Powellite nostalgia and racialised nationalist narratives: Connecting Global Britain and Little England

This article explores how a Powellite form of nostalgia – named for the anti-immigration politics former British MP Enoch Powell connects seemingly contradictory nationalist narratives known as Global Britain and Little England. While is typically aligned with an expansive buccaneering national biography, latter held to operate via more defensive exclusionary imaginary. challenges such binary distinction by demonstrating two discursive strands are intimately connected nostalgic views about white English racial dominance, cultivated during Britain’s pursuit empire. Drawing on qualitative analysis verbal visual sources from Brexit referendum, plus 13 interviews Leave campaigners, shows reproduces gendered racialised colonial images nation amid immigration ‘crisis’. Despite detoxifying effects much post-referendum analysis, also demonstrates shared across Eurosceptic spectrum within broader culture, persisting into post-Brexit era.