Busting the myth Flat caps, and all that ...

What about image? Long ago, the north shed the flat cap, pigeon and whippet stereotype that has been perpetuated by the likes of Coronation Street. (Ironically, the southern wideboy or miserable Eastenders image continues to present similarly misleading and derogatory stereotypes of London.) However, a change in perception of the north has not been matched by an improvement in people's general knowledge.

Amazingly, recent research suggests many people don't seem to have a clue where the north begins (and presumably where the south ends.) A new map of the national divide based on socio-economic data places the north just above Bristol and wipes the Midlands off the map.

The research was prompted after an exhibition, The Myth of the North, at the Lowry arts centre in Salford. Visitors were asked to pinpoint the divide on an interactive map and many failed the test. Professor Danny Dorling, from Sheffield University, who is an internationally renowned human mapping specialist, applied a raft of statistical, social, cultural and economic factors when creating the map, including variants in house prices, visual changes in the built environment, physical and historic boundaries, cultural and political differences and different life expectancy rates.

The research also shows some areas, although geographically in the north, are culturally and economically very similar to parts of the south. Cheshire, in particular, shares many southern characteristics - with old money awash in pockets of the county. It boasts multi-million pound houses, scenic countryside and an enviably good quality of life. Also, the dividing line can possibly change over time, depending on social and economic factors, so that parts of England can become more "northern" or "southern".

And, of course, not all parts of the south-east represent a utopia. There are pockets of deprivation and poor people living almost cheek-by-jowl within miles of their wealthy neighbours.

"We know that there are still areas of the UK where people lack the economic opportunities open to many and we are determined to tackle that," says Angela Eagle, the exchequer secretary to the treasury. "We have to reduce the disparities in economic performance between and within the regions and nations in the UK to draw on the full potential of our country."