Looks like I’m going to have to leave the People’s Republic of Yorkshire and head down to London for work, filthy capitalist that I am.

So where’s good to live down that way? Needs to be:

– Either an hour’s bike commute or an hour’s train commute from Victoria
– Nice but not OMG expensive
– Family friendly
– North of t’river if possible, just to cut down travel time back oop north
– Decent biking nearby *looks around sheepishly out of hope rather than expectation*

Please help or my wife’s threatening to ring Kirsty and Phil!

I’d consider SW London/Surrey borders. Kingston, Surbiton, Esher, Hampton, Weybridge, Walton etc. All easy driving to the downs and surrey hills (oh, and Swinley), M25 is a short drive away so heading up north you can hit the M1 in under half an hour. The river and parks etc are right there and other than Kingston, they’re still relatively quiet. I lived in north London for the first half of my time here and I’m much happier down this side.

For other biking, Wales is a couple of hours, Aston Hill, Woburn etc are 30-40 minutes away.

Nice but not OMG expensive

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

Sorry.

Unless you move to somewhere right out in zone 5-6*, a 1-bed flat will set you back approx £200+pw unless you want to live in a scummy area. even in scummy areas, you could be paying that and more, believe me. 2-3-4 bed places, you’re looking at loads more. Well over a grand, fifteen hundred a month for a ‘family’ house.

*Could be ok, maybe out West London way, but even then, you’re talking a lot for little; London is astonishingly expensive for accommodation mate. And by ‘nice’ and ‘family friendly’, I imagine you’re talking about something quite suburban, not a council estate.

Plenty of great urban riding around, loads of bike paths and that. West is best for stuff like Surrey Hills, Swinley and that. South is good for that as well, possibly even better.

Be prepared to compromise. Loads. Otherwise you’re in for a very nasty shock….

South East, Kent, 37mins on High Speed, Gods Own Back Garden, ride the North Downs, Ride the Cliff tops, visit the bike park and pay homage at former colliery Betteshanger where your forefathers desecrated the peace and calm of Deal.

Wear a white shirt all day without it becoming black, enjoy the driest Sunniest and warmest climate in the UK, use the great hole in the ground to ravage the cheese eaters, steal their women and demand obsequience.

Nobody actually lives in Lunnon, only the undead or Eurotrash.

Oh and 200k will still buy a half decent Gaff and that 37mins gets you to Kings Cross if you must return (you won’t you’ll wonder why you didn’t come down here long ago)

Eurotrash?

😕

No?

Don’t go too far out, the zone 5 – 6 suburbs are the worst IME, all the bad point of London with out the benefits. I vote south London too, just make sure you are riding distance to work so you can save money on public transport.

Eurotrash are trash from Europe who have come to lunnon to work in the city, are at business school or going out with one of my endless supply of daughters who currently reside up Lunnon and complain about Eurotrash (or zombie single speed and fixie riders until it’s time for one of them to pedal them home from the theatre)

I must be undead, then.

37mins gets you to Kings Cross if you must return (you won’t you’ll wonder why you didn’t come down here long ago)

but that means living in Ashford, a genetic experiment gone horribly wrong.
it’s a shitehole.

Eurotrash are trash from Europe

Still not quite with you; I don’t speak bigot, you see. 😐

Back under that bridge. Preferably the QE2…

do it Dan, as a Yorkshire man in London, I can categorically state that it will make Yorkshire seem infinitely more like God’s own country than it already is.
I would suggest living North Westish rather than North East.
Relatively speaking, there’s nowhere good to live, but some places are better than others. firstly you need to work out what you need (2-bed, 3-bed, etc.) and your budget (buying, renting) then work out where you can get what you want for your money.
right move is your frieeeend.
once you’ve identified these things, then come on here and ask…

Elfinsafety – Member
Eurotrash are trash from Europe
Still not quite with you; I don’t speak bigot, you see.

Back under that bridge. Preferably the QE2…

You’ve only got one gear on that little red bike haven’t you?

And you don’t get out much either.

Have you ever talked to a girl?

as a Yorkshire man in London, I can categorically state that it will make Yorkshire seem infinitely more like God’s own country than it already is.

Relatively speaking, there’s nowhere good to live

Why don’t you bugger off back to ‘God’s own county’ then if it’s so wonderful there? Seriously?

Oh you need a job. Right. Sorry…. 🙄

MrSmith – Member
37mins gets you to Kings Cross if you must return (you won’t you’ll wonder why you didn’t come down here long ago)
but that means living in Ashford, a genetic experiment gone horribly wrong.
it’s a shitehole.

Folkestone I believe is actually the 37 minute destination and on the North Coast somewhere around Whitstable, agreed Ashford is exactly as you describe it.

I didn’t say anything was wrong with London, just that Yorkshire is much better, but that’s stating the obvious – but you knew that already didn’t you?
I’m in London because I like it,
and the girls are hotter.

just that Yorkshire is much better

How can you compare the two though?

I mean, the cities are not a patch on London, we know that, and you can’t compare rural with urban environments really, can you? And as for rural outdoorsy places; North Wales and Cumbria/The Lakes are better than Yorkshire imo. Yorkshire’s ok.

Have you ever talked to a girl?

Yeah; she said she moved to London to get away from her **** of a father….

Near Elfinsafety, the neighbours will be good!

Yeah, come live on my estate! 😀

I’ll look after you….

Yeah; she said she moved to London to get away from her **** of a father….

I didn’t even know you had a daughter.

(-:

brakes – Member
I didn’t say anything was wrong with London, just that Yorkshire is much better, but that’s stating the obvious – but you knew that already didn’t you?

They’re both bad places for different reasons, turned down two very good jobs once for entirely different reasons, but both involving grimy shirt collars and filthy environment – no amount of money would encourage me to live and work in either of those wretched places.

no amount of money would encourage me to live and work in either of those wretched places.

what about the hot chicks? there’s more to life than work and money.
hot chicks for instance.

Elfinsafety – Member
Have you ever talked to a girl?
Yeah; she said she moved to London to get away from her **** of a father….

😆

Not one of mine, you’re still alive, mine kill and eat their mates..

For hot chicks, Moscow wins. By a mile.

My job is based in London, and could not be based anywhere else. I love my job, and I love London. My job pays me enough to spend much time enjoying all of the other lovely parts of the UK. And the Caribbean. And the Alps. Etc. 🙂

For hot chicks, Moscow wins. By a mile.

Erm, we weren’t talking about the ones you have to pay for, Flashy…. 😐

My job pays me enough to spend much time enjoying all of the other lovely parts of the UK. And the Caribbean. And the Alps. Etc.

Are you a Tube Driver? 😉

Macau for that…. 🙂 apparently. 🙂

Tube Driver? 🙂 not me, guv…! Doesn’t pay enough. 🙂

Its 10 years since I moved down now (wow, its flown). I moved from Leeds to Ealing, and I’ve moved within Ealing from a flat to a house, in Northfields. We love it here, most of our neighbours are really friendly and have moved from other parts of the UK or europe for work. Really family friendly as well we have found since we had twins 3 years ago, loads of council run play centres within parks for example that are superb for weekend mornings out.

For what you need it’s ideal IMHO. I can be on the Surrey hills in 50 mins, and at Swinley in 40. I’ve been in Cwmcarn car park on a Sunday Morning 2 hours after getting out of bed.

Its ideal for access to the M1, M4 and M40 for getting north. I can be in Covent Garden in 25 minutes. Local pubs and restaurants are pretty good and very family focused.

I guess its going to be expensive moving from the North, and not sure what your budget is but anywhere in a half decent area in all of London is going to cost 1.5K to 2K a month for a modest family home.

I too have heard about the wonderous sights of Moscow, but it’s even more expensive to live there than London. and you won’t even get a whiff unless you’re a multi-oligarch.

if you are looking at buying i think only hertfordshire, ie north, has any kind of affordable housing
ridings not bad either, chicksands, woburn, aston, the chilterns all within easy reach

surreyish south/ sw is probably nicest but not cheap
and riding opportunities also very good

saying that i live brentford which is west has some not bad parts i can cycle to victoria in 45mins (i actually go a bit further 5 days a week its very doable)
I can be at swinley in 40mins or cwmcarn in 2 hrs

londons an awesome place, you can never be bored and once you get your head round its size there are endless opportunities for entertaining the kids/wife, partying, culture, food, history, arhchitecture adventure etc

Brakes, Moscow is madly expensive. Of all the places I’ve been to this year, it’s about double the cost. Insane place. Wonderful, but insane.

brakes – Member
what about the hot chicks? there’s more to life than work and money.
hot chicks for instance.

I learned to become Gay

Hang on a minute; aren’t Yorkshire folk meant to be used to hardship and stuff?

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13JK5kChbRw[/video]

In that case, you’ll think Thamesmead is the height of luxury! 😀

Ooh it’s grim down south, in’t it?

I grew up in Kent, plenty of pleasant places to live and many <1h by train into London, better value than Surrey too. Lots of good secondary schools if that matters too (the grammar is still alive and well).

Anywhere in North London that’s less than an hour cycle from Victoria will either be very expensive, in a shithole, or both. I like where I live (Finsbury Park / Crouch End way) and it’s good for getting to Victoria, but to buy a family (as in 3 usable bedrooms) property you’re talking half a million really, and can easily spend double that on something “nice”. Primary schools are OK but not much in the way of decent secondary schools here unless you’re willing to pay. People tend to stay when they have young kids but move further out as they get older.

There’s quite a few towns like St Albans on the north side which are pretty nice, easy to get to the motorway to go up north, quick train links in, and with a Brompton you could avoid the tube and still be well within an hour.

*cancels posh holiday. Books a weekend in Thamesmead*

🙂

Do a forum search and ye will find loads of posts extolling the virtues of where to live in Surrey (and thus be near the North Downs and Surrey Hills + 30-60 mins from Victoria).

Flashy, it’s proper grim, is that place. At least it was when I went through there a few years ago. I understand they’re doing it up now, but by God it were reet grim.

Truth is, that although there are a few nasty little pockets, most areas in London have improved over the last 15 years or so (mainly cos a Labour government ‘bankrupted’ the nation by actually investing in run-down areas a bit). So nowhere near as bad as people might think. And actually, places like Hackney are becoming increasingly desirable; loads of middle classes living there, some decent schools, and only the occasional stabbing. Proper vibrant varied culture, loads of places to eat and drink etc.

There are far worser places elsewhere in the UK than anywhere in London.

If Victoria is your station then Kent is the place. Faversham, Whitstable or even Canterbury will all get you up to Vicky on the high speed train in under an hour. Nice countryside, plenty of riding, beaches and plenty going on. Plus Manston airport, eurotunnel and the ports for quick weekends on the continent or whatever. Plus houseprices are pretty good for the south east.

Avoid Ashford. It’s demise from a pleasant Market town in the fifties to what it is today is criminal. Also avoid Sittingbourne and pretty much all of the isle of Thanet. Steer well clear of Sheppey too unless you are a fan of George Romero.

37mins gets you to Kings Cross if you must return (you won’t you’ll wonder why you didn’t come down here long ago)

Farnborough is only 45 mins from Waterloo, and that’s leafy Hampshire!

Yorkshire? Better?
Only if
You like a chip on your shoulder
You don’t need a job
Can put up with the dreadful weather

😉

Coulsdon South is within zone 6, only a little bit north of the NDW, and not a bad area.

I like London quite a lot, but I’ve no idea what I’d do if I had to live there, what with accommodation being what it is. However I do not think I would move there because of the riding.

You lot saying ‘you can be in Cwmcarn in two hours’ just highlights how bad it is, not how good. For much of the rest of the country you can be on the trails in minutes by bike and keep riding for hours and hours and you don’t even have to do laps! I haven’t driven to ride my bike in years.

HAVING to drive nearly an hour to ride.. urgh.

Steer well clear of Sheppey too unless you are a fan of George Romero.

😆

I have fond memories of The Beautiful Isle of Sheppey from my misspent youth…