oh bummer!!!
Hahaā¦have you ever been up into that monument where āit all happened ā ?
Witney is surrounded by vast housing estates, with changed road systems and slow traffic as it struggles to cope. The centre is however still nice like it was 30+ years ago.
Ohā¦.hmmmā¦.yes, I think a completely new area.
My youngest sister lives quite close to Hay on Wye and there it be lovely!
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If I had been left on my own to make a decision I would have opted for somewhere in the Mole Valley where all my memories are. You are right Stella, Iām loving finding somewhere new to discover.
OH opted for Chichester - he expects me to outlive him, though is beginning to realise that cancer and heart may have a say in that (for either of us). He thought I would enjoy the cultural life (excellent theatre) and make friends on my own (I think he would too in way he just hasnāt in France).
We both saw our house online and liked the look of it - modern, light, well fitted out. What we have gone on to discover is the attractiveness and vibrancy of the pedestrianised centre (excellent market) the cathedral and its gardens are beautiful, sitting alongside the choir stalls for evensong is glorious, five minutes walk from the canal towpath, twenty minutes drive from West Wittering beach and the sea and so many dog walkers (Rona did zoomies with delight) the South Downs fifteen minutes drive and there all the time to be looked at along the horizon.
The house is in a cul-de-sac and walk out of it and turn right to a tiny parade of shops - Indian supermarket, packed with goodies and open all hours (they are fascinated that we live in France), a bakers doing sourdough in the back of the shop, a butchers, a hairdressers, a dog groomers, a dentists, a washeteria.
I do not recognise the descriptions of the UK from those above. This is what it can offer you, if you look hard enough.
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Are you thinking ofāa cream cracker under the sofaā?
Have hardly ever been there but was OHās area. Arenāt the Hellfire caves there? Satanic rituals or orgies or something.
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Probably. Just goes to show that Iām clearly starting to ālose itā. Anyway, Iām sure that you get the idea.
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The hell fire club was a drinking and debauchery posh gentlemans place Edgar Allan Poes old haunt.
I Totally get it the 60% inheritance tax is massive. When we first moved here in 2007 my mother and father always said they would never go Back . Even living in se of France they saw more of my Brothers and Grandchildren than they did in the uk . 12 years later I was married to a French woman. I had built a 2 bedroom extension we had our own little house and my parents were just through a corridor. Life was perfect I run a successful building Business my father took care of the garden half an acre he loved it .He would be outside all of the time making a fire pruning Trees cutting wood for our wood burnerās mowing the lawn on his Tractor having Days out with my mum he once told me it was bliss . We even discussed funeral arrangements. But one Day my mum received a phone call it was her sister to tell her she was dying of cancer. My mum and Dad packed up right away and within a couple of Days I was Driving them to the airport. My mother and father lived and cared for my anty for 12 weeks until she passed away . When they finally came home they said they needed to tell me something and Thats when they said after a lot of consideration they were moving back to the uk I was in shock at first but after listening to there reasons why I understood family and they were worried at some point they would be dependent on me and they didnāt want that to happen they didnāt want to find themselves in a situation where they couldnāt go back and so they Did . And had a wonderful 5 years until my mum fell ill and passed away a few months later . I visit my Dad regularly and now itās been two years since my Dad is slowly working on his life to be as normal as it can be without my mum . Me personally Iāve always said to retire it would be Spain I do visit the uk a lot but live there I donāt think so. Even when I do love the choice of food restaurants ect you just canāt beat M and S for food shopping and that good old Chinese
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I think this is a very sensible move for you.
Like yourself, I donāt recognise the UK sometimes described by posters on SF. Maybe itās because we stick to the posh bits.
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Chichester is a lovely place and close to other lovely areas to visit. You will love it. Good luck.
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Hi AM
Yes, there are lots of housing in and nr to Witney but there are all over Oxfordshire and other counties too, Gloucestershire is unrecognisable in some areas. Yet bury? Used to be a place where the King used to be seen, His place being down the road but now itās enormous
Witney is a great place to be close to, as we are. We just avoid going there at the weekends. Itās been very well planned over the years with the heart of it still the same. We live in Bampton, nearby, and have been there for a long time now. People come to visit and live there now as it was the location chosen for the Downtown Abbey tv series and I canāt blame them. Although itās had new housing estates built the olde original area is still lovely and thereās everything needed to live there with out needing to go anywhere else- although that would be rather boring not to visit other places. Itās a very welcoming place with lots going on. We have always found it to be very welcoming and now we are the ones welcoming others. Only 1 and a half hours to Portsmouth for the ferry over to the belle France
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Haha. My mum and her siblings used to shelter in the caves during the war as the school was opposite. I spent all my childhood mucking around on WW Hill and in the caves as I lived within walking distance from another small village nearby. The traffic will never stop ruining the place unless itās diverted, being the main A40 to Wales but there you go. The late Sir Francis Dashwood used to come up to my grandparents house as they were the only ones who had a TV set in the 50ās and his father, Sir John would not have one in the house.
Supposedly. Caves were dug out to provide materials to build what is now the A40 and the river Styx is a hosepipe attached to a tap, believe you me, we would get in behind the fencing to keep the public out and run riot down there when kids. My family apart from my parents, are all interred above and I have always had a horror of the bodies eventually falling through and many times over the years when attending funerals up there, there were bones under the green funeral cloth they put over the earth pile. My dadās side have the biggest family vaults in the churchyard, we were posh back then!
I agree with this comment, which several others have also eloquently made in this thread. Iāve had a lifetime interest in how emigrants from the UK see their own country, probably as a result of decades of briefing people before being seconded overseas (tax, pensions etc) and then briefing them on their return a few years later. I asked AI what research there is on this issue. For what itās worth, here is what it reported..
āCultural psychology research emphasises that migrants must create a sense of āhomeā that is both continuous with the past and adapted to the present. Some people resolve this tension by downplaying or disparaging their home country to align more strongly with the host culture. Others do the opposite and idealise their homeland ā both are normal identity strategies.
To fit in, migrants may highlight differences between themselves and negative stereotypes associated with their home country.
This can lead to over-emphasising flaws back home to signal assimilation. Itās a form of impression management: āIām not like the negative image you might have of people from my country.ā
Interestingly, research on returnees shows that going back can be harder than leaving, because migrants often develop a critical lens toward their home society. This suggests that the critical stance isnāt just for show ā it can reflect genuine psychological distance created by living abroad..
Criticising the home country can actually be a sign of belonging. People tend to criticise what they feel connected to ā the same way people complain about their family but bristle when outsiders do. ā
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I was talking about Tetbury. Donāt know of a Yetbury. To those who have just read my post. Nr to Highgrove.
The worst thing about that in my opinion is that Astley is 90% wide open space with a few small to medium industrial concerns dotted around and the East Lancs road goes straight through it for good motorway access. They could have very easily built such a monstrosity away from housing, but they seem to have plonked it right next to a housing estate. I suspect the reason they didnāt do this is the cost of having to improve road access.
I will go back when Iām in my 80ās, assuming I remain in good health till then - sooner if not. Why? Because I had to keep returning to the UK to help my elderly parents when they developed dementia. I donāt want my kids (most likely just my youngest) to have to keep dropping everything and come over to france to check up on me. Iād go to an Anchor flat not to far from where they live.
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Back to the OPs point (sorry!) have you taken any professional advice before you uproot yourself back to the UK. French IHT is beyond my comfort zone (and my professional insurance) - you might want a chat with someone like Tom Marron at Blevins Franks to check and make sure you havenāt missed anything.
You are also taking a bet that the Uk will not change the IHT laws again - my bet is no given the shambles with the farmers - or some would say it was actually a really clever way to get what they wanted on the super rich - but a Green (tax anyone with money) or Reform government (maybe tax anyone who isnāt super wealthy) might just blow your planning out of the waterā¦
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