It all depends on what type of history you want to study. I would say places like Durham would teach a more 'traditional' history (as would most of the older red brick uni's) where as at the old polys you would get a more social history slant. I know York do a bit of both (big on Railway history!) and Warwick is quite well known for its politics and history.
Speaking from experience my history degree, because it was in Manchester, focussed heavily on industrial history and radical politics and i'm guessing Dot's was quite similiar (i have a friend who works in the library at UCLAN btw Dot!).
I think it is important to focus on what era or type of History you want to focus on when looking for a course (its a very big subject!). There is nothing worse than studying bits of history you have no interest in.