Goodbye London, Hello Yorkshire

Having lived in London for just over 30 years, it is the place I called home. I love London for its energy, diversity and culture. It is a place where there is such a mix of cultures that you can be pretty much anything you like and be "normal" - it takes a lot of effort to stand out in London. And everyone just goes along with this and for the most part people seem to rub along pretty well. I always felt in London that at any moment I might come across something extraordinary because sometimes I did.

People tell you that other cities are like London (Bristol and Brighton are often mentioned) - this is a lie. Nowhere in the British Isles is remotely like London. Other places are great in their way, have culture, have nice parks blah blah, but frankly this leaves them still a million miles off the amazing vibrancy of the captial. So why leave it if it's so damned great?

Perhaps it's an age thing (how it pains me to admit that). I talked about leaving London for a good 15 years before I did but it was always something I saw as being in the future when the time was right, I was always having too much fun to leave the party. Well in the summer of 2014 I spent a week in silent and solitary retreat in Devon at The Sharpham Barn Retreat Centre looking out at trees - just trees - and knew the time had come. I was ready to leave London . Fortunately my husband was happy with the timing of it all and a year later we are living in "God's own country" as the locals refer to Yorkshire. Now although this is a massive change, I do have links to the area - sort of. I went to Leeds university (1978-82) and I grew up in Darlington - about 5 miles north of the Yorkshire border in County Durham. I have some friends and some family here. We chose to move to an area I didn't really know which is Gargrave - a few miles west of Skipton. Having checked out various options, Skipton/Gargrave won out because it is just gorgeous. Every time we get in the car and drive anywhere I am struck by how beautiful the countryside is. When we go for a walk it is the same, and when I catch the train from Leeds to Gargrave I delight in the way the countryside just gets more and more lovely as you head towards Skipton. I really didn't know if I would miss London or not - well how can you? And it feels a little disloyal to admit that I simply don't miss it one bit. I adore Gargrave, Skipton, Ilkley, Grassington, Settle and pretty much everywhere else. Yes I will admit that Bradford is not a truly beautiful city and I am sure there are many places which are similarly lacking in charm but heck I was never a fan of New Cross either and I lived just down the road from it for 20 of those 30 years. People keep telling me that it takes forever for Yorkshire folk to accept an incomer and that they are dour and tight fisted. Well I can't comment on their stinginess but I can say that people have been very friendly. When anyone does work of any kind for you they really do go the extra mile to do a good job. Perhaps work is harder to come by here, or reputation matters more but there is definitely a feeling of greater dedication to getting the job done, and done well.

Of course I always play up my northern credentials, well I was born and brought up north of here and my parentage is pure geordie on one side. I can sing The Lambton Worm, Cushie Butterfield and the Blaydon Races with the best of them ( I can hear my husband pleading with me not to go there).

So just four months into my Yorkshire adventure I am in love. I haven't had to deal with a tough winter yet out in the sticks and well we'll see how that is when it comes. I go back to London once a month for a week at a time as my studio is still at Cockpit Arts in Deptford. It is great to see the people there and other friends. I haven't made friends here yet, that will happen but will take time, but do I regret moving in any way at all? Ha, ha - what do you think?



PS: Downside to living here - we get massive spiders in the house all the time - I have a special system (well a plastic box and piece of card) always to hand to eject them. It's a small price to pay . . .