Interview with a newcomer in London

This week, we’ve caught up with a relative newcomer to London. Chris is 23 and moved to London after university.

Hi Chris, where are you from?
I’m from York.

How long ago did you move to London?
About ten months ago – I finished at uni last May and then chilled out for a bit, went travelling to South America for a month and then thought I’d better get on with finding a job!

Why did you decide to move to London?
I had a great time at uni in Liverpool, it’s a great city, but about half way through our final year, me and my mates realised that no-one who we were mates with was really going to carry on living there and the general consensus was that we’d move to London because that’s where most of the graduate jobs seem to be. Also, none of us had lived in London before and it seemed like the most buzzing place to be.

Do you feel that you made the right decision in moving to London?
Definitely. Like I said, no-one was staying back in Liverpool and I didn’t really feel like I wanted to go home to my parents house in York. Living in London is amazing. My friends are all here, I’m single so love meeting new people in bars all over town.
Moove2London says: – see our Dating in London page for great dating tips, London dating locations and online dating site reviews.

How easy was it for you to find work?
I applied for a graduate job towards the end of my final year at uni and after a million interviews, I got accepted in a graduate accountancy position. It took a long time because of the process, but my other friends all managed to get good jobs fairly easily. I’m not saying the recession doesn’t exist but it doesn’t appear to have hit London as hard as other areas of the UK.
Moove2London says: Give yourself a head start in finding a job before you even finish uni, by uploading your C.V for FREE to Monster.

Whereabouts in London do you live and what are your living arrangements?
I live in Balham with 2 other blokes – both from Liverpool University. We live in a large Victorian conversion flat. It doesn’t have a garden but we’re really near the Commons so it was great last summer for playing football and chilling out with a few bevvies.
Moove2London says: Not everyone who moves to London gets to live with their existing friends. If you’re moving to London by yourself, then visit Easyroommate to find a flat and flatmates.

How did you find your accommodation?
We called up a few estate agents and 2 out of the 3 of us came down to London one weekend and crammed about 10 property viewings into one day. The one who didn’t come and look at houses with us got the smallest room. Least effort equals box room!

Are you finding London very expensive to live in?
It’s definitely more expensive than Liverpool and York, but I think part of the problem is that as well as moving to London, we have also stopped being students, so student discounts and deals go out of the window. We’ve calmed down a bit now but when we first arrived there were so many different bars and areas of London to explore so we were out after work most nights a week. Then we realised that we couldn’t really afford to live like this, so tend to try and stick to the weekends now!
Moove2london says: Try reading out Affordable London page for tips on how to stick to a budget in London.

What do you love about London?
There’s so much to do, you can’t get bored. Any band you want to see will play in London. There’s loads of comedy, clubs, bars and girls!

Have you had any negative experiences since your move to London?
No, not really. Obviously I read the papers and am aware of crime and stabbings that have taken place in the capital, but luckily I’ve never witnessed or experienced anything bad myself. Touch wood.

How long do you imagine you’ll stay in London for?
I can’t promise I’ll be here until I’m a pensioner, but I’ve no desire to leave in the next 10 years or so.

10 reasons to move to London

Almost everyone that writes about reasons to move to London, trots out Samuel Johnson’s famous utterings –  ’when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life’ as if that’s enough of an explanation as to why you should move here. They normally forget to mention the second half of the quotation, which is ‘for there is in London, all that life can afford’. Now the reference to affordability may seem laughable in these economic times, but the gist of London having everything is something we support. Let us prove to those of you with doubts exactly why you should move to London. 

Here are 10 compelling reasons ….

1. Meet new people – there are roughly just shy of 8 million people living in London, not including all of those who commute into the capital for work, so think about all the extra people that you could meet. With Londoners from all walks of life and from many, many different nations, you’ll get to meet some real characters from fascinating backgrounds who can open your mind to the world. London is an extremely sociable city and it’s not difficult to make new friends and settle in, so long as you put in the effort.

2. Eat wonderful food – as mentioned above, London welcomes people from many different countries around the world and therefore, the choice of cuisine is immense. If you’re after a curry, head to Brick Lane; for Italian food, go to Little Venice; for something sweet and sour head to Chinatown; for authentic Persian cuisine, walk down the Edgware Road. This list could go on and on and on…. but you get the idea. We’d go so far as to say that you can find traditional food from any nation in London. If you want to test this theory, leave a comment and we’ll try and find something for you. In the meantime, read the Time Out Eating and Drinking guide for amazing eateries to tempt your tastebuds.

3. Culture – if you’re a culture junkie, then London is the place for you. If you want free museums, art galleries with the latest exhibitions, classical music concerts, theatre productions, poetry readings, then you’ll find it all in the capital. From the Tate to some random function room above a pub, there are a huge selection of art forms for those who enjoy the finer things.

4. Entertainment – whilst there are some excellent venue facilities in other parts of the country, such as the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, or the MEN arena in Manchester, you can’t deny that London attracts the biggest and best names, productions, concerts and sporting fixtures. Tickets may be expensive, but there’s always something going on at the O2 or Wembley to entice you! Visit Viagogo for details of current events.

5. Celebrations - London is always up for a party and enjoys to celebrate the traditions of other countries. We celebrate St Patrick’s Day on March 17th, Australia Day on January 26th, the Chinese New Year, Diwali (often in October or November), Notting Hill Carnival on August bank holiday, as well as our own national days such as St George’s Day on the 23rd April, Christmas and an amazing New Year fireworks display overlooking the Thames. Few places in the rest of the UK could boast that they honour all of these dates in the same way that London does, often with parties in Trafalgar Square.

6. Shopping – Again, there are some wonderful shopping centres and locations in the UK in places such as Leeds and Manchester, but every woman dreams of shopping with a limitless credit card in the boutiques and departments stores of London town. Whether you want to head to an area such as Knightsbridge, Oxford Street, Bond Street, Regent Street or Kensington, a department store such as Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Harrods or a shopping centre such as Westfield, then you’ll love living in London (although your wallet might not!)  

7. Lack of boredom – you can’t be bored in London,  you just can’t be. If you are, then you suffer from a lack of imagination, because you can do anything here. If you wake up on a Saturday morning with no plans for the weekend and think to yourself, ‘I really fancy… going bowling, ice-skating, singing karaoke, going for a riverside walk, taking a boat down the Thames, going paintballing, taking  a trip on the London Eye, watching some comedy, listening to some jazz….’ you get the picture, you can do all these things at the drop of a hat in London. For great ideas of things to do in London, read TimeOut’s 1000 Things to do in London.  

8. Public Transport – ok this may seem laughable, because as with all public transport systems, London’s goes wrong. A lot. However, if you don’t drive and can’t afford to take lessons, have failed your 5th driving test, feel that driving is bad for the environment, or just don’t have any desire to hold a driving licence, then the beauty of living in London, is that there is absolutely no need to have a car. Would it be nice to drive to the supermarket? Yes of course. But is it necessary. Definitely not. The majority of Londoners, even those who drive, use public transport to get to and from work.

9. Move to London for work – thousands of you move to London every year, with work cited as the main reason for the relocation. As with all capital cities, there is an extremely broad selection of industries to choose to work for in London. Many (but not all) will choose to have at least a branch office, but more likely, their company HQ in London. Admittedly if you’re looking for a job in agriculture, then this won’t be the place for you, but industries such as journalism, television, investment banking and global relocation (to name a few) have the majority of job opportunities in London. Read our Working in London page for further details.

10. Love – finally, if you’re looking for love, then why not try finding it in London? There are many, many more single people than in your home towns and a whole host of opportunities to meet a potential love interest. You could try online dating with sites such as Lovestruck London or Single Solution, meet people through friends-of-friends or at work, go speed-dating , or try meeting likeminded people at an event that you’ll be interested in, such as a wine-tasting evening. Read our Dating in London article for tips on meeting someone in the capital.

Finding love in London

Finding love in London is very likely with around half of the population aged between 20 and 59 being single. This is a higher ratio than anywhere else in the UK. The reasons for this statistic are bewildering, but it’s quite possible that there’s just too MUCH choice in London, so there are less people marrying their high school sweethearts, than in other parts of the country.

There are lots of ways to find love in London. You could meet a potential partner at work, in a bar, at the gym, taking a class together or even on the ‘tube’ (highly unlikely as tube passengers rarely exchange pleasantries with each other, but you never know!). However, one of the most efficient ways of meeting someone is now through a dating site. Yes, there used to be a considerable stigma attached to people that sought out the help of a dating agency to find love. But times have changed. This is the 21st century and there are now millions of people signing up to several sites at once, selecting a potential mate, then exchanging emails and text messages before embarking on a date.

So, which site to sign up with? That’s a good question. Luckily we’ve reviewed some of the best sites available to singles in London. It’s still worth signing up to as many as possible though, so you can see ALL that the world of London dating has to offer.

For all you drinkers out there, you might be interested in Grapevine Social. Adding a twist to the popular speed-dating format, Grapevine organises wine, champagne and beer tasting events, depending on your preferred tipple. In a group setting, in a late night bar, on a Friday night so there’s no work the next day, you’ll spend the evening learning and tasting your favourite drink, chatting with likeminded single people and hopefully flirting a bit once you’ve had a bit of dutch courage! Tickets are usually between £25-39 and are available by clicking here.

Lovestruck London is aimed at the busy city professional. They are ranked in the Daily Telegraph’s top 6 dating sites and claim to ‘match time-strapped city singles to others who work close by for quick  coffee, lunch or after work dates’. With it’s understanding that dating can be quite time-consuming, the site aims to match up singles that work near each other. What could be more convenient? How about the fact that standard membership is absolutely free! Click here for details.

Single Solutions is an excellent site. The site also attracts busy young professionals, who are often graduates. Aside from the usual online dating services, with thousands of members, Single Solutions also organise regular events for various age groups. Examples of events in the next month include Xmas parties, a Ghost Walk and a New Year’s Eve party. For further information, please click here.

Single Solutions also run a separate program for Hindu and Sikh Asian Professionals. They have monthly Asian dating parties and now contain one of the LARGEST databases for single Asian Professionals in the UK. Click here for details.

Finally, no list of dating site reviews would be complete, without a good old speed-dating evening! There’s a reason it’s so popular…..because it works. Speed-dater is Europe’s largest speed-dating company and runs a range of evenings from your bog-standard speed-dating, which will whizz you through 20 dates in an evening, to more relaxed parties such as lock-and-key nights and bowling parties. Click here to see which events are coming soon in London.

Hopefully one of these fun sites will appeal to you and you’ll go on to meet the partner of your dreams!