Hi Neil, I just finished reading the book and the Milton Keynes footnote in the book killed me (its definitely terrible)! I was just wondering at where does "The South" start for Shadwell? Is he a "just a mile" from his home town kind of guy or does he say York or maybe even Leeds?

According to the book,  Shadwell hated all Southerners and, by inference, was standing at the North Pole.

So probably somewhere North of Kemi, in Finland.