Great Western Coffee Shop

Draw your own conclusions from this NR tweet following storm-related disruption this morning (my highlighting):

In rail terms, the South West begins at London Waterloo.

The West, the Marches, South Wales and the far South West begin at London Paddington.

 ;)

I would imagine this was due to the NR Twatter account being run by a work experience intern who had failed their Geography 'O' Level.  ;D

You could also say that the South East extends as far as Exeter in the Gospel according to the now defunct NSE.

Ah yes, St George for England, St Pancras for Scotland.

Swindon Mail Centre is in Royal Mail's SW region and that is responsible for mail to and from the OX postcode area which extends north of Banbury.

Anything east of Devon is "Up North" I'm afraid!

(To some in Cornwall, anything east of the Tamar Bridge is simply referred to as "London"!)

🙂

According to Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_West_England

Contrast with:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Country

And with:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_of_England

Clear as mud; red Devon mud, Cornish granite, Cotswold limestone or...

I find that the south west begins when I have taken my reserved seat in the Pullman of the Golden hind, placed my order, and been served with a drink.
The geographical location for this varies a bit but is often just outside London, sometimes it might be before leaving Paddington.

Alternatively just get yourself a pasty (or two if going through to Penzance) and a few cans of Tribute. Far better value & no need to reserve a seat. 🙂

Only if you travel from Waterloo via Yeovil

A pasty and some canned beer is NOT a substitute for a proper meal, and I would still want a reserved seat, just in case.

You may say that - those of us from the real Southwest may well disagree!  ;)

I am lucky enough to have the occasional lunchtime meeting at the St Austell Brewery. As well as the beer I can vouch for the pasties.

(Certainly the uphill walk from the railway station builds up a thirst)

(http://www.mbob.co.uk/rforum/trib.jpg)

The south west coast path goes from Poole to minehead for another boundary.

The far south west could be justified as IoS, Cornwall and Devon, with the south west extending to Somerset and Dorset.  Bristol likes to brand itself as West of England, though you can argue that Gloucestershire (and so BANES) would be south west, as beyond that is the Midlands. 

Berkshire and Oxfordshire are Home Counties, so that nudges Wiltshire in to south west. 

Hampshire and IoW are the south.

Surrey, Middlesex, Sussex and Kent are south east.

Westcountry would be defined as per the ITV franchise!

According to this map (http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/static/documents/promotions/Freedom_of_South_West_3.pdf), Cardiff, Chepstow, Gloucester, Worcester, Great Malvern and all points between are also apparently in the South West

Then again, Gloucestershire used to come under the Midlands Electricity Board. Also Severn-Trent Water, which would also indicate Midlands. Worcester is Midlands (or is it?) and Gloucester is associated with it through the Three Choirs Festival. Also, Offa's Dyke runs through Gloucestershire and Offa was King of Mercia, not Wessex. Perhaps this indicates that historically Gloucestershire was more connected with the Midlands but now more with the (South) West (of England).

When Offa was King of Mercia, he ruled much of Wessex, at other times Wessex was much larger and the border was further North. 

Severn Trent Water's boundary is based on the catchment of the two rivers in its title so not really relevant.

However Gloucester does have some historic links with the Midlands

My usual flippant answer is that "The West" starts about 20 miles to the west of where you live ... if you live in Taunton, "The West" starts at Tiverton but if you live in Frome, Taunton is in "The West" though you are not.  I live in Melksham - that's not in the West, but Frome is.  No doubt we may have member or two here living in Swindon who will tell me that Melksham is in The West.

In all seriousness, Travelwatch SouthWest has had to define "The South West" and there's a map showing what it means at http://travelwatchsouthwest.org/about-us/


You'll note the map has a somewhat jagged border, since there's logic in aligning passenger transport zones of interest with the zones of the passenger transport authorities (PTAs), and there are arguable distortions.    Taking Wiltshire and looking at economic zones and commutes,  Pewsey and Bedwyn face towards London so perhaps they belong in the Home Counties / South East?  Looking at watersheds, Pewsey belongs in the South West as it drains via the Bristol Avon, but Bedwyn belongs in the Home Counties, draining via the Thames through London. ...

There is a serious issue to this question where travel and transport are organised by region ... and journeys across between regions get scant attention ...

It's quite well known that Cirencester was a Roman capital of Britain (briefly) but not that Malmesbury has a claim to being the first capital of a united England. It's interesting to speculate why this might be.

The enthusiasm, nay fervour on display within this thread to be considered as part of the South West really is quite moving..............I guess those of us lucky enough to have been born in Devon or Cornwall, the true South West, will just have to get used to others aspiring to be as blessed as us!  ;)

I live in Bristol twenty miles to the left of me is either Wet or Welsh 🙂

When I was at school - a mere lad in short trousers - I was taught that the south west comprised Cornwall, Devon, Dorset & Somerset.  I lived in west Dorset and my geography teacher was from Cornwall.

To some in Bristol, the north apparently starts at Filton. I understand better, the north starts at the Almondsbury motorway intersection! ☺

National rails idea of the south west, as deemed by the freedom of the southwest, and perhaps the most relevant answer for the railway.

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/static/documents/promotions/Freedom_of_South_West_3.pdf

Even the BBC are occasionally unsure as to which counties are in the South West:


 ::)

Bedwyn was the western extent of the NSE ares doen the B&H, so a good reasn to say that West thereof is south-west, while Bedwyn forms the western extent of the Home Counties?

The South-West is the contiguous area in which you can be reliably sure of finding a pub which sells proper cider. (Wetherspoons doesn't count.)

This is my view, too. Wiltshire, Bristol & Gloucestershire are more "The West" rather than "The South West" for me.