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You've really annoyed me with this post. Mostly because I think you're right, but I'm unsure about how I'd manage big climbs riding fixed and I don't have the finances to do it geared I don't think.
Worth pondering.
Nef-
Sorry!
By far the hardest climbing in the whole thing was cornwall and devon - I'm sure you know, but most of the valleys run north/south and you're riding West/East, so it's endless short sharp climbs. this would be hellish fixed, and afaik the only real way of avoiding this is the A30 which would be absolutely joyless. So, on the basis that you'll be doing the hardest bit fixed anyway, I wouldn't worry about the rest, you can route for gradual gradients and still enjoy the scenic beauty!
owl
No, but I would just offer the counterpoint that you would miss so many of the highlights of the route, at least personally when I did it a few years back. I drew my own route to hit places I wanted to ride and stay with some friends along the way, but massively recommend all of the black mountains/gospel pass, wye valley, the peaks, north york moors, the lakes, the trossachs - you don't have to take extreme climbs in any of them, but these are some of the most beautiful parts of the UK and would be very reluctant to lose them from a ride like this. The Northumbrian/Eastern borders are both lovely, but personally far less interesting/beautiful than what you'd be missing out on. Obviously I wasn't doing it fixed, which clearly impacts your approach to hills, but from a purely scenic perspective I would recommend taking in the hills if at all possible.