11 reasons why I will never live in London, England

As a foreigner living in England, most people assume I live in London - but in reality, it's never been my city. Here's 11 reasons why I will never live in London, England!

London is an incredible place and it's truly special - but that doesn't mean we're all cutout to live there. Check my out cons to living in London and why I'll always be a small English village kind of foreigner.

FOLLOW THE ADVENTURE

Hey! I'm Alanna - a twenty-something documenting my life as a Canadian living in England.

I share the ups and downs of an expat living abroad and what it's really like living in the UK. It's not always easy, but there's been so many wonderful experiences, too. I post a Youtube video every Tuesday and an additional video every Saturday on my Patreon account. I also livestream every Wednesday and Sunday at 6:30pm GMT on Twitch.

Alanna x

[adamclark]

Every time i visit London i feel the vibrancy and the buzz of the city and it is a special feeling. Every time i leave London i feel the sense of relief and peace of getting out.

[DeannaAllison]

As an English person who used to live and work in London, I can tell you I was very pleased to leave it behind. Most of the points in this video match my own experience. I really hated living there but certainly I don't hate the city itself and I'm very happy to visit for a day. For anybody thinking of living in London, this video is well worth watching!

[bluepeter]

I am a born Londoner and have lived here most of my life and I agree with all that you have said.
I would add another reason for not moving to London.
As with most great metropolis it attracts the most ruthless and selfish members of society and many countries from around the globe. It is a tank of piranha.

[SMlFFY]

I find London to be an extremely alienating place, you're right when you say it's not representitive of England at all.

[mrjoneseastend]

I'm a Londoner born and bred and would never consider living in another city, I visited many in the world (including Toronto) and lived in some for short periods. The poor air quality is solely down to motor vehicle pollution and not industry, we don't have those anymore in London. You have to ask yourself, if London is so bad why do so many chose to live here despite it's disadvantages? It's not about money.

[pangolin]

I've lived on the outskirts of London and I wouldn't change it if I could. I live on the literal edge of the city so both Central London and the countryside are 20 min away. Living in Central London isn't for me, but living in a well connected part of Zones 4/5/6 is a much easier pill to swallow. Except the house prices, that's never gonna be easy to swallow :(

[tobytroubs]

I was born in London and worked there for 30 years and I am so glad we got out of there, it's great to visit but that's it .

[leplum]

i can confirm that everything Alanna said was totally sensible and 100% correct,

[sangfroidian]

As a Brit, I lived in central London for 15 years and have now lived in rural Kent for 10 years. I have to say loneliness in the country is FAR more of a problem. In London there's always a large variety of places to go and things to do even when you don't know anyone and lots of people looking for friends/experiences. In the country it's a closed community, there's a pub maybe two if you're lucky and a few people that might talk to a stranger/outsider.

[easytoassemble]

Definitely agree with the grind. I lived in London, and the commute from/to Zone 4 just ended up adding time to my work day. Weekend comes, and you have no inclination to get out and see the sights.

The daily commute / walking distances are surprisingly long. My friend described meeting up for a drink in London, as like travelling from Oxford to the Midlands to have a pint.

[vommir.]

I'm also from Canada and I lived in London for 2 years in Shoreditch. Loved it but also crazy expensive life and can be stressful.

[vommir.]

After two years living there. I am super excited to visit London to see my friends without all the madness that comes with living there ahah!

[oiMarkusv]

That's how you know she's finally a real brit once she realised london doesn't represent the entire uk in any shape or form!😀🎉

[barrowc]

Thanks for the video! I love visiting London but I've never had the urge to live there

[stephenbowen]

Absolutely spot on. I grew up in London, worked in London but now live in beautiful South Gloucestershire. The only reason I go back is to pass through as fast as possible to visit my family in Medway. 🇨🇦🇬🇧

[Henry-ewhw]

I’ve lived in London near enough all my life and every point you said is spot on. I’ll always be a London boy but it takes it toll living there. There was a period wheee I thought I’d never be able to leave and got so fed up. Even now I’m still fed up of London because I live just outside it and it doesn’t really feel too different.

[emeliethomas]

I totally get what you mean. I love London and I have travelled there over 5 times now but I wouldn't want to live there either. Hearing ambulances constantly while I was staying at a hotel made me so sleepy during the day, I saw a girl come into the hotel crying because her phone got stolen from someone who passed her by on a bike and just grabbed it and fled, there's too many people... It's nice for a couple of days but not for longer than that. I live in a village in Belgium and I don't even want to live in the closest city nearby. I love being close to nature but I still live so close to the train station which can take me to Germany, England, France, The Netherlands in only a couple of hours. For me that's good enough. :) I don't comment here often enough but I wanted to let you know that I love your channel! I appreciate your honesty and love your type of humour. :) Have a nice day!

[jasonsmart]

I love london lived there for half my life and miss it. I now live on the coast which I love but I couldnt imagine how dull it would have been living and working locally here when I was younger.

[JoeStunner]

I'm a Londoner and hear a lot of what you've covered said many times now that I live elsewhere (Peterborough). You're right when you say London is like no other place in the UK and that most people who come from other places wouldn't want to live there. I can understand that for the reasons you've given. As many people have said to me, "It's a great place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there."

[Brian-MC]

Great video. Thanks for this. I've had a few up and down moments the last few days but this has really cheered me up. Thanks Alanna cant wait for the next one :)