Hillingdon, the long West London borough stretching from Heathrow to leafy Northwood and Harefield, including Boris Johnson’s former constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, came dead last. A bleak 218th in the entire country, behind Oldham, Greater Manchester (206th), Luton, Bedfordshire (211th), and even the infamous Slough, Berkshire (217th).
Trying to work out the happiest or “best” place to live is a curiously British pastime, and it is, almost invariably, nonsense. I should know. I grew up in South Ribble, Lancashire, which in 2017 was named by Channel 4 as the best place to live in the UK. It is a wonderful place and somewhere I’m immensely proud to be from, with beautiful countryside, delightful people, and rich history. It also has areas that suffer from deprivation, crime and underdevelopment.
All this to say, we should be careful before we deride Hillingdon as the UK’s most miserable spot. There is certainly joy to be found in the borough for those who know where to look.
Open countryside, plus the Tube
“From here in Ruislip you can walk to open countryside, all the way to Birmingham if you want to, but we’re also on the London Underground, so you can get to the centre of the capital within an hour,” enthuses retired children’s book author, Jackie Marchant, out for a walk around the lido with her husband, Andrew, and their dog, Loki.
Source link : https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/finding-happiness-in-hillingdon-britains-miserable-town/
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Publish date : 2023-12-12 03:00:00
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