Living in the UK advice.

[the talisman]

I left England in 91 and have lived in Australia for about 30 years now.
Unlike most people though I have been back for visits on average once a year.

I didn’t get through the whole YouTube clip above, too whingy for me.

A few observations though, parts of England have become extremely crowded in the last few decades, especially the southeast corner.

I always drive every time we visit and I haven’t found the roads to be too bad, smart motorways seem to have helped with traffic flow, the drivers are very aggressive though.

I’m lucky in that my time in England is mostly split between Wilmslow and the Lake District. I grew up in wilmslow and many of my oldest friends still live there and Alderley Edge. I absolutely love the Lakes and could quite happily move back there.

One thing that puts me right off though is the state of the NHS. My Dad died 2 years ago and I am convinced he’d still be around if he had received proper care in Wythenshaw hospital. My Mum has some serious medical issues and is routinely let down by health professionals. I’m at the age where I’m starting to become a fairly regular visitor to my GP and if I ever move back I would think long and hard about private health insurance.

Just my 2 cents worth

 

[City Hobgoblin]

Most quality of life indicators have been getting worse since about 2010.

 

[idahoblues]

Is the restraining order still in place??

Obviously

 

[Bill Walker]

Is the restraining order still in place??

I think it's more the outstanding arrest warrant he's bothered about.

 

[idahoblues]

I think it's more the outstanding arrest warrant he's bothered about.

It’s been a very mild autumn, the bodies aren’t 100% frozen yet

 

[roman totale]

I moved to the US over 20 years ago. It was for an opportunity at work and a chance to do something different, so I wasn’t driven by any particular desire to leave the UK. Over the intervening years I’ve got back at least 2-3 times a year on average for work and pleasure. Bottom line for me is nowhere’s perfect. There’s a lot of good and bad in both places. I’ve no particular desire to move back, but if I did, it would be either Manchester or London, nowhere else. At lot of my old friends and family who’ve stayed in M’cr their whole lives complain about how it’s “not the same anymore”. I can see those changes as an outsider and I think they’re great. We’re finally taking rightful place as a growing, true world city. Anyone who thinks a lot of town wasn’t a dangerous shit hole in the 70s & 80s have very short memories.

 

[idahoblues]

Thought there's a grain of truth in what he says e.g busier, bit less friendly, NHS struggling but was way over the top on pubs and restaurants still loads of good ones.
There's loads you can pick fault in Uk with as he did but how important is it to your life e g. would some clean formica or a smarter train really make your day. I think the big tiicket items are having interests and friends to share a laugh with . There's not really that much to stop people getting out and enjoying their interests here with a positive outlook, its relatively affordable.

I think the biggest problem could be the aussie wife finding it hard to get used to the smaller houses , colder climate, being inside more etc though I don't find the climate that bad just winter a bit long.

Hard to speak for someone else I have heard of people coming back , changing their minds and leaving for good but I don't think he'd find it that different from before.

As someone who rarely visits I will say that I see a huge difference. I guess that’s the same for anywhere, things change. I moved away from England because I couldn’t stand it anymore, I still don’t like it but it’s for different reasons. The towns have become soulless places and the Countryside too busy….. I’ll stop here, don’t want to offend any feelings

 

[Bill Walker]

It’s been a very mild autumn, the bodies aren’t 100% frozen yet

So the necrophilia is still available after a few Jack Daniels?

 

[idahoblues]

So the necrophilia is still available after a few Jack Daniels?

Still a little too frozen for that
Good for butchering

 

[mexico1970]

I moved to the US over 20 years ago. It was for an opportunity at work and a chance to do something different, so I wasn’t driven by any particular desire to leave the UK. Over the intervening years I’ve got back at least 2-3 times a year on average for work and pleasure. Bottom line for me is nowhere’s perfect. There’s a lot of good and bad in both places. I’ve no particular desire to move back, but if I did, it would be either Manchester or London, nowhere else. At lot of my old friends and family who’ve stayed in M’cr their whole lives complain about how it’s “not the same anymore”. I can see those changes as an outsider and I think they’re great. We’re finally taking rightful place as a growing, true world city. Anyone who thinks a lot of town wasn’t a dangerous shit hole in the 70s & 80s have very short memories.

Manchester has been a shithole for a LONG time, what makes it worse now is the abject poverty interspersed with a bunch of comfortably off cunts treating it like an urban playground pretending to be down and dirty and joining in with the edginess when they have a credit card as an escape route.

As a modern city it's an embarrassment.

 

[Blue Maverick]

Trouble with the UK is we all live on top of each other, your mate will notice this if he’s anywhere near a City if he’s come from a huge country like Australia. Traffic is horrendous wherever you go, a bunch of selfish twats on phones etc. The weather is fucking shite as well, I really think he needs to maybe come over for a couple of months, rent somewhere he thinks he’d like to live and see how he feels, I guarantee he won’t stay. The much lauded NHS is basically fucked now, he will want private healthcare if he does come back.

 

[J.G.Blue.]

I am lucky enough to live in South Shropshire & to be honest appart from the weather this time of year I have never been anywhere else I would prefer to live, its beautiful :-)

 

[Blue Maverick]

I am lucky enough to live in South Shropshire & to be honest appart from the weather this time of year I have never been anywhere else I would prefer to live, its beautiful :-)

Always liked Shropshire, did some of my RAF training there in the 80s and visited a few times since.

 

[Kompany Car]

He does go on a bit about prices and then tells you how cheap it is in Vietnam. No shit, earning a Western wage and living in a country where the average wage is about £500 per month (1/4 the average uk wage). Scale his prices up and his £40 Gym fee would be £160 per month in the UK. Regarding roads, yep there are pot holes and if hes comparing it to Japan or Singapore then fair enough, but to say its worse than places in India and other parts of the far east, all I can say is that he's never ventured out of the cities or even tried to use the roads.

I do however agree with his thoughts around cities and the run down nature post Covid. Take York for instance, it used to have no problem letting shops and premises, however now many of the smaller businesses have gone under there's a lot more boarded up places than there used to be, this is magnified on a much larger scale in Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield etc.

Fully agree as well re eating in restaurants, it seems no matter what you pay its nearly always disappointing due to the quality and service. Also feel the same re the sentiment that I could have cooked something at home better and for a fifth of the price. The food doesn't have to be fancy, but for gods sake use the best quality ingredients you can.

 

[Blue Mist]

He will have no mates.
Worse, she will have no mates.
Unless they are coming over to work, where are they going to meet people?

England, cold wet and miserable.... and that's just the people, the weather's worse.

 

[Johnny Mars Bar]

Once you get out of our shithole crime ridden cities, the UK is lovely.

 

[ell]

Is it next year or the year after we are on course to be poorer per head than the Poles?

Couldn't tell you last time I went to a castle so I'd think carefully about the sacrifice if that's what he's after.

 

[Tuearts right boot]

It's taken him long enough to decide.

 

[mancboy]

I think what it effectively comes down to is the difference between visting and living, when you are visiting somewhere you get to see the best bits of it without all the hassle and living there is a completely different kettle of fish, i visit america quite alot but i wouldnt want to live there, familiarity breeds contempt in all of us and we are much more likely to see the problems than the good side of things.

 

[SilverFox2]

Is it next year or the year after we are on course to be poorer per head than the Poles?

Couldn't tell you last time I went to a castle so I'd think carefully about the sacrifice if that's what he's after.

Certainly here in Spain those who regularly return to UK feel it has become very expensive.

An elderly friend whose husband died recently wanted to return and looked at her previous Brighton area. Property and renting very expensive but her main complaint was how untidy and dirty the towns and cities have become.
Others are still intending to return to help sons and daughters with child care.