Welwyn residents have reacted strongly to one couple's regret of relocating from London to the countryside of Oaklands near the village.

The article, published in the Evening Standard yesterday, told of a couple's 'isolation' upon moving from North London to Robbery Bottom Lane.

Seeking "cleaner air, open spaces and bigger properties for half the price", the pair hoped to find 'community' in rural life, but instead were met with "tricky neighbours, isolation and zero buzz".

The author said: "We felt the first niggle of doubt when we realised that we had left the Labour-stronghold and Remainer borough of Camden and landed in the Tory-led, Leave-voting Welwyn Hatfield. It was quite the culture shock."

They also struggled to make friends, commenting: "There were no social meet-ups or events to tap into like you can in London, and unfortunately there was no sign of a Soho House Hertfordshire coming anytime soon."

The couple has since moved back to London, Crouch End, in time for the birth of their first child.

However, while some agreed with the author's sentiments, other Welwyn residents were disheartened by the author's perception of their town.

Commenting on the original article, Bob Monkhouse said they moved from London to Robbery Bottom Lane with their partner and "several canine companions". They made "so many good friends" and "thoroughly enjoyed living there".

Bob conceded that Old Welwyn is "most definitely a Tory-led stronghold", but believes "the differences we have with others often makes life more interesting, makes for conversation and debate and its certainly led to strong friendships.

"What a boring world it would be if we were all a member of the same club and thought the same way.

They concluded: "We will always look back fondly at our time in Robbery Bottom Lane. Right, off to walk up a dale or two, hug some trees and avoid some Tories."

Alison Jordan feels the same way. She moved to Welwyn with her husband six years ago. They didn't know anyone when they moved but said that they easily made friends.

"At least 90 per cent of the times we walked into one of the pubs in Welwyn someone would come over and say hello," Alison commented.

"I’d like to think it was my warm friendly face but I suspect the reality, based on their own opening question ‘What breed is he?’, is they wanted to meet my dog.

"After which we would start up so many great chats with villagers who 10 minutes before were complete strangers."

Another resident, Denita Mendes-Cavill, also moved to Welwyn six years ago.

Denita said she has "always felt welcome" in the village: "I feel sorry for them that they’ve had this experience and that they feel they cannot enjoy the countryside because they feel isolated or unwanted, but I wish this had been resolved in a less public, village bashing way.

"There are so many social events I see advertised - well outside of Covid restrictions - so I do hope if anyone else is feeling this way, that they join the local groups and join in where they can."

Local Jonathan Morris questioned: "What did they want and expect when they moved? For TfL to build a tube station at the end of their road and a load of theatres, cinemas, members' clubs and organic food shops to open up?"

However, Simone Edwards agrees with some of the comments made by the author.

"Life in the countryside is very different from London," she said, "You can have bad experiences with your immediate neighbour just because they don’t like you improving the appearance of your home.

"In my opinion, London does give you more choices on getting entertained and you can find more people with affinities. I wished I never moved out of London. I love that city and after 20 years of living in Hertfordshire, I am not in love."