Editing Middle England

{{Short description|Conservative middle classes in England}}
{{about|the socio-political term|the geographical area in the centre of England|The Midlands|the medieval form of language|Middle English}}

[[File:Cricket at Wormsley (geograph 3635634).jpg|300px|thumb|Typically English activities such as [[village cricket]] matches popularly evoke an image of Middle England]]
The phrase "'''Middle England'''" is a [[socio-political]] term which generally refers to [[middle class]] or [[lower middle class]] people in [[England]] who hold [[traditional conservative]] or [[right-wing politics|right-wing views]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Jack |last=O'Sullivan |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/what-is-middle-england-1201255.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220514/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/what-is-middle-england-1201255.html |archive-date=2022-05-14 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=What is Middle England? |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |date=29 August 1998 |accessdate=29 October 2012 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Peter |last=Cole |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/aug/20/mondaymediasection.pressandpublishing |title=Why middle England gets the Mail |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=19 August 2007 |accessdate=29 October 2012 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/linda-grant-the-mail-turns-on-the-charm-449694.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220514/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/linda-grant-the-mail-turns-on-the-charm-449694.html |archive-date=2022-05-14 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |first=Ian |last=Burrell |title=Linda Grant: The 'Mail' turns on the charm |newspaper=The Independent |date=21 May 2007 |accessdate=29 October 2012 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Stuart |last=Maconie |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/stop-knocking-middle-england-209179 |title=Stop knocking Middle England |newspaper=[[Daily Mirror]] |date=19 March 2010 |accessdate=29 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Kuper |first=Simon |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/034a66a2-dcb7-11e1-99f3-00144feab49a.html#axzz2AgKNIrH6 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/b46X7 |archive-date=2022-12-10 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Heroes reconquer nation for Middle England |newspaper=[[Financial Times]] |date=2 August 2012 |accessdate=29 October 2012}}</ref>

==Origins==
The origins of the term "Middle England" are not known. Writer [[Ian Hislop]] found evidence of the British Prime Minister [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Lord Salisbury]]'s using the term in 1882, but it did not gain popularity at the time.<ref>Moran 2005 p. 232</ref> Modern popular usage of the phrase has been attributed to [[Margaret Thatcher]] who, according to the historian [[David Cannadine]], introduced the expression into political phraseology by adopting [[Richard Nixon]]'s concept of "[[Middle America (United States)|Middle America]]".<ref name="reeves">{{cite journal |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2007/10/middle-england-class-social |first=Richard |last=Reeves |title=Middle England. They're nicer than you think |journal=[[New Statesman]] |date=25 October 2007 |accessdate=30 October 2012}}</ref> However, [[Joe Moran (social historian)|Joe Moran]] found that, although the concept originated in Thatcherism, the term itself was rarely used by Thatcher, or by national newspapers until the 1990s [[premiership of John Major]].<ref>Moran 2005 p. 233</ref>

==Modern usage==
[[File:Canal buildings at Tyrley Wharf, Staffordshire - geograph.org.uk - 1606443.jpg|thumb|Middle England's political opinions, such as [[Euroscepticism in the United Kingdom|Euroscepticism]], are considered highly influential]]
[[File:English Festival, St. George's Day, Riverside, Medway, Women's Institute.jpg|thumb|The [[Women's Institute]] is strongly associated with the concept of Middle England]]

The primary meaning of the term is now a [[political]] or [[sociological]] one (as is also the case for the term "[[Middle America (United States)|Middle America]]" or "[[Middle Australia]]"). It principally indicates the [[middle class]]es or lower-middle classes of non-urban Britain, but also carries connotations of "[[Deep England]]". John Major's 1993 speech to the  [[Conservative Group for Europe]] is often cited, evoking romantic imagery of rural [[cricket|cricket match]]es, [[real ale|warm beer]], suburban gardens, and "old maids bicycling to [[Holy Communion]] through the morning mist" (itself based on a quote from [[George Orwell]]).<ref name="easton">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/markeaston/2010/10/in_search_of_middle_england.html |first=Mark |last=Easton |title=In search of Middle England |newspaper=BBC |date=6 October 2010 |accessdate=31 October 2012}}</ref>

Although Middle England does not refer to a geographical region, it may be understood to refer to the inhabitants of [[suburb]]s in the [[South of England]] and [[the Midlands]], typified by the small towns that make up "[[Metro-Land]]", the suburban areas north-west of London that are served by [[London Underground]]'s [[Metropolitan line]].<ref name="reeves" /> The [[BBC]] described the Kent town of [[Tunbridge Wells]] as the "spiritual home" of Middle England, with particular reference to the popular characterisation of "[[Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells]]", the [[pseudonym]] of an imaginary, incensed letter-writer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/1999/02/99/e-cyclopedia/318036.stm |title=Tunbridge Wells: The spiritual home of Middle England |website=[[BBC News]] |date=13 April 1999 |accessdate=30 October 2012}}</ref> Emphasising its lack of geographical location, the writer Nick Inman likened Middle England to [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s [[Middle-earth]]: "We know everything about it except where it is".<ref name="inman">{{cite book|last1=Inman|first1=Nick|title=Politipedia: A Compendium of Useful and Curious Facts about British Politics|year=2007|publisher=Harriman House Limited|page=192|isbn=9781905641338|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eODYFUbjqIcC&q=Middle%20England%20politics&pg=PA192|accessdate=4 February 2017|language=en}}</ref>

The term is used by journalists to refer to the presumed views of mainstream English and to a lesser extent British people, as opposed to minorities of all types (the rich or the poor, [[Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom|ethnic minorities]], [[LGBT rights in the United Kingdom|gays, lesbians and bisexuals]], the [[List of pressure groups in the United Kingdom|politically active]], the [[intelligentsia]], etc.). In particular, it is increasingly used to denote the more [[right-wing]] views of those who are not in such minorities.<ref name="easton" /><ref>{{cite news |first=Tim |last=Adams |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/apr/10/britishidentity.features |title=This green and pleasant land |newspaper=[[The Observer]] |date=10 April 2005 |accessdate=31 October 2012 |location=London}}</ref> The phrase "Middle England" may be regarded by some as interchangeable with "Middle Britain", particularly with reference to political campaigns that seek to include middle-class voters in [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]], but commentators such as Cannadine have assessed it as a designation specific to a segment of England, not Britain as a whole.<ref name="cannadine">{{cite book|last1=Cannadine|first1=David|title=Class in Britain|date=30 March 2000|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=9780141927800|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZuHYz0KGRD8C&q=%22middle%20britain%22%20%22middle%20england%22&pg=PT230|accessdate=4 February 2017|language=en}}</ref> John Major's 1993 speech has been noted for its culturally selective evocation of Britain, omitting [[inner city|inner cities]], [[Association football|football]], people who are [[Unemployment in the United Kingdom|unemployed]], [[Mining in the United Kingdom|coal mines]], [[Islam in the United Kingdom|Muslims]], and the other [[Countries of the United Kingdom|Constituent Countries of the United Kingdom]].<ref name="kumar">{{cite book|last1=Kumar|first1=Krishan|title=The Making of English National Identity|date=13 March 2003|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521777360|page=227|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CaHtD5DiWzwC&q=old%20maids%20bicycling%20to%20Holy%20Communion%20%22middle%20england%22&pg=PA227|accessdate=4 February 2017|language=en}}</ref>

People who belong to the Middle England grouping are typically said to be [[White people|white]], middle class or lower-middle class, [[heterosexual]], with a strong [[work ethic]] and a highly developed sense of [[conscientiousness]]. They may typically read the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', a popular British newspaper known for its conservative [[Media bias|editorial bias]], and are also sometimes referred to as the "[[silent majority]]" or "moral majority" in the British media.<ref name="reeves" /><ref name="inman" />

==In politics==
In [[British politics]], Middle England is considered as a grouping to be especially important because of its potential to swing the results of [[List of United Kingdom general elections|United Kingdom general elections]]; according to the [[Opinion poll|polling company]] [[MORI]], Middle England is said to make up 25% of the UK population, its members are not devoted to any particular party and may be swayed by successful political campaigning, and many live in [[Marginal seat|marginal constituencies]].<ref name="reeves" /> Middle England was also considered to be a major force in the [[Brexit|vote to leave the European Union]] during the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|2016 European Union membership referendum]].<ref name="buck">{{cite news|last1=Buck|first1=Tobias|title=Middle England drives Brexit revolution|url=https://www.ft.com/content/63beb670-321f-11e6-ad39-3fee5ffe5b5b |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/63beb670-321f-11e6-ad39-3fee5ffe5b5b |archive-date=2022-12-10 |url-access=subscription|accessdate=4 February 2017|work=Financial Times|date=15 June 2016}}</ref> Following the [[2025 United Kingdom local elections]], the [[Leader of the Liberal Democrats]], Sir [[Ed Davey]], said he believes his party is shaping up to be "the new party of middle England", replacing the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=UK local election results live: Huge swings see Reform gain control of several councils after by-election and mayoral wins |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c39jedewxp8t?post=asset:ecc4a76d-bf8e-43e3-870f-825716bbf4ec#post |access-date=2025-05-02 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Other institutions==
Members of the [[Countryside Alliance]] may be considered to be typical of Middle England,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/analysis/story/0,,1437728,00.html |first=Kirsty |last=Milne |title=Rise of the press-protest axis |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=15 March 2005 |accessdate=29 October 2012}}</ref><ref name="inman" /> while members of the [[Women's Institute]] have been described as "the backbone of Middle England".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Neal|first1=Sarah|title=Rural Identities: Ethnicity and Community in the Contemporary English Countryside|date=15 April 2016|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317060826|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U0kGDAAAQBAJ&q=Middle%20England%20womens%20institute&pg=PA8|accessdate=4 February 2017|language=en}}</ref>

==Related terms==
Other demographic [[persona]]s associated with Middle England include "[[Mondeo Man]]" (a term attributed to [[Tony Blair]] which describes a middle-class [[floating voter]] who owns a [[Ford Mondeo]]); "[[Worcester woman]]" (a provincial voter with little actual political awareness); "[[Essex Man]]" (an aspirational lower-middle-class voter from [[Essex]]); and "Pebbledash people" (a term coined by [[ICM Research]] to describe married [[White-collar worker|white collar]] couples who live in [[semi-detached house]]s covered in [[pebbledash]]).<ref>Moran 2005 p. 237</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|England|Politics|Society}}
{{Div col}}
*[[Merry England]]
*[[Little Englander]]
*[[Demographics of England]]
*[[Social structure of the United Kingdom]]
*[[Middle America (United States)|Middle America]]
{{Div col end}}

==Sources==
* {{cite journal |last1=Moran |first1=Joe |title=The Strange Birth of Middle England |journal=The Political Quarterly |date=April 2005 |volume=76 |issue=2 |pages=232–240 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-923X.2005.00675.x |url=https://www.academia.edu/download/56774386/Strange_birth.pdf |via=academia.edu |url-access=registration |access-date=8 March 2024}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{England topics}}

[[Category:Culture of England]]
[[Category:Society of England]]
[[Category:Class-related slurs]]
[[Category:Political terminology in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Social class in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Stereotypes of the middle class]]
[[Category:Socioeconomic stereotypes]]