Working-Class Lives: Identity and Political Fractures episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 15, 2026 · 41 MIN

Working-Class Lives: Identity and Political Fractures

from Start the Week · host BBC Radio 4

What has happened to working-class identity in Britain? On Radio 4's weekly discussion programme, Adam Rutherford explores the political fractures within families and communities.Nicola Wilding discusses These Wild English: A Family, a Class, a Country on Fire, tracing three generations of her family and the pull of belonging, nationalism and far-right politics amid economic decline. Natasha Carthew draws on her personal experience of growing up poor in Cornwall in her latest work. Rough Edges brings to light the inequalities shaping coastal communities, where austerity, second homes and seasonal work deepen divisions and marginalisation. The poet Daljit Nagra reflects on his upbringing in a predominantly white working-class town for his latest collection, Yiewsley, exploring race, migration and the cultural shifts that have reshaped Britain from the post-war years to the present.Producer: Katy Hickman

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jun 15, 2026

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Working-Class Lives: Identity and Political Fractures

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