Moving back to UK - but where?

[CountUpTo3]

This probably sounds daft: I want to move back to UK in next 2-3 years but I'm stuck on where to aim for.

Kids will be going to uni in UK and family is in the Midlands; my job is flexible, OH's job is online/international - his only requirement is to be able to get into the countryside easily, without being rural.

I'd like to move to a large town where I can make friends and put down roots so that we're part of the community by the time we retire. Would also be okay in a green bit of city, but not a fan of suburbs. Would be lovely if it had decent shops, cultural life/cinema/live music, and not a total pain to get into London on the train. Drawing a 2-hour drive perimeter around Coventry doesn't really narrow things down!

We've been out of the country for nearly 25 years so I'm planning a series of short trips to explore. Just wondered if anyone's been through the process and has any tips? Any clues to working out where's friendly??

(Before you ask - yes, I know this is a weird time to want to move back, but we want to downsize and life over here is too expensive unless we both keep working full-time; also so many friends have relocated, my heart is broken!)

My DB & family & DDad live in Worcester & I think it ticks all your boxes. Not sure about live music scene there, but Birmis about half an hour away by train, so you could go to gigs there if none more local.

Birmingham is

I think I'd consider how important some of your factors are/how often you are likely to do them, and weight your criteria accordingly. E.g. when you say 'not total pain to get to London by train' is that likely to be once a month or once a quarter? Or might it be about coming home from London after late night theatre (in which case you might need to be much closer than some of these suggestions). Or might you then get a hotel for your once a quarter trips, or go to a matinee instead?

You might also consider how far it would matter to you to be part of a community where others have lived abroad too/or multicultural feel. We moved back to what felt a very settled/inward focussed community and it was hard to break in over a few years.

If money isn't an object I love Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol, Edinburgh, Manchester, but maybe a bit bigger than you were meaning.

Bath?