England after Britain - post-election reading

Imagined Nation: England after Britain

Mark Perryman (ed)

(from Our Kingdom blog)

Imagined Nation: England after Britain
The break-up of Britain has begun but, unlike the rest of its constituent parts, England remains an imagined nation. Scotland has a Parliament, and Wales and Northern Ireland have Assemblies. What does England have as a nation state - apart from a team to cheer and a flag to wave?

Imagined Nation explores the possibilities for England after Britain - as a multicultural nation, capable of addressing the legacies of history, yet confident enough to construct an inclusive future.

The contributors to this book put forward a variety of ideas in an effort to begin to create a new imaginary for an old country. Rejecting racialised ideas of Englishness, they outline the prospects for a hybrid nation, and offer a vision of a green and pleasant land as an alternative national future.

'Some of the sharpest thinking around on both the pitfalls of nationalism and the potential for a progressive English identity'
Gary Younge

'Mark Perryman has long been one of the more articulate commentators on issues of national identity'
Andrew Shields, Time Out

'Mark Perryman, the supreme documenter of English fandom'
Brian Appleyard, Sunday Times

Mark Perryman is writer and regular TV commentator on Englishness and football, and a lecturer in sports journalism at Brighton University. He is convenor of the London England Fans supporters' group, co-founder of Philosophy Football and author of a number of books, including Ingerland: Travels with a Football Nation and (as editor) The Blair Agenda.