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Nice City to move to in the North?

BillieTheBotBillieTheBot Posts: 8,721 Bot
edited January 2023 in General Chat
Ok, this is a fairly random thread but I'm totally not clued up on cities in the UK.

Thing is, I graduate in June.

I don't plan on returning home. Theres no job prospects there, I live in the middle of nowhere, no nightlife, etc.

Just wondering what nice cities up north are good to live in? I think I might want to leave Preston as well, its a fresh start isn't it?

I mean, I want a place which has a great nightlife and lots of job prospects.

I was thinking of moving to Manchester but I don't know as from what I've heard, the place sounds really unsafe to live in. Isn't it really expensive as well? Is it as bad as everyone makes out? My parents really don't like the idea of me moving there yet they don't like the idea of me staying in Preston.

I'm completely able to move anywhere. Its just deciding where to move is a problem. Obviously I want to move to a place that has lots of job prospects. I would also need a place that isn't hard to find a place to live in, lol! Its gotta be a city though.
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Post edited by JustV on
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Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Well if it must be up north :razz: then somewhere in Yorkshire, Leeds is a great city for nightlife and you can visit Elland road!

    Down south though, you have London and Brighton! :D
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'd never move down south tbh.

    My family live in Cheshire so don't really wanna live too far away if anything was to happen.

    Also, I love being a northerner!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'd never move down south tbh.

    That's what my mum said, she's from Wakefield/Leeds and went to university in Hull....
    but then she met my dad who was from London...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Would never move to London. The 4 day visit I took there was bad enough...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I would love to live in Manchester! I don't think it's any less safe than anywhere else if you have your head screwed on. If I move somewhere else in England it will be Mancland for sure, but then I suppose those feelings depend on who you know there and what experiences you've had of it.

    Newcastle is, of course, fabulous but I get the impression you want to stay in the NW?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Lol, ok only a true northerner would hate London so much...
    Ok then, cities in the north? Leeds, Newcastle and York are nice, Blackpool is supposed to be good....never been to Manchester or Liverpool but they don't appeal to me personally.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It'd be a good idea to get the fuck out of Preston though, shithole.

    I'd say Manchester or Liverpool if you want to be fairly close to Cheshire but have the "bright lights, big city" feeling.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It depends what you want from life, really.

    I love it in Newcastle(/Gateshead), I really do. The nightlife is fab, there's more art and music and culture than you can shake a big trendy stick at, the shopping is fantastic (we have a good city centre selection as well as the gargantuan MetroCentre) and its still a relatively cheap place to live (£600pcm will get you a poncy Quayside flat). Crime is relatively low here, though obviously it exists, and the city is small enough to feel homely. And all the pubs sell dog, which is obviously a winner.

    In terms of your career, there are quite a few decent-sized firms here, all of which are always after staff in reasonably decent positions. I work for the biggest of them and we're expanding rapidly, and the other firms in the city seem to be expanding too just to compete with us.

    Manchester is a nice enough city to visit, I have friends who live there, but for me its too big and too noisy. Leeds isn't an especially nice city- once you scrape the poncy sheen off Leeds its an absolute shithole unless you're prepared to pay the fortune required to live in one of the (few) nice areas. The shopping is steadily getting worse, and the nightlife's only any good if you like being beaten up by drunk footballers and charvers. Crime is a big problem in both cities- even with your head screwed on much of Manchester and Leeds is populated by violent filth. Liverpool always seems very nice when I go, but I don't know anyone there so I only know it as a tourist.

    I also :heart: Lancaster, but I think it might be a teensy bit, erm, tranquil for you.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Manchester is the only place up north I would really consider.

    Never been to Newcastle, have heard good things about it, but it's just so far away from everywhere and expensive on trains to get down South or to London.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It's not that far away- an hour to Edinburgh and under three to London. And if you're sensible the trains are cheap (last time I went to London I paid £16 return).
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    It's not that far away- an hour to Edinburgh and under three to London. And if you're sensible the trains are cheap (last time I went to London I paid £16 return).

    I used to share a house with a Geordie guy and it always seemed to take him hours and hours to get home and cost a fortune.

    how did you get £16 return, I can't even get that price from Birmingham (unless I go by chiltern which is £15 return)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    HAHA. Cheers for the replies guys. Yeah, I'm thinking I should get out of Preston otherwise I'll end up here for life.

    I was thinking of Newcastle Kermit as I've heard really good stuff about the place. I've never been there though so would have to visit the place before making a decision to move there. Its also quite far from home I think. As for Lancaster, yes, it might be a bit quiet for me :lol: I have a friend who lives there for her placement year who says the nightilfe is rubbish!

    Pill'ed - Have you ever been to Blackpool? Lol. Its a shit hole. I'd never move there. Its worse than Preston.

    As for York, its a lovely place. Spent about a year and a half visiting there lots. I'd love to move there but tbh, I've got too many bad memories there (although that isn't my main reason for not wanting to move there). Also, I don't think its got a very good nightlife. There doesn't seem to be many job prospects either and the accomodation is so expensive.

    Yes Briggi, ideally I would like to stay in the NW. Theres a direct train to home from Manchester as well and to most other places. Also with Manchester, with it being only 40 mins or so from Preston, it would be easy enough to commute to work whilst sorting myself accomodation out as I'm able to stay in my current accomodation till August. It also keeps me rather close to my friends.

    Manchester is what I keep getting pulled towards tbh. I'm just rather worried about moving to the place as it always seems people get mugged, attacked, shot, murdered, raped, etc. Just doesn't seem like a very good place to live. Also, won't the accomodation be really expensive?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    for me it'd be a choice between manchester, leeds or newcastle.

    you do right to leave preston, its a right shit hole. cant stand the place, not much going for it at all.

    manchester isn't unsafe at all, it has a undeserved bad reputation i think. i've lived in salford and central manchester before, never had any problems anywhere. Everyone thinks Salford is the pits, but i think most of it is alright really, some quite nice parts.

    Having said that, im from Burnley so am pretty hardened to most things unsavoury
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
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  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    All cities suffer from crimes such as those mentioned. It's one of the payoffs of living in a place with lots going on/decent night life and entertainment.

    As long as you avoid certain areas with reputations and take the usual precautions I'm sure you'll be fine.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Lancaster is beautiful. But having lived there for three years I'd say it's more of a visiting place than somewhere to live if you aren't ready to settle for quiet pints down the Blob Shop. That said, I did manage to get mashed off my tits plenty of times, but I think that was more to do with the student lifestyle... living there as a professional wouldn't be the same at all.

    Manchester isn't dangerous at all on the whole, though my friend did rent a flat sight unseen and when we moved her down there she realised it was a pebble's throw from Moss Side hahaha. It has shady areas but so does every city, it's just got this larger-than-life reputation for muggings and gangland shootings which isn't really deserved. Nightlife is off the charts, too, since that is a factor in your decision.

    I hate Leeds with a fiery passion so I won't give my biased view on it. But I do think if you're going to make a completely fresh start then there are much better places to do it that wouldn't be signifigantly more expensive.

    Everything the frog said about Newcastle is bang on the mark, and obviously he knows the craic about legal-type jobs better than I do! I'm sure everyone thinks we just rave about it because we live here but seriously nowhere in England comes close for me and it would blow your socks off after living in Preston :razz: It has everything you could wish for in a city but doesn't feel fucking enormous and anonymous in the way that a lot of people feel Manchester does. You can still rent pretty cheaply here too, we live right on the Quayside in an Tyneside flat with a view of the Millennium bridge and it is £375 a month -- though it is owned by a friend of ours who is a bit daft. There are some real bargainous little gems around if you're willing to live somewhere that doesn't have quite such a desirable address... or you can modify it like I have from "Byker" to "Quayside East" mua haha. Though that is probably the case everywhere. There is also the excellent Metro here running throughout Tyne and Wear which means you could live out of town and commute in nee bother.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Manchester is a funny one. A mate of mine lives in a terrace right by the old Maine Road stadium and she's never had a moment's bother but other people seem to get nowt but grief every time they so much as think of going to Rusholme. Manchester's not an unsafe city, I just think its too big and bustling for me. Some parts of Manc are cheap (my mate in Fallowfield has a good deal in a nice house), but the huge student population seems to be driving prices through the roof even in the ropey areas. Just don't move to Longsight and you'll be fine :razz:

    80% of Leeds is a shithole, and its expensive if you don't live in the shitty areas. It's hard to avoid the shitholes and the vermin who live there as the buses go through the shitty areas to get to the nice ones.

    Newcastle is a way from Manchester (2.5 hours by train direct, more like four to places like Northwich and Alderley Edge), which does count against it if you're a home bird. But its not so expensive to get there, book in advance and you get there for about £20 return. There's a train every hour to Manchester, and every half an hour to Edinburgh, Leeds, London and Birmingham, which drives down rail ticket prices.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
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  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Yeah, my mate's an arty type and doesn't mind the Kebabylon that is Rusholme, and I know over people who've lived out in Chorlton-cum-Hardy (*snigger*) and loved that too.

    I don't especially like big cities, the Boss loathes them, and that's why we like tha Toon...its important, so has all the good shops and bars, but its got a population of a smudge under 190,000, so its small and compact.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Leeds isn't as bad as you're all making it out to be. True I've never lived there but my mum was brought up there and loved it, also I've visited quite often to stay with relatives and yeah I saw some scummy areas but no worse than any other city I've been to. Also I thoroughly enjoyed the nightlife in Leeds and people I know that go to uni there say it's the best university city in the UK.
    Plus there's Leeds United...:thumb:

    Don't know how you're all worshipping Manchester and despising Leeds.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    HAHAHA. You guys aren't half making me want to check out Newcastle :p

    Its Manchester I'm drawn to most though as its in a location where it wouldn't be hard to see my friends or pop home. It will also enable me to commute for a short while from Preston to a job whilst I get myself accomodation sorted. It has the nightlife I want, the shopping I want, lol.

    I think I've pretty much answered my own question as to where I want to go. I'm just really worried about moving to a place where the crime rate is sky high. My Step Dad is also putting me off the place as he grew up there and keeps telling me bad stories but I don't know if thats because my Mum doesn't want me to live there. It doesn't help my cousin was attacked there when he was a student. He did live in Moss Side though...

    Its knowing where not to NOT LIVE in or where TO LIVE in Manchester where I'm gonna struggle as I don't know the place at all.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I would kill to live in Chorlton with all the liberal media types haha. A girl I used to work with is from there originally and just moved back... she keeps telling me stories and rather worrying tales of her nights in the Irish club. Jealousy isn't a strong enough word!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
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  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
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  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    pill 'ed wrote:
    people I know that go to uni there say it's the best university city in the UK.

    Well they don't exactly have experience of anywhere else, do they!?

    I feel I would be doing anyone a bad turn by advising them to move to Leeds. But obviously we all feel differently! Someone has to live there after all :p
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    briggi wrote:
    Well they don't exactly have experience of anywhere else, do they!?

    Well yeah lol, I knew someone would say that, but I mean like out of all the Uni's they went to open days at they all said Leeds stood out as the best Uni by far and they all love it there, whereas people I know that go to other Uni's all say that when they visited Leeds open day it did look really good and enjoy their own Uni's but never say anything amazing about them like the people I know that go to Leeds do.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    pill 'ed wrote:
    Leeds isn't as bad as you're all making it out to be. True I've never lived there but my mum was brought up there and loved it

    I'm from a small town near Leeds, I've grown up with the shops and clubs of Leeds.

    It's a cunthole unless you live a minimum of ten miles out. Places like Otley and Ilkley and Harrogate are where the posh Leeds people live, which is why the city of Leeds is crap.
  • JsTJsT Posts: 18,268 Skive's The Limit
    Move to Da Hud! The town centre is about the size of Preston I would say - plus you are central. Its quite a busy bustling town centre, some of the outer suburbs are dodgy but on the whole its quite good. Manchester and Leeds are less than 30 mins (as well as Sheffield, Halifax, Bradford etc) either side so commuting to them wouldn't be a problem.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Hull's good this time of year I hear.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Manchester seems the best bet for you since you seem to want to be close to your home and friends. Newcastle might suit you - its nightlife was deemed the best thing to see in the UK by either Rough Guide or Lonely Planet in their latest guide to Britain - but I don't think you want as much of a new start as moving to the other side of the country would give you. I mean, sure you could still go home every weekend if you wanted to, but even with good planning so you get discounts and the fastest trains, it's obviously not going to be as cheap and easy as doing the same thing from Manchester.
    Its knowing where not to NOT LIVE in or where TO LIVE in Manchester where I'm gonna struggle as I don't know the place at all.

    You'd have this problem whatever city you moved to, though, and it's a problem everyone faces when they move somewhere new. But that's what's good about renting - if wherever you picked doesn't turn out to be such a nice area as you'd hoped, a few months later you'll be able to move on.

    A tip I heard on a house-buying programme was that you should visit the area at different times of day to see what it's like: middle of the day, early evening, around midnight (you could always go in a taxi and cruise through the area, if you're worried about safety). That should give you an idea of whether you'd feel happy to live there or not.
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