General Chat

This is absolutely risible...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-22027322

Methinks that certain Londoners are getting worried about losing culture etc (such as the BBC) to places that are more deserving.

It is about time that Londoners realise they are not the centre of the universe and live in a pretty horrid place

While the claim that Croydon could viably call itself the Lake District as it has two lakes might be a bit silly, I don't see that a VERY small group of 'Londoners' is representative of Londoners as a whole?

I love London, I don't agree it is a horrid place...parts of it are, Croydon wouldn't be my destination of choice but it doesn't represent the whole.

Didn't understand the point of that, was the piece written by a 10 year old?

I have absolutely zero interest as it seems to be a '15 minutes of fame' jobbie :-S

Errol it's 4 people out of over 8 million. I really couldn't get worked up over it or judge the rest of those who live in London either.

Bah Bah ErrolSheep


This Londoner knows we are the cultural centre, not the centre of the universe of course, but certainly not a horrid place to live ! :-P

I didn't actually say that it was ALL Londoners lol

My post was meant in the same way in which the "article" was written

from the original article in the Telegraph

"Mr Bone acknowledged that the letter had been sent to Cumbria Tourism “with a wry smile” in a bid to attract more visitors.
The SNTB was formed by three friends in a pub last year, with the aim of organising a series of walks and talks around the area.
They want the South Norwood Lake renamed the Conan Doyle Lake after the Sherlock Holmes author who reputedly used to play cricket by the lake between 1891 and 1894."

I think I would much prefer the genuine "lakes" to London (and particularly that part of London) any day but yes - it seems like a 15 minutes scenario

I have heard worse suggestions by groups of people in pubs :-(

And I am sure any attempt to make Croydon more appealing would mean they have their work cut out, but then I'm N London so biased :-P

I cant agree that London is horrid, my heart will always be here but do sometimes wish to be elsewhere :-D

Lolly I have very strong ties to London but cannot help feeling that it has largely become a horrid place - central London and tourist attractions are ok but once you get out of the cash attracting areas certain parts are pretty horrid

I was born and brought up in London and I think it's the greatest city in the world with the greatest variety of culture there is from its pubs and parks to its galleries and great buildings and everything in between. It's full of the world, past and present and I love it even though I no longer live there. Very silly to blame Londoners for a few jokers from Surrey!

I don't think anyone blamed them.
My original post said who do THESE Londoners think they are

Strangely Errol it is the exact opposite for me It is the cash attracting areas...Oxford St, tourist haunts that I loathe the most.

Coming into London especially from the South is pretty soul destroying with run down areas and it always goes through my mind what on earth do visitors think when they see the run down shopping precincts and shuttered shops

Same in parts of North London but overall we have some lovely open spaces and tree lined streets which is not the norm for most major citys

Bah Bah again Errol !

You have used the 'horrid' word again !

Please explain the areas of London that you consider are not the 'cash attracting areas' :-S

Believe you me I could point to you many places of interest that are free in London, not the usual 'central and tourist attractions'.

Whatever your ties are with London you obviously really don't know much about this city. :-(

The fact that London contributes around 70% of our gross GDP might explain why Londoners are the centre of our universe.

what is wrong with the word horrid?
Come on - some parts are pretty horrid.
I agree Inspector but that is slowly changing as we see new emerging areas such as Manchester which have attracted massive inward investment.
However, this was intended to be a lighthearted thread based on the ludicrous statemenst made on the link in the original post and not a debate about whether London "is good" lol

Well said Jo :-D

I spend many a day in London going places, and the only thing I need to use money for is my food, and I suppose if I took a packed lunch, I wouldn't need to get my purse out :-D

The wonderful museums, and art galleries are FREE, Covent Garden has entertainment all day, that's FREE, smaller historical churches are FREE to go in, and often have something going on. There are also a lot of concerts that are FREE, and of course just wandering around, to see the sights, and buildings is FREE


There are lots of sites telling you what's going on any particular day, all FREE

I often get a Travelodge for £20.00 if I want to stay the night.

I don't know any other place that is nearby that has so many events going on that are all FREE. :-D

And as a big bonus there's also those lovely Londoners, who are salt of the earth :-D

Lynda I could not agree more but get away from the sights and sites and there are some pretty awful places - like many cities

Yes, there are pretty awful places, been there seen them have the tee-shirt, to boot, but fact is London contributes around 70% of our gross GDP. and Manchester's contribution is?

to say that London contributes 70 per cent of the GDP is slightly misleading.
Companies based in London may well contribute such a figure but that is purely because head offices have traditionally been based there. Is that sum actually and genuinely totally generated in London? I would doubt that because it does not have the manufacturing or production base.