The Golden Triangle (sometimes called the Footballer Belt) is an area of affluent small towns and villages in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, England. The exact three points of the triangle are the subject of local debate but are generally considered to be

Alderley Edge Alderley Edge is a village and civil parish in Cheshire, England. In 2011, it had a population of 4,780. Alderley Edge is northwest of Macclesfield and south of Manchester, at the base of a steep and thickly wooded sandstone escarpment, Alder ...

, Prestbury, and

Wilmslow Wilmslow ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England, south of Manchester city centre. The population was 24,497 at the 2011 Census. History Toponymy Wilmslow derives its name from Old ...

. The area, about 5 miles across, is noted for expensive houses in a pleasant countryside setting that is popular with wealthy

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

footballers, entertainment industry figures, and businesspeople. Five of the ten most expensive roads in the

northwest England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,052,000 in 2011. It is the ...

have been identified as being in this area. Withinlee Road in Prestbury is also said to be the most expensive street in

northern England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

, with prices averaging around £1.2 million . The triangle is part of the

parliamentary constituencies An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region Administra ...

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east ...

and Tatton. The area and its rich businessmen were fictionalised in the drama series ''

Goldplated ''Goldplated'' is an eight-part drama series from World Productions which made its debut on Channel 4 on Wednesday 18 October 2006 at 10.00pm. It was created by Jimmy Gardner. It follows self-made businessman John White (played by David Schofi ...

''. Much of the action in

Howard Jacobson Howard Eric Jacobson (born 25 August 1942) is a British novelist and journalist. He is known for writing comic novels that often revolve around the dilemmas of British Jewish characters.Ragi, K. R., "Howard Jacobson's ''The Finkler Question'' a ...

's novel ''Shylock Is My Name'' also takes place within the Golden Triangle. It is also the main basis for the reality TV show ''

The Real Housewives of Cheshire ''The Real Housewives of Cheshire'' (abbreviated ''RHOCheshire'') is a British reality television series that premiered on ITVBe on 12 January 2015. Developed as the first British installment in ''The Real Housewives'' franchise, it has aired ...

''.

Notable residents

Current and former residents include: *

Alan Garner Alan Garner (born 17 October 1934) is an English novelist best known for his children's fantasy novels and his retellings of traditional British folk tales. Much of his work is rooted in the landscape, history and folklore of his native count ...

John Junior John Junior, known as The Duckman is a British mental health activist and script consultant. He is known for co-creating, inspiring and featuring in multi-award winning and British Academy of Film and Television Arts, BAFTA nominated documenta ...

David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending fr ...

Kevin De Bruyne Kevin De Bruyne (born 28 June 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Manchester City and the Belgium national team. He is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world. Pundits have often desc ...

Marcus Rashford Marcus Rashford (born 31 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Manchester United and the England national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his explosive ath ...

Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (; born 5 February 1985) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward and captains the Portugal national team. He is currently a free agent. Widely regarded as one of the greatest p ...

Wayne Rooney Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is the manager of Major League Soccer club D.C. United in the United States. He spent much of his playing career as a forward while als ...

and

Coleen Rooney Coleen Mary Rooney ( McLoughlin; born 3 April 1986) is the wife of former English footballer Wayne Rooney. She is also a former television personality. Early life and family Coleen Mary McLoughlin was born in Liverpool, Merseyside, to Tony an ...

Raheem Sterling Raheem Shaquille Sterling (born 8 December 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for club Chelsea. Born in Jamaica, he represents the England national team. Born in Jamaica to Jamaican parents, St ...

Jordan Henderson Jordan Brian Henderson (born 17 June 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Liverpool and the England national team. Henderson joined the Sunderland Academy at the age of eight, making his first-team ...

Virgil van Dijk Virgil van Dijk (born 8 July 1991) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Liverpool and the Netherlands national team. Considered one of the best defenders in the world, Van Dijk is known for his strength, le ...

Trent Alexander-Arnold Trent John Alexander-Arnold (born 7 October 1998) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Liverpool and the England national team. Known for his range of passing, crossing and assists, he is regarded as one o ...

Kyle Walker Kyle Andrew Walker (born 28 May 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Manchester City and the England national team. Walker started his career at his boyhood club Sheffield United which he had join ...

* Tanya Bardsley and

Phil Bardsley Phillip Anthony Bardsley (born 28 June 1985) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for Stockport County. He has played international football for the Scotland national team. Bardsley began his career with Manchester United whe ...

Alan Turing Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical com ...

References

Geography of Cheshire Social class in the United Kingdom {{Cheshire-geo-stub