>>There's a big talk of recession, but on the ground things are thriving from what I can see. <<

London is a bit of an economic bubble in relation to the rest of the country, but even so there are substantial pockets of unemployment, and anyone thinking of trying to come here to work won't just be able to waltz into a work permit.

>>When you first arrive, the best options once you've got somewhere to live is to jobsearch online. <<

If you haven't already got a job with a work permit, you will almost certainly be working illegally, and - if your employer is respectable - will be found out, and may have trouble on any future visit to the country. If your employer is not inclined to observe the requirements about establishing your right to work in the country, you may well be ripped off one way or another - and may well also be found out as an illegal worker.

THIS is where you should start if you're thinking about trying to come to Britain to work:

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas-immigration/working/

You can't just arrive as a tourist and hope to get a job.

If you are living in London then you must know the situation.
Read Patrick's last posting and the link.

Now I have seen you resurrected this thread and posted at the end.
http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/uk-citizen-returning-from-us-where-are-the-jobs.cfm
Us expat here, now living in London. I found a job pretty quick last year.There may be lots of talk of recession, but the jobs are still out there in my experience. Try gumtree.co.uk", jobisjob.co.uk or earn.co.uk they are pretty good for entry level positions
Now I am confused you have answered your own question have you not?

Umm, I'll have to disagree with OP-London's economic situation is still bad. Unless you are highly skilled in a specific field, you probably won't find a job especially with all the EU citizens coming to work there. As the other posters said, without a work permit, you won't get a job, and if immigration thinks you are visiting Britain to find a job, they won't let you in. I've heard horror stories of young people sent back to the US for having job adverts in their luggage/writing about job searches.

I hope US citizens receive a warmer welcome than I received 2 years ago when investigating the possibility of relocating to the US.

Neither country allows visitors to take jobs without specific advance approval - usually linked to specific requirements - as in

1) you will be starring in a broadway show or opera or similar

2) you are already employed by a company with offices in the country and they need to ship you there based on specific job requirements and experience with that company

Other than that neither country has an open-door immigration policy - those are gone along with the dodo.

Which is what we found.

Thankfully we avoided making a mistake and the US lack of any interest in all the capital we were bringing with us, guided us to The Bahamas. 100 miles away and has huge tax savings.

We had the feeling that the US would prefer Thai maids to retired British business people.

"When you first arrive, the best options once you've got somewhere to live is to jobsearch online."

...is a deportable offence.

On arriving in Britain, a foreigner who's not a citizen of an EEA country or Switzerland is given leave to stay, subject to a number of conditions including not seeking employment.

Our police have more important things to occupy their time than searching out illegal barstaff, and there are a couple of exceptions to the rule I've quoted (including limited employment provisions for bona fide students with a student visa. obtained before arriving here).

But for the overwhelming majority of Americans, alexyarm's advice is a passport to immediate deportation

Sorry, Dickie, but the U.S. has lots and lots of retired businessmen, and not nearly enough maids to keep everything tidy.
From what I read, if you had official permission to work, and were willing to work in the fields for, say, $8.00 an hour, and had no need for health insurance, you would be welcomed with open arms.