Tpdfc: as you can see, there are different opinions on how to go about things! The guy above ^^^ seems to think that an IR costs 50 grand! I can assure you he’s completely wrong, you can easily get both CPL and IR for £20,000.
Flying unsupervised is actually a mandatory requirement to get a CPL (you need 100 hours *without* an instructor, making decisions by yourself) and trust me, you don’t fly around in circles, at least 50 hours have to be cross country. In the US you can fly into international airports and airspace of the kind that you wouldn’t be allowed near in the UK.
As for being taken seriously, believe it or not, most airlines don’t care where you did your hour building - you wouldn’t put it on your CV anyway. You will have noticed some of the pompous attitudes exhibited - trust me, there are (and will be) plenty of jobs which won’t involve sitting next to people like that. Do your own research, and feel free to PM me. I fly for a UK airline that hires people based on the person.