I often see references in England to The North.

Now I realise it’s quite a few hundred miles south of what I consider North, and I always assumed it was simply the English counties on the border with Scotland, but I’ve seen a few references which make it sound that it may be even further south than that.

So where does the North start for the English? Hadrian’s Wall?

North of England?

Starts at the M62

For reference a proud Northumbrian here, anything from Watford to the 62 is the Midlands

The Tamar

My last regional role at work was to cover the north of the uk. Basically this seemed to be anything above a line drawn between bristol, oxford and cambridge and over to colchester. Pretty much about 9/10s of the UK.

I think Sheffield and above – coming from a Midlander living in London.

Watford…

roughly a straight line through Stoke is where the North starts, between there and The Watford Gap is the Midlands, below that is the South. Cue lots of enraged people arguing that they are not bloody Northeners/Midlanders/Southerners

M62’s not a bad border. That or Yorkshire.

or another version

Still supporting my M62 line

The North isn’t a place, it’s a state of mind.

Anywhere North of Nottingham imho.

For me it’s anything North of Crianlarich.

It’s up here! #waves

Rheged and Elmet define the start of Yr Hen Ogledd “the old North”

M62 is a good modern approximate, anything from Watford to 62 is the Badlands

According to the maps we get in Surrey, it’s roughly the line from the wash to Gloucester- it’s easier to be northern in the west.

Eventually you end up on the Moors, which as southern legend tells it is some sort of great wall, along the lines of the lord of the rings or the one in game of thrones, and after that the maps are just labelled ‘here be dragons’

Severn-Trent line in my past life, prob Ullapool to Dornoch now.

Having just seen the face on David Gould at Huddersfield I’d have to say that is in the North, looked like he was getting very uncomfortable there!!

I get twitchy above the m25.

Incidentally, I had a discussion with a colleague who’d moved down from Liverpool on this and I think we agreed on one of the borders of the midlands- it was just that it considered it the northern border and he considered it the southern.

It’s only fair to say where you are from while proclaiming the line, and if you would like a shandy or a cider

Where it’s grim!

Anywhere south of Deansgate is basically suspect.

NOT the M62, it goes to Stockport, which is in the Midlands.

South Manchester is basically full of ****, send them all to Essex and everyone would be happier.

I have just traced the mouse around Google Maps. If I am looking at Scotland I would draw a rough line from Inverness to Ballater to Perth to Balloch to Campbeltown. Anything NW of that I would say is North. I know that some of that is not very far North. I would base it on a scenery change. In Scotland there is North, and there is North North.

I was once having breakfast in a Holiday Inn in the dizzy heights of Chester. I heard a ‘Cockney’ lady chatting to a guy at the next table. Chester amazed her as she admitted she had not been far afield in the UK. I literally heard her utter ”Oi didn’t know there was anyfing Norf of Watford’!!

My inlaws have friends that once went to the Lake District in 1975. They found it too cold and have never been back since. They are the wettest couple I have ever met.

As has been said, the M62 is probably a good line, based on the history of the Saxon kingdoms, and how that has shaped the people of the land even to this day.

I was once having breakfast in a Holiday Inn in the dizzy heights of Chester. I heard a ‘Cockney’ lady chatting to a guy at the next table. Chester amazed her as she admitted she had not been far afield in the UK. I literally heard her utter ”Oi didn’t know there was anyfing Norf of Watford’!!

The irony there is Cheshire is a home county that got lost.

As far as England goes, seems to be accepted it’s around the Severn across to The Wash (if you’re in the south)?

Personally I’d say somewhere around the line from the Mersey across to the Humber.

(I differentiate between ‘The North’ and Scotland)

Anywhere north of Herne Bay pier.

NOT the M62, it goes to Stockport, which is in the Midlands.

Did you check your road atlas there?

That would be the M56 or the M60

Apologies Mike, you’re right. I’m getting my 62 mixed up with the M60 ring of shame, which includes the goat blowing incestuous Southerners of Chorlton and Didsbury.

It moves. When I was at university in Reading I was the token northerners, being from Lincolnshire. I always thought somewhere around Darlington but now I’ve  moved I think of Pitlochry as where the north starts.

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I forget who said it but “You aren’t  a proper northerner until you call a Sheffield  accent southern”

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seems to be accepted it’s around the Severn across to The Wash (if you’re in the south)?

Personally I’d say somewhere around the line from the Mersey across to the Humber.

So poor old Lincolnshire is in no-mans  land again? Even I don’t  know what we are, I don’t think of myself as northern but I’m definitely not a southerner!

Anywhere north of Herne Bay pier.

LOL.

The north?

Well it’s south of the NorthEast.

Just remember South Starts at Sheffield.

Sheffield to Leeds is midlands.

But bizarrely Harrogate is definitely in the south – as is Durham.

PS – when I was doing geography in Glasgow, the Tees-Exe line was generally accepted as the boundary between southern and northern England.

We didn’t really accept the concept of English midlands – not really a significant enough country to have three areas.

If the M62 is the boundary, then where is Manchester?

The Heptarchy, as alluded to earlier, remains resilient.

A wiggly line from the Mersey to the Humber.

Just South if Sheffield to Hadrian’s Wall is ‘The North’

Above that is foreignness

*Just South if Sheffield to Hadrian’s Wall is ‘The North’*

I appreciate it’s late, but

What?

Anywhere north of Stoke for me especially places where people say words with a t in front of them.

Anywhere Norf of the M27 IMO.

But seriously, as soon as you hit that Yorkshyre.. I get “that” feeling like I’ve travelled back in time.

So, Yorkshire.. that’s the North.

The signs for The North stop after the angel of the north. There’s your answer.