Cannot Get A Job! :(

If you'll be commutable to London then you'll probably have better luck. I'm a UK national and made redundant last October from an IT role.
I'm seeing quite a few jobs advertised in London including contract, but the figure I'd need as a daily rate in order to contract in London would probably be twice the rate being offered when I take into account hotel prices. I'm in Yorkshire and fewer jobs being advertised, no shortage though in a way given I've applied for 60, but I guess far more people going for each job than when I was last looking 12 years ago and got a job within 2 months.
I've applied for over 60 jobs and until last week had only had 3 interviews, I had 2 last week...one in person for which I have a 2nd interview next week, that is local, walkable from home so the vastly reduced salary from what I was previously on doesn't really concern me as I'd have absolutely no commuting costs whereas for many we might then need a second car.
The other interview was a phone interview and I had a complete meltdown on that one, I ended up just saying I didn't want to continue!

It really is looking like London. The company I worked for about 10 years ago has a couple of jobs that would work for me. I've already started contacting ex-colleagues who still work for the company.

I'm really really not sure I do London though. I want to move to the country. Things are never as easy and straightforward as we hope, are they?

There seem to be plenty of IT jobs where I am. Maybe we could switch lives. LOL.

I'm really really not sure I do London though. I want to move to the country. Things are never as easy and straightforward as we hope, are they?

London has lots of leafy suburbs though, so it's really only the central areas that are really busy and city-like. You only have to travel 30 minutes or so away from Central London on the tube and you're out in residential suburbs.

Also, it's fairly easy to live out in the countryside or even a smaller city like Reading and commute into London by train, although it may be expensive for the train fares and living costs, plus the commuting time can be longer if there are delays etc.

Also, it's fairly easy to live out in the countryside or even a smaller city like Reading and commute into London by train, although it may be expensive for the train fares and living costs, plus the commuting time can be longer if there are delays etc.

For example, I live about 45 miles north of London on a farm in the countryside.  It takes about 40 minutes to get to central London on the train, and a round trip ticket during rush hour costs about £30.  (You can get cheaper tickets if you buy by the week, month, or year.)

So even if you have to work in London you can still live in the country.

You have all made me feel better! Though I haven't had to do a 45 minute commute in .... I really don't know how long. Last commute I had was a 10 block walk.

Now I'm wondering if it is better that I apply when I'm there or can I start now?

Part of me wants to send CVs now for jobs I've found just to see if I get a reaction and because getting a job could take a while. The other half of me knows I really can't move for a while as I have some outstanding issues here. So what's the point? Sigh.

Waiting around for burocrazy to do it's thing is driving me a bit bonkers! 

for which I have a 2nd interview next week

Good luck on this!

Now I'm wondering if it is better that I apply when I'm there or can I start now?

As you are already allowed to work in the UK, you don't have to worry about getting a job before you can get a visa to work, so you can start applying now and just state that you are a UK/EEA citizen and already have permission to work... but at the same time it can be tricky to apply for jobs before you have arrived in the UK because you aren't available for in-person interviews.

I think most people have had more luck with job hunting once they have arrived in the UK.... but there's no harm in starting now and seeing if you have any luck.

Part of me wants to send CVs now for jobs I've found just to see if I get a reaction and because getting a job could take a while. The other half of me knows I really can't move for a while as I have some outstanding issues here. So what's the point? Sigh.

You could always see what's out there and start registering your interest with companies - get yourself known. If you have an idea of when you might be able to move, you can always see if anyone will be flexible on start dates.

My current job began as a training course, which is only run every 6 months... so I was actually offered my job in July 2009, for an April 2010 start (I had to go through almost 6 months of paperwork and government security clearance before I started). It turned out that the April training course was cancelled due to the economy so in Jan 2010 I was out of a job... then they called me back in September to ask me onto the October 2010 course... so I finally started the job 2 years after I first applied for it!

Thanks for confirming more or less what I was thinking. It's nice to know I'm not seeing things completely out of reality.

I have another question about working. I've read some things about an NI or so. Do you need one of these to start working? I was thinking it might be fun (if not impossible?) to head to the cities i'm interested in and see if I couldn't sign up with a temp agency and do some temp work, just to see what the city is like and not to just spend the time as a tourist.

Though I think the admin issues might scupper that idea before it's even formed!

I have another question about working. I've read some things about an NI or so. Do you need one of these to start working? I was thinking it might be fun (if not impossible?) to head to the cities i'm interested in and see if I couldn't sign up with a temp agency and do some temp work, just to see what the city is like and not to just spend the time as a tourist.

An NI (National Insurance) number is required to make sure that you are taxed at the correct rate and your National Insurance contributions are correct each month (it's a little bit like a SSN, but is just for working/contributing to NI).

UK residents are automatically assigned an NI number when they turn 16 (and can legally work full-time), but if you have just moved to the UK, you will need to apply for one yourself.

It is possible to start working before you have applied for your NI number, but you will most likely be taxed at a higher rate than you should be, so you will have to get a tax refund once you have your number and your tax code is adjusted.

A lot of companies now ask for your NI number when you are filling out your contract details, so it's probably a good idea to just apply for one as soon as you move to the UK, so that you have it ready for starting work (you just have to show that you are looking for work).

You can find out how to apply for one here (it's done through the Job Centre in the UK):
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ni/intro/number.htm

Thank you so much! I'll look into that.