Pros and cons of living in London

chewmylegoff

Generali wrote: »

I never saw a bar brawl in any part of London in 20 years of living there.

I believe that they go on in the west end amongst the kids coming in from commuter towns but I never saw one despite working in pubs in some of the rougher bits of South London.

Same. I have been in London since 1997 and the only fights I have seen in that time were during weekend trips to Leeds and Newcastle.

The best thing about living in London is that it isn't Leeds or Newcastle. Newcastle is the friendliest city in the world according to its inhabitants and they are prepared to punch you really quite hard in the middle of your face if you don't agree with them.

Generali

chewmylegoff wrote: »

Same. I have been in London since 1997 and the only fights I have seen in that time were during weekend trips to Leeds and Newcastle.

The best thing about living in London is that it isn't Leeds or Newcastle. Newcastle is the friendliest city in the world according to its inhabitants and they are prepared to punch you really quite hard in the middle of your face if you don't agree with them.

Londoners just don't fight in pubs IME.

Tiglath

I've only seen trouble in London twice - the riots a couple of summers ago, and the Broadwater Farm riots in the 80s. I've personally never had a problem, and I've done my fair share of seedy nightbuses. As someone has said, the trouble that there is tends to be gang-based and the rest of us just don't feature on their radar. Might be different in dodgier areas, but I never had any issues even in places like Brixton.

Generali

Tiglath wrote: »

I've only seen trouble in London twice - the riots a couple of summers ago, and the Broadwater Farm riots in the 80s. I've personally never had a problem, and I've done my fair share of seedy nightbuses. As someone has said, the trouble that there is tends to be gang-based and the rest of us just don't feature on their radar. Might be different in dodgier areas, but I never had any issues even in places like Brixton.

I used to live in West Norwood, arguably the rough end of Brixton although not as bad as Loughborough Junction, and never saw a bar fight or any drunken fighting.

I grew up in a very leafy part of Surrey and had plenty of people try to start a fight with me in a pub and outside too at kicking out time. One person waited 2 hours outside a pub for me to come out because he wanted to give me a kicking! That was in a small and very pretty Surrey village.

I kinda forgot people did that stuff after living in London for a while. A bloke in Henley(!) said the classic line, "Did you spill my pint?" and my response was a rather distracted, "Oh sorry mate". In his mind that was then a perfect justification for expecting me to go out to the car park to 'sort things out'. Richardhead,

the_flying_pig

Aye, say what you like about the gangs, but, just like Ronnie and Reggie back in the day, they pretty much only kill 'their own'.

London scumbags in the main don't go to pubs. Not the younger ones anyway. Maybe it's the price of a pint?

Generali

the_flying_pig wrote: »

Aye, say what you like about the gangs, but, just like Ronnie and Reggie back in the day, they pretty much only kill 'their own'.

London scumbags in the main don't go to pubs. Not the younger ones anyway. Maybe it's the price of a pint?

Yeah, in the couple of years I was in West Norwood there was a bloke (drug dealer) shot outside the station. There was also a bloke (drug dealer) beaten to death with a hammer.

That was 20 years back when people still went to pubs.

My theory back then was Londoners don't fight because they don't know each other. You don't want to punch someone only to find out he's a driver for the Richardsons or something.

115K

I've seen fights in pubs, bars, clubs and on the streets in London many times and I'm a woman, not sure how people have managed to avoid seeing fights break out in London.:p:D

I still like many aspects of London though.:)

Generali

115K wrote: »

I've seen fights in pubs, bars, clubs and on the streets in London many times and I'm a woman, not sure how people have managed to avoid seeing fights break out in London.:p:D

I still like many aspects of London though.:)

Really? I'm quite the pub goer and really never saw or even heard of anything apart from those dreadful places full of people from the Boondocks.