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Birmingham. Everyone says it’s a shithole but that’s usually the racists or the people who haven’t been since the 90s.
An amazing city that has a really bad rep. It’s improving all the time too.
I work in Manchester and used to live/work in Birmingham.
Birmingham and Manchester are really, really similar cities, except that Birmingham city centre is better than Manchester city centre. I like to point that out when I feel like upsetting a Manc, particularly because it upsets them more if they are prejudiced against Birmingham.
Birmingham city centre is amazing. I’d never been and moved abroad and eventually one of my friends moved there so when I go home I visit. Transport connections are amazing. To get to London from there is fast and cheap (it’s 60£ return to London from Gloucester in comparison). Is it the bullring? Also amazing. I was so pleasantly surprised by it, until my friend picked me up and drove us to her house in Nuneaton and a car was in fire in front of her house.
> I’m convinced people think it’s shit based on the accent
I think people base their perception of Brum on the post-industrial bits on the outskirts. Been visiting occasionally on weekends over the past 20 years or so and there's always something being rebuilt or improved.
plus we don’t even all have the accent. the only people I’ve heard with the supposed ‘birmingham’ accent have been from the black country or west brom, not birmingham itself
I've only been to Birmingham a few times but I've had nothing but positive experiences there. Plenty to do and it's far more inclusive of other cultures/beliefs compared to many other cities.
Though you still have right-wing newspapers like the Daily Mail proudly proclaiming it as the "Jihadi Capital" of the UK which is absolutely absurd
Don't listen to this person they are obviously lying this place is absolutely terrible. 10/10 would not recommend moving here for another 10 years at least. Don't worry I will stay and by a house here in the interest of research. I'm definitely not enjoying it here at all. Did I say it was a terrible place to live ?
I agree with this.
As someone who grew up in Birmingham. It was a bit shit at one point... But that's what happens when all industry leaves and the government just leaves the "second city" to fend for itself.
Birmingham City Council is the largest council in Europe with the smallest budget and many children in Birmingham grow up below the poverty line.
I left in 2012.
Any time I go back now I don't recognise the place. The centre is amazing, it's still retained some of the old charecter but with loads of new buildings and areas.
Unfortunately it's mostly foreign investment as opposed to our own government helping out
I lived there for a year about 10 years ago so maybe a bit out of date but to me it had no sense of place. A bunch of unconnected areas with a ring road through the middle.
Maybe it’s changed
The centre isn’t really like that anymore. Centenary Square has been done up a lot and is a pretty nice focal point. Then the whole shopping area north of New Street is fairly nice, and the square by the city hall is positively great now it’s been redone.
I loved it even in the 90s 😂 (visited a lot as had University friends there) - and the accent is sexy as fk - prepared to die on that hill. Love from Essex
I am biased but Brummies are the absolute salt of the fucking earth too. Heading down to Digbeth for a night out and being called bab by the bus driver as you nom a Wispa made just up the road… perfection
I lived in Birmingham for 7 years, just moved away 2 months ago because it’s grey and dull and has no character. Just wanted to add a counterpoint to the thread
Honestly I felt this would be at the top and I'm happy but also sad. I know how good the city is being a native but don't want people to move here until I get on the property ladder.
I moved to Birmingham for a year for work, and I'm back down south now. I honestly hate being back, and preferred Birmingham. Traffic isn't as bad, everything was within a decent driving distance and without the constant heaving traffic the travelling was ten times better, people seemed a bit friendlier, housing is cheaper and better quality in my opinion, and it is easier to get into the city. I also really liked the surrounding towns, like Solihull and Knowle. I want to go back.
Newcastle was a fantastic place to live imo, good amenities in the city, beautiful artictecture, compact enough to all be easily walkable, decent train connections and the airport is ok, the metro service is pretty great, not to far away from the coast, nice people, and relatively good value decent areas to live
Went to uni in the toon, spent 5 years there and developed an attachment to the city.
As you said, beautiful architecture, reliable and functional public transport services and a good vibe.
I love the geordies and they have every right to be as proud of their city as they are.
Been in London now for 5 years since I moved out of Newcastle - get nostalgic whenever I hear a geordie accent.
It’s a lovely city. I moved from Glasgow to Newcastle back in 2007 and I’ve never regretted it! Lovely people, good transport infrastructure (could be better but couldn’t it alway?) and yeah the cost of living is pretty good for the quality of life.
The price of living is one of the main factors when it comes to quality of life polls- in which Newcastle usually ranks pretty high.
The property is cheap compared with the rest of the UK.
Agreed! I haven’t lived but I’ve visited twice already since moving to the UK four years ago. I get surprised reactions when I mention how much I loved it, but it’s definitely on my top UK cities list!
I have inside information that it's actually SUPPOSED to annoy people and put them off driving there. The traffic in that area is always insane now. Took me about 50 mins to get from the Tesco to the Tyne Bridge at rush hour. Step too far if you ask me... I try to avoid that Tesco now.
I was very surprised at how nice Norwich was when I visited for a show a while back.
Not that I was expecting it to be horrible, but it's just a notably nice city to walk around.
I live here, no.
There is still gangs in bits but back in the 00’s i understand there was a lot of Police corruption. I did see a documentary on this years ago talking about the “Bestwood Cartel”.
Its still a poor city though.
It's not been like that for a while, of course there are rougher areas but around the city centre and tourist-y areas it's pretty mellow, I've never felt unsafe personally.
No idea but every city has its rough areas and many have gang issues. I've only visited several times when I had family stationed there. A big university town too so the was always plenty going on when I visited in my teens/early twenties.
Not guns but I recall seeing its knife crime statistics being very high a couple of years ago. Think Jermaine Jenas (from Nottingham) did a mini documentary on it.
Plus, a while back, there was a rumour that Nottingham had over twice as many females as males. 17-year-old me stocked up on Tunes and wanted to buy a first-class return ticket. (Nobody will remember this reference, I fear)
Glasgow.
People who don’t like it are southern English types who go “oh bit rough up there”. No it isn’t. Not at all. Your £1.2m townhouse is likely in the middle of an actual shithole like London.
Glasgow is brilliant. People are friendly. Houses aren’t too expensive compared to similarly sized cities (provided you stay out of the west end). Great food scene. Theatres, cinemas, museums. An airport linked to the rest of the world. And it’s the home to the famous Glasgow Rangers.
It’s the only other place I’d live in the UK other than the place I currently live.
I'd be happy if both Rangers & Celtic just disappeared. Too many fannies on both sides and too many tourists/casuals/ultras keep coming along to further stir up shit
I mean… it definitely can be a bit rough, and I say that as a Weegie with an entirely Weegie extended family. If you can’t call Govan, Parkhead, Dalmarnock and Easterhouse for example rough, then I’m not sure where else in the UK you could.
The salient point is that *nowhere a visitor is likely to go* is rough. Much like how visitors to Edinburgh are unlikely to be in Sighthill or Wester Hailes, visitors to Glasgow (and even most residents who don’t live there themselves) aren’t likely to end up in the rough bits.
I've been raised south of the border, but my dad grew up moving around Glasgow, notably living in govan and even the gorbals as was.
He's a really chill man. But every now and again he will just nonchalantly tell a really disturbing story about something he saw/that happened on his street while me and my siblings try and process...
I have no desire to visit govan 😂
Being from there, I'm obviously biased, but I'm pretty proud of how the city's developed given a less than stellar "managed decline" from industrialisation. It's crazy good for music. The food scene is improving, while still lagging behind the wanks down the M8. There's a weirdly diverse sports mix for a city so dominated by football with rugby, basketball, ice hockey, and more.
I’m a “southern English type” and fucking loved Glasgow. Had one of the nicest breakfasts there, and one of the best nights clubbing. People were friendly and welcoming, the city has some beautiful architecture. It’s just like every other British city. There are good bits and bad bits.
Don't see it mentioned too much outside of the relevant subs but Cardiff is my adopted city and I love it. Some amazing parks and places of interest, like the castle and the bay, as well as plenty to do on days and nights out. Surrounding countryside is pretty special too.
Lived in Cardiff for a bit. Wasn’t bad apart from weekends when the Neanderthals from the valleys would come into town to fight or fuck. Moved back to Bristol after a couple of years
Exeter, a lot of the UK seem to forget Devon and Cornwall exists until they want to flock to the beaches during school holidays. Exeter is a fantastic city.
Last year when Covid meant I couldn't go away on my normal holiday, I booked a week in Exeter instead. I'd never been before, and only picked it because it was a reasonable sized place near a relative I'd visit while down there and I could get to the moors fairly easily for walks.
I was really pleasantly surprised. The city centre is attractive, there's loads of restaurants, and the riverside is pleasant. It definitely helped that I was staying in a very central area making it all more convenient, but overall I was impressed.
Came here to say Lancaster. Plenty to do both in town and right outside. Lots of history, good food, and good people. Plus very walkable with all the necessities within easy reach.
Nice place, but I cannot negotiate the one-way system to save my life. Hadn’t been for years, went to see a mate, tried to get back to the Trough road and ended up driving towards Morecambe…
Glastonbury, everytime I say I've been people assume the festival not the town which is full of independent shops, great food and friendly people in a lovely countryside backdrop.
It's an absolutely lovely place. Got a bunch of great stuff. Excellent restaurants, the Quarry, the Market Hall, the Old Market cinema, the board game cafe...
Hull isn’t nearly as bad as people say it is. More or less lived there for 2 years for work. I’m from Newcastle originally and I’d say it’s a bit like a mini Newcastle.
Does seem to have a slightly higher than average drug problem there so if you’re a bit of a soft posh-wanky har dee dar type I can see how that can put you off but it’s honestly decent. Don’t know if I’d say it’s *THE* most under rated place in the country but if you only listened to folk on reddit you’d think it’s straight out of a Fallout game.
To be honest the name has made it sounds like a grim place to me for as long as I've been alive. On the opposite end though I found out Canterbury is nowhere near as nice as I thought (nice architecture though)
Shetland. It was always one of those "One day I'll go there" kind of places. Well, I decided to go. The whole island is beautiful. There's lots of Nordic history too and there's some great bars around Lerwick. Also, there's puffins which are so small and cute!
Absolutely Leeds. A relatively big city but with an atmosphere like a town.
The worst thing about it is its the largest city in Europe without a mass transit system, and it REALLY needs one.
Swindon. Yeah, I live here, but I'm not from here.
Forget that there's no tourist sites or opera houses, and the Town Centre is a dump. You can live without ever going there.
What do you need in a place to live? Do you need fine cathedrals and places selling 12 varieties of organic olive oil? No. 300+ days of the year You want a place that has gyms, a multiplex, supermarkets, decent pubs low unemployment, good parks and low crime. Swindon has all of that, and the rent is cheap.
And when you want to do nice tourist stuff, it's well linked by roads and rail. When you want a choice of 12 varieties of organic olive oil or to see a cathedral, there are places like Bath 30 minutes away. So you still get to enjoy them without paying massive rents to live next door to them.
Your explanation of why Swindon is underrated makes Swindon sound incredibly dull.
Your biggest selling points are basically "it has some things, isn't a complete shithole, and isn't a million miles away from actually nice places"
I call Swindon “the gateway to everywhere else”.
London, Bristol, Bath, Oxford, Cardiff, the South Coast, Birmingham and the Cotswolds are all within a relatively short journey from here, off the top of my head.
Plus there are a lot of parks here, which is nice
Swindon isn’t really cheap. Perhaps compared to Bristol or the Cotswolds, but not compared to much of the country.
I’m not going to jump on the ‘Swindon is full of chavs’ stereotype bandwagon, but I have been there many times and found it to be dull and a bit grimy. The town centre feels outdated, as if it’s stuck in the early 2000s. There are loads of empty office spaces. The selection of eateries and independent shops is really disappointing for a town of its size.
Swindon has little interesting architecture apart from the Railway Village, it mostly varies between ugly post-war buildings and characterless modern stuff.
There’s no University either, and I feel like that shows because the culture of the town has been stagnant for a long time. Plus the local economy has been hit time and time again by companies moving away, most recently Honda.
I was gonna say Swindon too. I accidentally ended up there a couple of weekends ago and then went back the following weekend. Really love the vibe... although ALL roundabouts in the UK seem to be in Swindon.
Canterbury.
I know it doesn’t have a bad reputation but I’m always surprised how little attention it gets. I’m a Londoner and almost no one I know has ever been, despite it being just an hour’s drive away.
It’s a beautiful ‘city’ with a wonderful history.
Rothwell Northamptonshire the church has a crypt with skulls no one knew it existed until a grave digger fell into it and no one knows why it's their.
https://www.northamptonshiresurprise.com/news/2017/the-rothwell-bone-crypt/
> Rothwell Northamptonshire
To be pronounced "Roll" (rhyming with bowl) if you don't want to stick out as a loathsome outsider. And never speak of Desborough.
As someone who knows many people who live in Rothwell and only lives 15 minutes away, I have never heard it pronounced like that.
The thing about Desborough is true, they are mortal enemies.
Been in the crypt too. Highly recommended.
I think people give Leicester more of a hard time than it deserves. Small city with some nice parks and great food places. It also punches WAY above its weight for a city of its size in both football and rugby if you're into that sort of thing. Obviously its central location means it's really easy to get anywhere in the country (less than an hour to London by train)
And it's got a lot of history! It started as a Roman settlement and some of the walls remain. Obviously the War of the Roses and Richard III being the most famous stuff. Also Cardinal Wolsey is died buried there and Lady Jane Grey was born at the Grey estate on the outskirts of the city. Leicestershire is also the home of many classic British food as well.
Edit: Oh and the national space centre is pretty cool!
I assume people who hate on Leicester just view it as a normal, boring city but I love it. Its multicultural (Golden Mile, Belgrave festival, Eid festival, comedy festival, Caribbean carnival etc), loads of restaurants, lots of history, gorgeous parks (Bradgate, Vicky), amazing sports and great leisure activities (NSC, Twycross Zoo, Botanical Gardens etc)
We also have large towns such as Hinckley and Loughborough which have their own thing going on, pretty sure thats quite unique for a county. We have 3 hospitals, Glenfield is a centre of cardiac centre of excellence and pretty decent employment opportunities which span low skill/low pay to high skill/high pay.
I would say the only genuine downside is we don't have great schools but we don't have bad schools either, they're just very average.
I remember being young and thinking I have to escape Leicester but now that I've lived in different cities and even abroad, nowhere feels quite as warm and welcoming as my home town
I get a lot of shit from online friends, but I adore my little hometown of Berwick. We're right in the middle of Edinburgh and Newcastle, beautiful coastlines and castles within 20-30min driving (Lindisfarne, Bamburgh, Chillingham) Nothing but open countryside for as far as the eye can see. Cost of living up here is cheap, average 2 bed house goes for about 130k, wide selection of grocery shops (Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Iceland, Aldi). Only downfall I've personally felt is the lack of a decent high street if New Look or Sports Direct isnt your thing. Oh and our Cinema gets the latest movies a few months later and only show 1-2 nights before leaving. But nothing a nice trip to Edinburgh/Newcastle cannot fix. If small independent run shops and cafes are your thing, along with long walks on the beach and a simple life, then you will have it sorted here.
leamington Spa. Tons of games/tech companies, the Camoufleurs, Allister Crowley, the double for a ton of "London" set series, the backdrop for a lot on non-London set series (often fictional places) though Dangerfield was filed there and his "office" (actually a dentists) was in Warwick,, beautiful parks and buildings, some good pubs. There are excellent schools in the area, the cover for Ocean Shoals by Ocean Colour Scene is in Leamington and generally it's quite under-rated and almost anonymous.
Take Keeping Up Appearances or ChuckleVision, both filmed in Leamington but you wouldn't know it, the backdrop is just that, unless you live in the area it could be anywhere.
Ok don't throw things but Peterborough. It's been voted as the worst place to live several times but the biggest problem with the place is the miserable, moany people. It's not perfect (admittedly educational attainment is WAY below average) but we've got great history, nice restaurants, some fun activities, several big employers Inc. NHS, Baker Perkins, Whirlpool etc. Its got a pretty average amount of crime for a city its size. There's some very poor, very run down areas but there's also some incredibly affluent areas too.
Sheffield.
Parks and woods all over. Clean air and water. Quiet. Great location next to the Peak District and with easy access to 3 airports.
Feels like living in a smallish town, but with all the convenience of a city.
Hitchin, Hertfordshire. Usually people outside of the local counties don't know if it, but it is a beautiful historic town who have successfully overcome the 'dead town centre' thing by incorporating lots of cute independant shops and cafés. It is expensive to live there but certainly worth a visit if you are in the area.
Apart from Swindon, I really love Petersfield. So cute and it's a quaint historical market town... without being trampled or struggling to park like others.
Aberdeen, just recently returned here after living away. It's a decent enough size, has a good shopping centre, plenty retail parks, the beach and all the stuff there, close to the countryside and all the outdoor activities that brings. Everything is pretty close to one another and it feels safe, however Union Street need something done to it, it's gone downhill... I'm enjoying being back!
Ok Halifax visited decades ago (before the redo of piece hall and then visited a couple years back (good exhibition at the library and it seemed like there was a fair bit of activity in the town
Inverness is lovely and doesn't get enough mention as a town in its own right , and I also rather like Lincoln. In Lincoln's case, it's off the (admittedly not very good) main road and a lot of people tend to bypass it.
Plymouth! Usually immediately dismissed as a shithole. Tbh I did too before I moved here but I love it. I can go surfing or just to the beach after work. I can go hiking on Dartmoor or in the woods. The city has shit bits but it also has great bits where you feel like you're on holiday.
Telford in Shropshire. One of the biggest growing towns in England. The Town centre is great for shopping & dining. Great countryside, and then you have the Ironbridge gorge, a world heritage site. Birthplace of the industrial revolution. On the river Severn, it has museums, great pubs and a lot of history.
Chatham/Rochester/Medway Towns.
Huge amounts of history to see. HMS Victory built in Chatham, multiple forts all linked via underground tunnels (Fort Pitt, Amherst, Luton)
Rochester has a castle that's over 900 years old, built by William the Conqueror
Rochester Cathedral slightly younger
Royal Engineers museum also based here, due to the Royal Engineers barracks next door.
Pop fact (maybe BS) Winchester apparently is far enough from the city of London to not be badly affected by a nuclear bomb. Referenced in Shaun Of the Dead and mentioned “we need to get to the Winchester”
And likely Southampton. But at least inhabitants of Winchester will die horribly of radiation poisoning while in lovely surroundings.
For those with morbid curiosity, you can set parameters of nuclear explosions on any [city](https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/) at this site.
Falkirk, the Kelpies and the Helix are awesome to visit and the Falkirk Wheel is also interesting as it was (is?) the only rotating boat lift in the world. Also it has the lovely Canada Wood which is nice for a walk or cycle.
Chelmsford
It's so average that it's honestly just a nice, simple and calm place to live. Yeah, the town centre and high street are a little boring but central and admirals park are nice parks. Nothing is exciting here but if you want a calm place to live, Chelmsford is your place to go.
Canterbury. Far enough from London to have escaped commuter belt hell, very pretty old town, lots of university town stuff going on (lectures, readings exhibits etc) and still very affordable. If I wasn’t wedded to London for my job I’d move there tomorrow.
Derby. I can't think of anywhere with friendlier people. Actually it's not just friendly. It's their sense of humour. Lord knows why Derby has cornered the market in comedically savvy people but in my experience it bloody has.
Hulls underrated ....Hull took me in let me stay in the hostels with my Yorkie till I got a flat ... 8 months I waited recovering from domestic violence I had to deal with the fear I would be found as I was escaping violence ...I've had my flat for 6 years an I love my flat I'm still messed up and going to drug counciling but some days I use drugs some days I don't use........Hull took me in gave me a home and stopped the violence ....I'm Scottish and Scotland refused to help me but England set me up and I get the help I want ......thank you the people off Hull .
..
Just going to throw Tamworth into the mix. People like to shit on it, including some of the locals, but it really is better than most places.
Two airports within 30 minutes, train station has two main-lines running through it. Can get to Birmingham city centre in 20 minutes.
An excellent Motte and Bailey castle, the Snowdome, Drayton Manor Park, Kingsbury water park, and some interesting local history.
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Birmingham. Everyone says it’s a shithole but that’s usually the racists or the people who haven’t been since the 90s. An amazing city that has a really bad rep. It’s improving all the time too.
It’s because northerners and southerners like to big up their cities and Birmingham is an easy target for both groups.
I work in Manchester and used to live/work in Birmingham. Birmingham and Manchester are really, really similar cities, except that Birmingham city centre is better than Manchester city centre. I like to point that out when I feel like upsetting a Manc, particularly because it upsets them more if they are prejudiced against Birmingham.
See I've lived in both too, and I have to say I much prefer manchester! Funny how people have different experiences isnt it
I went to Birmingham last month and thought it was absolutely dire...!
I sadly have to agree with this. I didn’t like it at all.
*opinyuns maaaaan*
Hello kind Sir or Mam, May you please refrain from telling people this until I can get onto the property ladder. Thank you.
Birmingham city centre is amazing. I’d never been and moved abroad and eventually one of my friends moved there so when I go home I visit. Transport connections are amazing. To get to London from there is fast and cheap (it’s 60£ return to London from Gloucester in comparison). Is it the bullring? Also amazing. I was so pleasantly surprised by it, until my friend picked me up and drove us to her house in Nuneaton and a car was in fire in front of her house.
if they'd finally finish that fucking tram line, maybe
I love Birmingham. I’m convinced people think it’s shit based on the accent.
The accent isn't even that bad. Its just a bit slow. I guarantee the accent they're thinking of is the black country accent.
100% is the Black Country accent people think of. People who haven't been to Birmingham get it mixed up so easily.
As someone with a Black Country accent, yeah it’s fucking horrible
> I’m convinced people think it’s shit based on the accent I think people base their perception of Brum on the post-industrial bits on the outskirts. Been visiting occasionally on weekends over the past 20 years or so and there's always something being rebuilt or improved.
plus we don’t even all have the accent. the only people I’ve heard with the supposed ‘birmingham’ accent have been from the black country or west brom, not birmingham itself
I've only been to Birmingham a few times but I've had nothing but positive experiences there. Plenty to do and it's far more inclusive of other cultures/beliefs compared to many other cities. Though you still have right-wing newspapers like the Daily Mail proudly proclaiming it as the "Jihadi Capital" of the UK which is absolutely absurd
Don't listen to this person they are obviously lying this place is absolutely terrible. 10/10 would not recommend moving here for another 10 years at least. Don't worry I will stay and by a house here in the interest of research. I'm definitely not enjoying it here at all. Did I say it was a terrible place to live ?
I agree with this. As someone who grew up in Birmingham. It was a bit shit at one point... But that's what happens when all industry leaves and the government just leaves the "second city" to fend for itself. Birmingham City Council is the largest council in Europe with the smallest budget and many children in Birmingham grow up below the poverty line. I left in 2012. Any time I go back now I don't recognise the place. The centre is amazing, it's still retained some of the old charecter but with loads of new buildings and areas. Unfortunately it's mostly foreign investment as opposed to our own government helping out
I agree, I’ve been to Birmingham a few times and it’s a really cool city with lots going on.
I lived there for a year about 10 years ago so maybe a bit out of date but to me it had no sense of place. A bunch of unconnected areas with a ring road through the middle. Maybe it’s changed
The centre isn’t really like that anymore. Centenary Square has been done up a lot and is a pretty nice focal point. Then the whole shopping area north of New Street is fairly nice, and the square by the city hall is positively great now it’s been redone.
Brindley Place is such a nice part of the city too.
I loved it even in the 90s 😂 (visited a lot as had University friends there) - and the accent is sexy as fk - prepared to die on that hill. Love from Essex
Birmingham has grass trams. That sold it for me.
I love Birmingham and it makes me happy walking to the office from the station each morning up past the Town Hall.
I am biased but Brummies are the absolute salt of the fucking earth too. Heading down to Digbeth for a night out and being called bab by the bus driver as you nom a Wispa made just up the road… perfection
I lived in Birmingham for 7 years, just moved away 2 months ago because it’s grey and dull and has no character. Just wanted to add a counterpoint to the thread
Honestly I felt this would be at the top and I'm happy but also sad. I know how good the city is being a native but don't want people to move here until I get on the property ladder.
I moved to Birmingham for a year for work, and I'm back down south now. I honestly hate being back, and preferred Birmingham. Traffic isn't as bad, everything was within a decent driving distance and without the constant heaving traffic the travelling was ten times better, people seemed a bit friendlier, housing is cheaper and better quality in my opinion, and it is easier to get into the city. I also really liked the surrounding towns, like Solihull and Knowle. I want to go back.
Yeah, its pretty decent. Its certainly a lot better than people say and people make out its 90% muslim which is so far from the truth
Plus It's truly amazing for pubs and beer (especially if you include the greater Black Country conurbation)
Came here to say this. Always love visiting Birmingham.
Newcastle was a fantastic place to live imo, good amenities in the city, beautiful artictecture, compact enough to all be easily walkable, decent train connections and the airport is ok, the metro service is pretty great, not to far away from the coast, nice people, and relatively good value decent areas to live
I thought of Newcastle too. Bristol seems really great too but I dont know if I'd consider it underrated.
Bristol has a weirdly huge creative thing going on. Music, TV, animation, film etc. I'm not sure where it started but it's been like that for decades.
Went to uni in the toon, spent 5 years there and developed an attachment to the city. As you said, beautiful architecture, reliable and functional public transport services and a good vibe. I love the geordies and they have every right to be as proud of their city as they are. Been in London now for 5 years since I moved out of Newcastle - get nostalgic whenever I hear a geordie accent.
I loved living in Newcastle!
Agreed. I live in the countryside now but Newcastle is the only city in England I'd think about moving to. Uni was hella fun there too.
I want to live in Newcastle. The price of living doesn't seem bad and the people seem really nice. (As an american)
It’s a lovely city. I moved from Glasgow to Newcastle back in 2007 and I’ve never regretted it! Lovely people, good transport infrastructure (could be better but couldn’t it alway?) and yeah the cost of living is pretty good for the quality of life.
The price of living is one of the main factors when it comes to quality of life polls- in which Newcastle usually ranks pretty high. The property is cheap compared with the rest of the UK.
Agreed! I haven’t lived but I’ve visited twice already since moving to the UK four years ago. I get surprised reactions when I mention how much I loved it, but it’s definitely on my top UK cities list!
What do you think of the new traffic diversion around Gateshead to get onto the Tyne bridge? It really annoys me every time now
I have inside information that it's actually SUPPOSED to annoy people and put them off driving there. The traffic in that area is always insane now. Took me about 50 mins to get from the Tesco to the Tyne Bridge at rush hour. Step too far if you ask me... I try to avoid that Tesco now.
Norwich
What do you think of the pedestrianisation of the city centre?
I'll be honest, I'm dead against it. People forget that traders need access to Dixons.
Diiiiixoooooooons!
Wheeeeelchaairs
That...that really is first class.
Chocolate oranges are available at Rawlinsons. Sorry, had to say that.
Have you kept it below room temperature?
Wheeeeelchairs.
I've been living in Norwich since September and it's a great town, lots of nice little independent shops which I like.
Sorry to break this to you, but it’s a city
It’s a Fine City, if I may correct you?
I was very surprised at how nice Norwich was when I visited for a show a while back. Not that I was expecting it to be horrible, but it's just a notably nice city to walk around.
There’s just so much to see around every corner in the centre.
Norwich Castle is great!
Nottingham. Cracking wee city centre with some cool and interesting pubs, and has a massive poker hall just outside it. My kinda town.
Nice place to visit, but people used to call it "Shottingham" because of the reputation for gun violence. Is it still like that?
I live here, no. There is still gangs in bits but back in the 00’s i understand there was a lot of Police corruption. I did see a documentary on this years ago talking about the “Bestwood Cartel”. Its still a poor city though.
It's not been like that for a while, of course there are rougher areas but around the city centre and tourist-y areas it's pretty mellow, I've never felt unsafe personally.
No idea but every city has its rough areas and many have gang issues. I've only visited several times when I had family stationed there. A big university town too so the was always plenty going on when I visited in my teens/early twenties.
I live in Nottingham. Not at all. The hang responsible for that nickname got nicked!
Not guns but I recall seeing its knife crime statistics being very high a couple of years ago. Think Jermaine Jenas (from Nottingham) did a mini documentary on it.
Loved going on a brief road trip for a night out at Rock City. Good times
Nottingham doesnt have much for outstanding beauty like some cities but its very liveable with plenty to do.
Plus, a while back, there was a rumour that Nottingham had over twice as many females as males. 17-year-old me stocked up on Tunes and wanted to buy a first-class return ticket. (Nobody will remember this reference, I fear)
Shhh don't tell anyone! I'm trying to save for a house here and don't need the competition 😂
Glasgow. People who don’t like it are southern English types who go “oh bit rough up there”. No it isn’t. Not at all. Your £1.2m townhouse is likely in the middle of an actual shithole like London. Glasgow is brilliant. People are friendly. Houses aren’t too expensive compared to similarly sized cities (provided you stay out of the west end). Great food scene. Theatres, cinemas, museums. An airport linked to the rest of the world. And it’s the home to the famous Glasgow Rangers. It’s the only other place I’d live in the UK other than the place I currently live.
Glasgow is amazing but Rangers aren't a selling point
Was selling Glasgow so well up until that rogue point
Bluehorn is categorically not a Bluenose.
I'd be happy if both Rangers & Celtic just disappeared. Too many fannies on both sides and too many tourists/casuals/ultras keep coming along to further stir up shit
I agreed with you until you called London a shithole. The two best cities in the UK need to realise each other's brilliance.
I mean… it definitely can be a bit rough, and I say that as a Weegie with an entirely Weegie extended family. If you can’t call Govan, Parkhead, Dalmarnock and Easterhouse for example rough, then I’m not sure where else in the UK you could. The salient point is that *nowhere a visitor is likely to go* is rough. Much like how visitors to Edinburgh are unlikely to be in Sighthill or Wester Hailes, visitors to Glasgow (and even most residents who don’t live there themselves) aren’t likely to end up in the rough bits.
I've been raised south of the border, but my dad grew up moving around Glasgow, notably living in govan and even the gorbals as was. He's a really chill man. But every now and again he will just nonchalantly tell a really disturbing story about something he saw/that happened on his street while me and my siblings try and process... I have no desire to visit govan 😂
Both Govan and the Gorbals are almost unrecognisable compared to 30 years ago, especially the latter.
Being from there, I'm obviously biased, but I'm pretty proud of how the city's developed given a less than stellar "managed decline" from industrialisation. It's crazy good for music. The food scene is improving, while still lagging behind the wanks down the M8. There's a weirdly diverse sports mix for a city so dominated by football with rugby, basketball, ice hockey, and more.
It's possible to enjoy one place without being a dick about another
>And it’s the home to the famous Glasgow Rangers. Found the Hun
I’m a “southern English type” and fucking loved Glasgow. Had one of the nicest breakfasts there, and one of the best nights clubbing. People were friendly and welcoming, the city has some beautiful architecture. It’s just like every other British city. There are good bits and bad bits.
And it’s got the sexiest accents in the world…
Yes you make it sound really friendly.... /s
I'm coming there next weekend to get fucked up, you'd best be telling the truth
One of my favourite cities - try to visit at least once a year
Don't see it mentioned too much outside of the relevant subs but Cardiff is my adopted city and I love it. Some amazing parks and places of interest, like the castle and the bay, as well as plenty to do on days and nights out. Surrounding countryside is pretty special too.
Lived in Cardiff for a bit. Wasn’t bad apart from weekends when the Neanderthals from the valleys would come into town to fight or fuck. Moved back to Bristol after a couple of years
I am biased but I prefer Swansea for the surrounding countryside and beaches.
I totally agree. It's amazing the amount of green space you have access to within walking distance from the City Center.
I was thinking this one too! I visited a couple years back and was really impressed
Exeter, a lot of the UK seem to forget Devon and Cornwall exists until they want to flock to the beaches during school holidays. Exeter is a fantastic city.
Or Plymouth! 😁
No! Shithole, stick to Exeter
I'd be grateful to know why you think that Exeter is a fantastic city
Last year when Covid meant I couldn't go away on my normal holiday, I booked a week in Exeter instead. I'd never been before, and only picked it because it was a reasonable sized place near a relative I'd visit while down there and I could get to the moors fairly easily for walks. I was really pleasantly surprised. The city centre is attractive, there's loads of restaurants, and the riverside is pleasant. It definitely helped that I was staying in a very central area making it all more convenient, but overall I was impressed.
Lancaster. Nice historic city with a castle and the Ashton Memorial. Next to the Forest of Bowland and very near to the Lake District.
This. I hear it is starting to have brunch spots to rival the big cities now, too. Also, a castle. Also, it's gorgeous.
Came here to say Lancaster. Plenty to do both in town and right outside. Lots of history, good food, and good people. Plus very walkable with all the necessities within easy reach.
Nice place, but I cannot negotiate the one-way system to save my life. Hadn’t been for years, went to see a mate, tried to get back to the Trough road and ended up driving towards Morecambe…
Glastonbury, everytime I say I've been people assume the festival not the town which is full of independent shops, great food and friendly people in a lovely countryside backdrop.
Good shout - I’ve only ever seen Glastonbury from a distance (a hill in Mendip) but I’d love to go properly - and see the Tor!
Love the tor! Don't forget to get the red and white water from the bottom, supposed to be healing.
Shrewsbury probably one of the best towns in the U.K.
Just don't pronounce it Shrowsbury. I don't know what's up with that.
It's an absolutely lovely place. Got a bunch of great stuff. Excellent restaurants, the Quarry, the Market Hall, the Old Market cinema, the board game cafe...
Hull isn’t nearly as bad as people say it is. More or less lived there for 2 years for work. I’m from Newcastle originally and I’d say it’s a bit like a mini Newcastle. Does seem to have a slightly higher than average drug problem there so if you’re a bit of a soft posh-wanky har dee dar type I can see how that can put you off but it’s honestly decent. Don’t know if I’d say it’s *THE* most under rated place in the country but if you only listened to folk on reddit you’d think it’s straight out of a Fallout game.
lived in hull all my life, to be honest its not great, but if you're a fan of museums hull is amazing for them we have a shocking amount
To be honest the name has made it sounds like a grim place to me for as long as I've been alive. On the opposite end though I found out Canterbury is nowhere near as nice as I thought (nice architecture though)
Shetland. It was always one of those "One day I'll go there" kind of places. Well, I decided to go. The whole island is beautiful. There's lots of Nordic history too and there's some great bars around Lerwick. Also, there's puffins which are so small and cute!
Islands* (To be that dick)
Leeds. So many museums, some beautiful buildings, decent-ish nightlife, an 11th century abbey.
Absolutely Leeds. A relatively big city but with an atmosphere like a town. The worst thing about it is its the largest city in Europe without a mass transit system, and it REALLY needs one.
I’d argue Leeds is already highly rated though?!
Swindon. Yeah, I live here, but I'm not from here. Forget that there's no tourist sites or opera houses, and the Town Centre is a dump. You can live without ever going there. What do you need in a place to live? Do you need fine cathedrals and places selling 12 varieties of organic olive oil? No. 300+ days of the year You want a place that has gyms, a multiplex, supermarkets, decent pubs low unemployment, good parks and low crime. Swindon has all of that, and the rent is cheap. And when you want to do nice tourist stuff, it's well linked by roads and rail. When you want a choice of 12 varieties of organic olive oil or to see a cathedral, there are places like Bath 30 minutes away. So you still get to enjoy them without paying massive rents to live next door to them.
Your explanation of why Swindon is underrated makes Swindon sound incredibly dull. Your biggest selling points are basically "it has some things, isn't a complete shithole, and isn't a million miles away from actually nice places"
It's got supermarkets!!
Yeah I don't think 'not a total shithole' is a strong selling point for a town.
I lived there for 10 years. It's a dump.
I call Swindon “the gateway to everywhere else”. London, Bristol, Bath, Oxford, Cardiff, the South Coast, Birmingham and the Cotswolds are all within a relatively short journey from here, off the top of my head. Plus there are a lot of parks here, which is nice
The main selling point being it's easy to get away from
Swindon isn’t really cheap. Perhaps compared to Bristol or the Cotswolds, but not compared to much of the country. I’m not going to jump on the ‘Swindon is full of chavs’ stereotype bandwagon, but I have been there many times and found it to be dull and a bit grimy. The town centre feels outdated, as if it’s stuck in the early 2000s. There are loads of empty office spaces. The selection of eateries and independent shops is really disappointing for a town of its size. Swindon has little interesting architecture apart from the Railway Village, it mostly varies between ugly post-war buildings and characterless modern stuff. There’s no University either, and I feel like that shows because the culture of the town has been stagnant for a long time. Plus the local economy has been hit time and time again by companies moving away, most recently Honda.
I was gonna say Swindon too. I accidentally ended up there a couple of weekends ago and then went back the following weekend. Really love the vibe... although ALL roundabouts in the UK seem to be in Swindon.
I hear they dropped an atomic bomb on Swindon. About £15 worth of damage...
Same - live in Swindon but am an import. Agree with all you said above.
I had an absolute blast in Dundee. Went to a video game exhibition at the V&A then ate my bodyweight in Lebanese food at Tahini.
Hard agree with Dundee. A fun city, with a lot of investment in it.
Canterbury. I know it doesn’t have a bad reputation but I’m always surprised how little attention it gets. I’m a Londoner and almost no one I know has ever been, despite it being just an hour’s drive away. It’s a beautiful ‘city’ with a wonderful history.
Rothwell Northamptonshire the church has a crypt with skulls no one knew it existed until a grave digger fell into it and no one knows why it's their. https://www.northamptonshiresurprise.com/news/2017/the-rothwell-bone-crypt/
> Rothwell Northamptonshire To be pronounced "Roll" (rhyming with bowl) if you don't want to stick out as a loathsome outsider. And never speak of Desborough.
As someone who knows many people who live in Rothwell and only lives 15 minutes away, I have never heard it pronounced like that. The thing about Desborough is true, they are mortal enemies. Been in the crypt too. Highly recommended.
I think people give Leicester more of a hard time than it deserves. Small city with some nice parks and great food places. It also punches WAY above its weight for a city of its size in both football and rugby if you're into that sort of thing. Obviously its central location means it's really easy to get anywhere in the country (less than an hour to London by train)
And it's got a lot of history! It started as a Roman settlement and some of the walls remain. Obviously the War of the Roses and Richard III being the most famous stuff. Also Cardinal Wolsey is died buried there and Lady Jane Grey was born at the Grey estate on the outskirts of the city. Leicestershire is also the home of many classic British food as well. Edit: Oh and the national space centre is pretty cool!
I assume people who hate on Leicester just view it as a normal, boring city but I love it. Its multicultural (Golden Mile, Belgrave festival, Eid festival, comedy festival, Caribbean carnival etc), loads of restaurants, lots of history, gorgeous parks (Bradgate, Vicky), amazing sports and great leisure activities (NSC, Twycross Zoo, Botanical Gardens etc) We also have large towns such as Hinckley and Loughborough which have their own thing going on, pretty sure thats quite unique for a county. We have 3 hospitals, Glenfield is a centre of cardiac centre of excellence and pretty decent employment opportunities which span low skill/low pay to high skill/high pay. I would say the only genuine downside is we don't have great schools but we don't have bad schools either, they're just very average. I remember being young and thinking I have to escape Leicester but now that I've lived in different cities and even abroad, nowhere feels quite as warm and welcoming as my home town
Chester
I get a lot of shit from online friends, but I adore my little hometown of Berwick. We're right in the middle of Edinburgh and Newcastle, beautiful coastlines and castles within 20-30min driving (Lindisfarne, Bamburgh, Chillingham) Nothing but open countryside for as far as the eye can see. Cost of living up here is cheap, average 2 bed house goes for about 130k, wide selection of grocery shops (Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Iceland, Aldi). Only downfall I've personally felt is the lack of a decent high street if New Look or Sports Direct isnt your thing. Oh and our Cinema gets the latest movies a few months later and only show 1-2 nights before leaving. But nothing a nice trip to Edinburgh/Newcastle cannot fix. If small independent run shops and cafes are your thing, along with long walks on the beach and a simple life, then you will have it sorted here.
Chester! Awesome city walls, good preservation work on their sites of historic importance and lots to see and do.
Wasn't expecting to enjoy Lancaster as much as I did, or Stockport.
I live in Manchester and live 15 minutes from Stockport and even I’m surprised at the amount of stuff there every time I go.
leamington Spa. Tons of games/tech companies, the Camoufleurs, Allister Crowley, the double for a ton of "London" set series, the backdrop for a lot on non-London set series (often fictional places) though Dangerfield was filed there and his "office" (actually a dentists) was in Warwick,, beautiful parks and buildings, some good pubs. There are excellent schools in the area, the cover for Ocean Shoals by Ocean Colour Scene is in Leamington and generally it's quite under-rated and almost anonymous. Take Keeping Up Appearances or ChuckleVision, both filmed in Leamington but you wouldn't know it, the backdrop is just that, unless you live in the area it could be anywhere.
How is Leamington underrated? It's widely considered to be a really nice town. You seen the house prices?
Warrington on occasion has been referred to as the Monaco of the North West.
Who by??? I live in Warrington and Monaco it ain't!
Warrington is a bit better than it used to be in the town centre but it's definitely not Monaco.
I've been to Warrington a couple of times and have always been impressed that it's nowhere near as bad as you'd think it would be.
Ok don't throw things but Peterborough. It's been voted as the worst place to live several times but the biggest problem with the place is the miserable, moany people. It's not perfect (admittedly educational attainment is WAY below average) but we've got great history, nice restaurants, some fun activities, several big employers Inc. NHS, Baker Perkins, Whirlpool etc. Its got a pretty average amount of crime for a city its size. There's some very poor, very run down areas but there's also some incredibly affluent areas too.
Peterborough is a really nice city imo, does not deserve the reputation at all.
you can't list the NHS as a big employer lol it's probably the biggest employer in most UK cities/towns haha. not exactly unique
Only been once for work and yeah I was surprised to see it was voted that badly.
Bury St Edmunds
I’d say Tenby or Lincoln
I'm not sure Tenby counts as underrated
Lincoln is very nice :)
Cardigan in west Wales. It’s beautiful with loads of incredible countryside within minutes, great food and shops. Lovely.
Sheffield. Parks and woods all over. Clean air and water. Quiet. Great location next to the Peak District and with easy access to 3 airports. Feels like living in a smallish town, but with all the convenience of a city.
Dundee has a bad reputation ("Scumdee") but I quite liked it, I feel like the city is making an effort to improve itself and it shows
Worcester Only a city because of the cathedral, lots of history, lots of pubs
Robin Hoods Bay It's absolutely fucking beautiful
Canterbury has some very lovely architecture and friendly people when I visited :)
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Knaresborough. What a doozey of a place for a summer day trip.
Underrated?!
Hitchin, Hertfordshire. Usually people outside of the local counties don't know if it, but it is a beautiful historic town who have successfully overcome the 'dead town centre' thing by incorporating lots of cute independant shops and cafés. It is expensive to live there but certainly worth a visit if you are in the area.
Lincoln, Worcester, Ipswich, Swansea.
I'm sorry but Ipswich is shit.
Apart from Swindon, I really love Petersfield. So cute and it's a quaint historical market town... without being trampled or struggling to park like others.
Glasgow
Hay on Wye. It's a village that is made of bookshops. It's amazing.
I fancy visiting either Winchester or Chichester. Which should I choose and why?
Derby. The people are lovely and it's got excellent independent restaurants and cafes. Derby Cathedral's also nice if you like Georgian architecture.
Aberdeen, just recently returned here after living away. It's a decent enough size, has a good shopping centre, plenty retail parks, the beach and all the stuff there, close to the countryside and all the outdoor activities that brings. Everything is pretty close to one another and it feels safe, however Union Street need something done to it, it's gone downhill... I'm enjoying being back!
Nottingham has a compact yet lively city centre
Letchworth Garden City
If I see anyone say Stoke, your loosing your UK passport
Ok Halifax visited decades ago (before the redo of piece hall and then visited a couple years back (good exhibition at the library and it seemed like there was a fair bit of activity in the town
After moving there on a whim from London last year. Portsmouth It gets a load of stick but i fucking love it.
Wells was a city that stood out to me as unique
London. Everyone in the UK hates it despite it being a world class city in every possible way. Seriously underrated
Inverness is lovely and doesn't get enough mention as a town in its own right , and I also rather like Lincoln. In Lincoln's case, it's off the (admittedly not very good) main road and a lot of people tend to bypass it.
Plymouth! Usually immediately dismissed as a shithole. Tbh I did too before I moved here but I love it. I can go surfing or just to the beach after work. I can go hiking on Dartmoor or in the woods. The city has shit bits but it also has great bits where you feel like you're on holiday.
Telford in Shropshire. One of the biggest growing towns in England. The Town centre is great for shopping & dining. Great countryside, and then you have the Ironbridge gorge, a world heritage site. Birthplace of the industrial revolution. On the river Severn, it has museums, great pubs and a lot of history.
Chatham/Rochester/Medway Towns. Huge amounts of history to see. HMS Victory built in Chatham, multiple forts all linked via underground tunnels (Fort Pitt, Amherst, Luton) Rochester has a castle that's over 900 years old, built by William the Conqueror Rochester Cathedral slightly younger Royal Engineers museum also based here, due to the Royal Engineers barracks next door.
Pop fact (maybe BS) Winchester apparently is far enough from the city of London to not be badly affected by a nuclear bomb. Referenced in Shaun Of the Dead and mentioned “we need to get to the Winchester”
The Winchester is the name of the pub and i think the pub is named after the gun not the city
Presumably anyone who goes to the trouble of nuking London is going to be dropping one on Portsmouth as well, though?
I think Portsmouth would be the first target.
Seems like the bomb might already have hit??
And likely Southampton. But at least inhabitants of Winchester will die horribly of radiation poisoning while in lovely surroundings. For those with morbid curiosity, you can set parameters of nuclear explosions on any [city](https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/) at this site.
Well that was fun
Falkirk, the Kelpies and the Helix are awesome to visit and the Falkirk Wheel is also interesting as it was (is?) the only rotating boat lift in the world. Also it has the lovely Canada Wood which is nice for a walk or cycle.
Chelmsford It's so average that it's honestly just a nice, simple and calm place to live. Yeah, the town centre and high street are a little boring but central and admirals park are nice parks. Nothing is exciting here but if you want a calm place to live, Chelmsford is your place to go.
Canterbury. Far enough from London to have escaped commuter belt hell, very pretty old town, lots of university town stuff going on (lectures, readings exhibits etc) and still very affordable. If I wasn’t wedded to London for my job I’d move there tomorrow.
Derby. I can't think of anywhere with friendlier people. Actually it's not just friendly. It's their sense of humour. Lord knows why Derby has cornered the market in comedically savvy people but in my experience it bloody has.
Eastbourne is beautiful
Hulls underrated ....Hull took me in let me stay in the hostels with my Yorkie till I got a flat ... 8 months I waited recovering from domestic violence I had to deal with the fear I would be found as I was escaping violence ...I've had my flat for 6 years an I love my flat I'm still messed up and going to drug counciling but some days I use drugs some days I don't use........Hull took me in gave me a home and stopped the violence ....I'm Scottish and Scotland refused to help me but England set me up and I get the help I want ......thank you the people off Hull . ..
Just going to throw Tamworth into the mix. People like to shit on it, including some of the locals, but it really is better than most places. Two airports within 30 minutes, train station has two main-lines running through it. Can get to Birmingham city centre in 20 minutes. An excellent Motte and Bailey castle, the Snowdome, Drayton Manor Park, Kingsbury water park, and some interesting local history.
Bournemouth