Salisbury, the famous Wiltshire cathedral city, has been named the best place to live in the UK by an expert panel.
The accolade comes just over a year since the city played host to an internationally-reported incident in which a former Russian spy and his daughter were poisoned in a Novichok nerve agent attack.
The panel assembled by The Sunday Times for its prestigious annual Best Places to Live list made Salisbury its "overall winner" partly because of the community spirit displayed in the wake of the attack.
Helen Davies, The Sunday Times Home editor, said: “There are still parts of the city where the clean-up continues, but to bounce back and be even stronger is a sure sign of a very special community, which is one of the reasons we have chosen Salisbury as the best place to live in Britain in 2019.
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“It remains a divinely attractive and welcoming place. It’s handy for coast, countryside and London, has some of the best schools in the southwest, a great market and it’s very strong culturally, too.”
The Sunday Times made its decision with reference to statistics including house prices. The average house price in Salisbury was found to be £393,230, well above the national average, though the average starter home comes in at a more affordable £223,002.
Elsewhere, the panel named the Isle of Dogs in Tower Hamlets as the best place to live in London. "Most Londoners have never set foot here, yet it could be an empty-nester’s perfect new nest," the newspaper writes, citing the neighbourhood's "relatively affordable" (for zone 2) property prices, outdoor sports facilities and growing number of restaurant and cultural options.
Dundee was named the best place to live in Scotland; Crickhowell in Powys was voted top in Wales; and Holywood in County Down led the way in Northern Ireland. Last year's list was topped by York, which this year was picked as the best place to live in the north and northeast.