What does it mean to be British?

Introducing a themed week on the NS blogs.

By Samira Shackle Published 11 June 2012

What does it mean to be British? It is a question which has been on the political agenda for the last week, after the Labour leader Ed Miliband made a speech addressing the question of devolution, British identity, and the union. In it, he said that the left has traditionally "been too nervous to talk of English pride and English character," both for fear of undermining the union and of the association with racist nationalism.

While the English question is often overlooked in favour of discussions of Scotland or Wales, it is impossible to consider in isolation from the issue of its larger partner, Britain. As Scotland prepares itself for a vote on independence, the question of these identities is prescient. And Britishness is nothing if not a plural set of identities: encompassing not just English, Welsh, Scottish or Northern Irish strands, but British Asian, British Carribean, British Jewish, and any number of other ethnic and regional identifications.

The Queen's Diamond Jubille saw the most ostentatious outpouring of national pride in recent memory - excepting football matches, of course - with the Union Jack bunting only just coming down. To an outside observer, this would appear to signal a nation comfortable with itself and proud of its history. But is that really the case?

In a series of themed blogs this week, the NS will look at what Britishness is and how it is reflected in our day to day lives. Kicking off the series, Rebecca Omonira-Oyekanmi will look at what Britishness looks like from the outside, from the perspective of undocumented migrants. Later in the week, we'll discuss the changing role of the Church of England, and how the tabloids use Britishness.

If you have any suggestions about what we should cover, leave a comment or find us on Twitter: @newstatesman

Day One: What does Britishness look like from the outside? by Rebecca Omonira-Oyekanmi

Day Two: "Plastic Brits": are some Olympians more worthy of a cheer than others? by Steve Baxter

Day Three: Is there any such thing as British ethnicity? by Samira Shackle

Day Four: God's peculiar people, by Nelson Jones

Day Five: Can lefties do Britishness? by Rowenna Davis

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Tags: What does it mean to be British?

View the discussion thread.

9 comments

Fri, 2012-06-15 15:05 — Barrie J (not verified)

What is it with all this 'bunting and outpourings of national pride'?
I drove from Milton Keynes to Cardiff and back over the Jubilee weekend and saw more bunting in our local Poundland.
I know of only one street (about two miles away) that had a street party - it ran to two household tables and was abandoned after about forty minutes.
National pride seems to raise it's ugly head when governments need our continuing support to justify the deaths and maiming of our military forces in some ill conceived foreign debacle.
We are a mongrel nation run by a bunch of corrupt corporate monkeys living on a sh#tty little island off the coast of Europe.
Few of our sporting heroes know all the words of our National Anthem, those that do, daren't sing the second verse and very few of our local taxi drivers even speak English, let alone the ability to drive you efficiently to your destination.

Wed, 2012-06-13 19:51 — Agent (not verified)

One shit government after another, in the rain.

Tue, 2012-06-12 11:38 — JJJ (not verified)

For the chattering classes, it seems to mean making a virtue out of self-loathing.

For everyone else, I'm not sure it "means" anything. It's a nationality not a philosophy. What does being French mean? Or Nigerian? Or Azerbaijani?

Tue, 2012-06-12 09:02 — Getty (not verified)

To drive in wrong way a life time.

jocuri gratis frumoase

Tue, 2012-06-12 07:27 — Dutchy (ageing Class Warrior) (not verified)

As I see it! It would seem that the present Tory led coalition Government are under attack more effectively from their own back benches than from the opposition. Conservative member Nadine Dorries warned David Cameron that he could be deposed by party members who fear his courting of the pro-European Lib Dems will remove any chance of winning power outright in 2015.Following the disastrous results in the local elections saw Clegg and Cameron that well known coalition double act planning to re-launch the coalition. Desperate times call for desperate actions. Boy-oh-boy! They are most certainly desperate times for the coalition. At the moment it seems as though marriage counseling is the order of the day. My own view is that the marriage of Lib Dems and Tories needs more than counseling I firmly believe a divorce is in the offing.
LONDON
The one gain that the Tories can brag about is Boris's win in the London elections for Mayor. This result went completely against the rest of the country which saw labour take control of councils up and down the country. Political pundits have been trying to find reason for this. At least, not one of them has had the temerity to suggest that London went Conservative. My own view is Boris is an eccentric, despite being a typical 'hooray henry' he is popular not for his politics but for his eccentricities and gaffes. If there is one thing that the Brits love it is a loveable fool. Boris is certainly that!

Mon, 2012-06-11 12:11 — J. Heinz (not verified)

For the record, I only posted that comment once.

Mon, 2012-06-11 12:10 — J. Heinz (not verified)

The simple answer is nothing, nothing at all. Nations are just invisible lines in the dirt, within the confines of which we've developed our own culture and a sense of inexplicable pride - like somehow our patch of dirt is better than anyone else's. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to see so many people come together and celebrate and share in something, I just wish it was for a better reason. It will be interesting to read the one about the tabloids though, I've always felt they use Britishness as a rallying cry whenever they want us to collectively attack something they don't like.