Apparently I live in the 14th richest town in Britain, not that I am one of the well-to-do folk that live in the seven figure houses - I just drive past on the way to the Sainsbury in Basildon. The fact that I am living in a place that I can't afford was made very clear over the weekend when our family was in Manchester for the game against Arsenal (we won 2-1 by the way!). On recommendation from Puppy's godmother, we decided to go to the local chippy in Prestwich, which was better in quality and significantly cheaper than the one we usually go to in Hutton. The Chinese next door wasn't bad either, and certainly cheaper than the one in Ingatestone. Before you say anything, Prestwich isn't one of the dodgy areas in Manchester, but a reasonably affluent bit - it has a large M&S supermarket and good enough schools*. House prices? 30-50% off what you would pay in the '14th richest town in Britain'.

* To be fair, the schools around Ingatestone are outstanding, but they would have to be in order to cater to parents with outstanding pay packets.