutiny , look how they suck up to people like the Bamfords - I’ve noticed all the things coming up on Google about tax and pensioners paying tax on savings etc from the ‘local’ online sites - these sites are all owned by the same people and keep pushing the ‘labour’ is doing this narrative, to get people frothing - many of these things and rules were already in place under the Tory’s, it’s just Labour have put more people in at HMRC and it’s being tightened up , but hey let’s make out it’s new - when it comes to benefits of any kind many of these people want things ‘tightened up’ but it seems if it comes down to anything that might affect them personally , suddenly they don’t want it tightened up!!! It’s like inheritance tax, yes other places have more generous limits than we have here but many of them also have much higher taxation in general ( not all but a lot) - if you want to go somewhere like US that has middling level tax but high allowances then factor in all the other not so great aspects, same with somewhere like Dubai. As someone once said on another thread it seems a lot of Brits want Dubai level of taxes but Scandinavian public services. It comes down to the fact that so much comes down to costs in the UK , particularly housing, childcare, council tax etc and my own view is I think it is actually the hardest for people in the middle income brackets in not cheap areas

Everywhere has problems. I prefer the UK's problems to say, what friends in South Africa put up with. Yet they love their country and would never leave to come live here. There is a lot of turmoil globally and a lot of European economies are slowing right now, the far right is on the rise but this too shall pass. Then there are cultural barriers. I would love to try living in the Nordics but they tend to be quite reserved societies so I think it would be lonely and a bit isolating for us. I still love the UK, I love the countryside and the history, I like small talk with strangers on public transport, I love the NHS and I love the weather, even though it gets a bit to hot for my liking these days with climate change (and we live in Scotland). I think its great if people move abroad, try something new and love it, but that doesn't make the UK a hell hole. Vote Farage in, though, and that might change.

I’m bored of all influencers