The Best Place To Make A Living In The UK Is Not Where You'd Expect

So long London. Goodbye Manchester. Adios Birmingham. Farwell Edinburgh. Hello Blackburn.

Say what you like about the culture and prestige associated with these UK hotspots; according to a new analysis which compared median wages to mortgage repayments, cost of living and the health of the job markets - with no points awarded for scenery, culture, or connections whatsoever - it appears the small east Lancashire town beats them all when it comes to the best place to make a living.

Narrowly pipping Derby, Cambridge and Sunderland as the place we should apparently all be working in, the once mighty mill town came out on top in the new study by TotallyMoney.com, helped by favourable job market statistics coupled with the fact median monthly mortgage repayments are just 21 per cent of the average take-home salary (£354).

Compare this then, to London, which had monthly mortgage repayments average £2,381 and finished rock bottom in terms of cost of living. Though the capital did manage to finish 26th, just shy of Newcastle (16th), Liverpool (17th) and Brighton (23rd), it lags well behind the Lancashire town. 

And if you're eager to know the worst place to earn your cash you won’t have to travel very far from Blackburn. Just a quick drive down the M65 in fact, to next door neighbours and bitter football rivals Burnley, judged to be the worst place for 9-5ers.

What now for Blackburn though? Ticking more than a few boxes (cathedral, football team which once won the Premier League, brimming with multiculturalism) town officials have longed hoped for city status, especially after nearby Preston were awarded just that, so watch this space.

In the meantime, to see how your town or city fared as a place to work, have a tinker with the interactive chart below.

(via Totally Money).