Lived in a few places SW London (Southfields, Putney, Wandsworth) before moving here over 2 years ago but to be honest was largely glad to leave the area. We had lots of friends nearby when we first moved there plus I worked way out West, but I never felt at home or made new friends. Bar the lovely walks up on Wimbledon Common in winter time it was never really for me; nothing very interesting happened to the areas in the whole time we were there, transport was a pain and there was next to no nightlife unless you ventured into the depths of Clapham which I try to avoid at all costs.

Far prefer Forest Hill. It's got enough nice things to take family to (Horniman, Babur in HOP, Dartmouth Arms, the coffee shops), a really good arts scene (looking forward to the Sydenham Arts Festival again), is better connected to a lot of places I like being able to get to for gigs and after work pints (Hackney, London Bridge, Camden), near some places that are handy to drive to from time to time (Crystal Palace, Blackheath, Greenwich, Dulwich) and still has the heart and soul of the place intact (nice cheap cafes on a Saturday morning, a few pubs to watch football in like Blythe Hill Tavern, a few chip shops, the swimming pool & library).

I'm all for the area getting a bit safer and nicer to walk around at night time being as close to Catford as we are in truth to FH, but I hope it doesn't just turn into another East Dulwich. I think the South Circular will probably stop that happening but the area is so interesting because of the mix of people in it. I'd hate to think it was going to turn into a haven for those wanting it to turn into something it already isn't.

What do I miss... maybe the independent Curzon cinema we had up the road in Wimbledon would be nice (if only there was a massive cinema on the high street with a perfectly preserved upstairs area...) and the spring walks along the Thames as our stretch of it is pretty industrial and grim.

Otherwise, next to nothing.