Unofficial Britain Journeys Through Unexpected Places

LONGLISTED FOR RSL ONDAATJE PRIZE 2021

There is a Britain that exists outside of the official histories and guidebooks - places that lie on the margins, left behind. A Britain in the cracks of the urban facade where unexpected life can flourish.

Welcome to Unofficial Britain. This is a land of industrial estates, factories and electricity pylons, of motorways and ring roads, of hospitals and housing estates, of roundabouts and flyovers. Places where modern life speeds past but where people and stories nevertheless collect. Places where human dramas play out: stories of love, violence, fear, boredom and artistic expression. Places of ghost sightings, first kisses, experiments with drugs, refuges for the homeless, hangouts for the outcasts.

Struck by the power of these stories and experiences, Gareth E. Rees set out to explore these spaces and the essential part they have played in the history and geography of our isles. Though mundane and neglected, they can be as powerfully influential in our lives, and imaginations, as any picture postcard tourist destination.

Gareth E. Rees is founder of the popular Unofficial Britain website and author of three books, Marshland (2013), The Stone Tide (2018) and Car Park Life, which was published to rave reviews in 2019. Born in Germany, brought up in Scotland and the north of England, he lived in London for many years before moving to Hastings. The modern myths and folklore of place have always driven his writing, which includes horror and weird fiction tales for numerous anthologies, including The Best of British Fantasy 2019.

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION: The Magic, Mythology and Folklore of Urban Space ix 1. IN WORSHIP OF THE HUM: The Strange Religion of Electricity Pylons 1 2. ENERGY CIRCLES: The Power of Ring Roads and Roundabouts 25 3. DEMONS IN THE PRESENT: The Haunting of Housing Estates 51 4. UP IN SMOKE: Under the Influence of Breweries, Factories and Power Stations 87 5. INTO THE UNDERWORLD: The Cult of Flyovers and Underpasses 109 6. THIN PLACES: Beasts and Legends of the Industrial Estate 137 7. CONCRETE CASTLES: Life and Death in the Multistorey 165 8. THEATRE OF FATE: A Hospital Anthology 185 9. MEMORY MOTORWAYS: An Emotional Life of the M6 209 EPILOGUE 245 Acknowledgements 251 Bibliography 253 Notes 257 Index 261