Underdogs cover art

Underdogs

The Truth About Britain's White Working Class

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Underdogs

By: Joel Budd
Narrated by: Oliver Hembrough, Joel Budd
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About this listen

Including a preface read by the author, Joel Budd.

Underdogs
is a compelling, myth-busting account of white working-class Britain.

'Few books bring so much fresh thinking to tired arguments' - Robert Ford, author of Brexitland
________


No large group of people in Britain is as badly misunderstood as the white working class. Its members have been caricatured as grumpy and backward-looking, as incorrigibly xenophobic, even racist – a tired and simplistic narrative perpetuated by commentators and the media. The truth is entirely different.

Thirty years ago, almost nobody talked about the white working class: in the House of Commons and the House of Lords the term had been used just three times in the previous two decades. Brexit helped to turn the group into a towering social and political force. But, in the aftermath, one-third of the population has been reduced to a cartoon. A shrewder analysis is badly needed. Underdogs provides it.

Veteran Economist journalist Joel Budd has spent years travelling around Britain, from Teesside to the Isle of Wight, south Wales to Lincolnshire. In Underdogs he offers a sharp corrective to the familiar stereotype of the white working class. It describes a hugely diverse group of people that is driving social and cultural change, not just grumbling about it.

Labour & Industrial Relations Political Science Politics & Government Sociology Social justice Socialism

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Critic reviews

A thoughtful, insightful and measured account of the life of Britain’s white working classes.
Demolishes Brexit myths . . . This book is not just well-timed but admirably powerful.
The vibrant pictures Budd paints will stay long in the memory . . . This book will change how you see Britain. (Robert Ford, author of Brexitland)
Outstanding journalism . . . The macro is there but the micro draws out the best writing from this gifted reporter.
Excellent . . . illuminates the UK's present political moment superbly.
This has never been more needed . . . a robust account of the history of the white working-class.
Budd deftly negotiates his way through this treacherous terrain . . . Thoughtful and nuanced.
Packed with revealing content.
An immersive read . . . an important book. Essential reading for anybody who wants to make sense of Britain today.
All stars
Most relevant
very interesting read. if a bit centrist for an old lefty like me! sensible and well argued, avoiding the populism of far right

a must read

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Wonderful! Inciteful, heartfelt and thoroughly entertaining. Great narrator too. I finished the whole book in a couple of days

Fascinating

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Ground breaking insights into the history of period immigration into the UK and the aftermath divided ethnocentric preconceptions ie following ...
🟢Post second world war Polish immigration to the UK to
🟢 Post second world war invited Wind Rush immigration to aid the reconstruction efforts
🟢 The Ugandan Asian 1970s immigration expelled from Uganda
🟢 Decades of socio-economic , political , religious and military instability engulfing African nations triggering mass emigration
🟢 The Central European Balkan Wars and the fall of Yugoslavia triggering mass emigration
🟢The Iraq war and the subsequent Middle East conflicts immigration
🟢 The current English Channel asylum immigrant boats

Billy Elliott Vs Oliver Twist , we are all immigrants !

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Really interesting analysis that helped me understand Britain and its politics better. A couple of chapters feel a bit random, but great and really interesting overall!

Fascinating!

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A great informative book that provides a fresh reflection on the state we are in

Great read

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