I liked them. They aspire to a high standard of living and all the toys that go with it. Sounds good to me. I also didn't like the house (Pyramid I think they called it) they looked at in Darlington. It's a nice area not too far from me with nicer houses than the one they were shown. If I was spending $1.6m in Quinns Rock (not that I would, far too much for that part of the world), I'd also want a guaranteed seaview which they were not going to get.

There are some very good stories here regarding emmigration.
Check out the other stories on the right.

Very interesting.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5237236.stm

It is T - minus 5 days and counting until I blaze a trail to Perth (apparently that's where all the "poms" go (tongue in mouth), but being a Scot am I a pom? who knows and to be honest who really cares?! Rhetorical - because I am sue some do care).

All I can say is that, while WDU has provided some interesting gossip TV to watch I can't say it has helped at all. I obviously watched the Perth ones with interest, but the format really makes no sense to me.

Because I have been lucky enough to have a job there waiting for my arrival it gives me a far better understanding of what I might have budget-wise for housing and luxuries such as food. Therefore I will not be looking at buying $1M+ houses or crazy motorboats that cost more than many reasonably decent houses in the area (such as was taken out on the Friday episode).

I think it is incredibly brave to expatriate to a new country without the security of an actual job, which is what the show appears to be all about - it completely baffles me to see people looking at property to buy before they know what they will have to live on - I know that it is probably an editing thing, because I cannot believe that anyone would consider migrating without understanding their budget? or would they?

Even with the knowledge of what I will be earning, which I think will be good by Perth Standards, I certainly do not feel too proud to rent and make sure things are going to work out and of course to check out th various areas etc etc, this is likely to take the first year at least. It just seems to me that the programme is not that realistic, the Friday family had a significant amount of cash available, but rather than be sensible with it they seemed driven to just spend it all in the first week of arrival.

On another vein, is it just me or does it appear that the programme, and I am not wanting to generalise and certainly not insult, are presenting the move from a view to how one might book a holiday, oh I want a sea view, it's too far away from the coast etc. All of the editing that has gone on must infuriate the families, because I am most certain that they will not have gone about deciding whether they move to Oz or not on the back of 1 week in a location not of their choosing and would not have placed the same emphasis on certain aspects.

But it all makes good TV...doesn't it?

PS - At least I will be in a country that has a good chance at the Rugby World Cup.

firstly I do not condone your racism and so will not even begin to reply to that remark.

secondly we work to live not live to work, there is more to life than money

as for 'how long my OH has been doing it' the answer is all his working life we live in the peak district, obviously theres a lot of wood in houses, farms, barns round here so carpenters will always be in high demand... hence his career choice as a carpenter

I mean if we lived in the friggin north pole he'd probably would have chosen another career path.

HI ALL,

we are planning to go to OZ for a better life for ourselves & our kids, the weather is the number 1 reason.
last summer we spent 2 weeks in Norfolk camping, it was hot & we had a great time, most of it spent in the outdoor pool.

once we got back the kids played out for 3 days in the remainder of the holls. (weather was crap)
lots of people have said lots of different things about WDU & i respect most of there opinions good & bad.
but that is what they are opinions.

we have found all of them helpful in 1 way or another, we still complain over the amount of bits they show over & over again but to us who are still at the beginning of the whole process its gripping TV.

This forum gives us the real info we need about OZ but the BBC have to make it viewable to the majority of people & not the minority who are actually thinking of making the move.
i would love an hour long program filled with every detail of renting, buying, schooling in Perth etc but i don't think it would make interesting viewing to some one who was off sick or looking after the kids etc who just wanted to find something on the telly worth watching.

BY the way just had to add...

i know a polish guy who's a great guy. i asked why he & his family chose England & his answer was QUALITY of life, same reason nearly everyone gives for going to OZ i think.
HE did add though ... " it was the easiest country to get into if he couldn't get a job he knew he & his family would be looked after by the state, housing, NHS etc"
he has got a job so he's paying his bit i suppose, i don't know if he is taking food off the table of a Englishman or not.

all i can say is if it was my job he was doing I'D BE WELL P****D OFF, so i can understand what people are saying.

I don't think that's true... Britain welcomes new migrants, but they have to be able to support themselves... To qualify for any kind of government benefits at all they must work here for at least a year I believe...

Just add, this is economic migrants not asylum seekers...

hes lucky then !!!.....p.s i am not rasist....but whenyour husband cant get a decent payed job coz they wanna pay low wages.

there is more to life then money but i find it hard to pay my hefty mortgage
so need money to keep aroof over my kids head ........obviously something you dont hve toworry about hey!!!!!......with all your husbands money seeing as he is so busy!!!

I agree with you

I like the polish one of the guys i worked with in security a Lovley guy.....but
they take low wages which is a shit when my husband cant earn more as emploers wont pay more.....YET our out goings are too high.AS bmth is too expensive.I Am glad some people on here have sense

Can we please stop the rcaist comments, they are a breach of forum rules.

If you can't pay your mortgage then sell up and buy/rent somewhere that you can afford. Don't blame hardworking immigrants who come here in an attempt to better their lives. When you criticise entire groups of people because of their nationality, IMO that does qualify as racist. The UK does need immigrants, esp those who come here to work and earn their own way. If people can't find work then they must be prepared to re-train in something new - it is way out of date to expect one career for life now.
Remember that most of the people on this forum either are or plan to be immigrants in a new country - I sincerely hope that the people we meet once in Australia are willing to give us a fair chance and not judge us for our nationality/accent/appearance the way that some UK people judge the immigrants who come here.

Hi Rodders.
I aggree a lot of it is economic migrants.I am not sure about the benefit system but the new migrants do get the NHS and schooling e.t.c,I think that is what puts peoples back's up. They are angry with the government when not enough is being put back in regarding new schools and hospitals e.t.c They see migrants coming in and yet wait hours down casualty and send their kids to overstretched schools.
I live in Milton Keynes and it is a city that has maybe doubled in size in the last 20 years and yet still has the same size hospital that was opened in 1979?
I wish I knew the answer but I don't

HI ALL,

got a question for anyone who took part in WDU.

the impression I've got from the program is that it wasn't a totally free jolly from the BBC.
can u tell me if you had to fork out any money yourself living expenses etc?

i only ask because 1 of the shows ( cant remember which 1 )
they forgot to book a hire car & had to fork out the cash upon arrival to hire one,
i'd of thought the BBC would have sorted all that out for you.

thanks

When I said benefits I mean housing subsidies, job seekers allowance, etc... At the end of the day Schooling and the NHS seem like fair play to me... They would only be using those facilities if they were in work and contributing to the tax take... The problems in those fields have been around for ages and I don't think we can ascribe new immigrants to them...

The NHS is a whole different ball game... I don't know the answer either, no one seems to... Everyone wants better healthcare for all, but it does seem that chucking money at the system doesn't achieve that much... To me the only way we'll ever get to change it significantly is to completely rethink how we administer and fund it... I could see us with a system that goes more towards the US based way of administering it... Anyway, this is the Wanted Down Under thread and I'm off topic...!

I think it says somewhere on here that the participants were offered either a week all paid for or flights for a fortnight with one week paid for and they could support themselves for the other week? I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong!

I aggree Rodders.
Its a whole new issue,better leave it alone or we will start something else won't we