These sorts of indices are always interesting to discuss, particularly the methodology that is used. In this case they referred to a number of key indicators, which included:
- easy access to countryside including water
- average driving time to GPs surgeries, hospitals, pharmacists and dentists
- air quality
- broadband speeds
- public transport routes and distance travelled within an hour
- crime statistics
- proximity to culture: theatre, cinema, museum, pubs and libraries
It turns out that Berwick upon Tweed came out as number 1.
Other places that came out high on the list were Evesham, Caernarfon, Devizes, Durham, Lewes and Chesterfield.
Some years ago, I was involved in an early Daniel Raven Ellison inspired project where we were given BBC camera gear and sound recording equipment and visited a whole range of European cities to gauge the happiness of the residents.
Simon Renshaw and I headed for Dublin. We ended up blagging our way into the Guinness brewery and up to the Gravity Bar at the top of the building.
If you are a GA member you can head for the Journals section of the website and find the Spring 2007 issue of GA Magazine. I made quite a lot of contributions to that issue as it happens...
Here's my summary of the trip with Simon Renshaw.
An Easyjet flight packed with hen night parties, who were certainly happy (in an alcoholically induced way) brought us into a wet Dublin. We had booked a cheap B&B, staffed by an ever-changing roster of East Europeans who advised us to go to Galway instead. We sampled the glory that is Guinness in smoke-free pubs and talked our way into the Gravity Bar at St James Gate brewery, with a panoramic view of the city. We took the Easter Rising tour of Dublin with Dr. Conor Kostick from Trinity College, and encountered a range of characters: the man in the Happy Shop who told us to **** off, Les and his teenage mates, the artists of St Stephens Green, the teeming All Ireland football fans at Croke Park. Because of the rain we were obliged to investigate the interior of lots of hostelries, but we had a great time. I will always remember the busker (or was it self therapist?) who danced on Grafton Street shouting at passers-by to ‘Smile, be happy and smile!’ and the stretch-limo jams on Temple Bar’s greasy cobbles.
Simon Renshaw, Soar Valley College, Leicestershire and Alan Parkinson, King Edward VII School, King’s Lynn, Norfolk
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