In These Wild English, documentary-maker Nicola Wilding investigates her mother Sandra Forsyth's unexpected embrace of far-right activism in her late 50s. Sandra, a Cumbria-born care worker living in Dover, began marching with the English Defence League (EDL) in 2013 after the murder of soldier Lee Rigby by Islamist terrorists. Wilding, the eldest of four children, probes the roots of this transformation, tracing three generations of family history marked by poverty, instability, and systemic neglect.
The Catalyst: Lee Rigby's Murder and Tommy Robinson
Sandra's radicalization followed a period of intense stress: her son was sentenced to two years for armed robbery, and her job caring for adults with complex needs involved physical assaults. The murder of Lee Rigby in May 2013 triggered her anger, and she began watching Facebook videos by Tommy Robinson, co-founder of the EDL. By September 2013, she was protesting in London. Wilding writes, 'How did my mum, this proud tough woman who had brought up four kids pretty much alone, end up marching alongside far-right extremists chanting “No more refugees”?'
A Family History of Hardship
Wilding traces Sandra's life from the 1960s on her father's farm in Eden Valley, Cumbria, where she cared for siblings during her mother's frequent disappearances. At 18, Sandra became pregnant; the father left within two years, leaving her a penniless single mother. This pattern repeated: new relationships, new homes, financial collapse, and fresh starts. Wilding connects these personal struggles to broader political events: the winter of discontent, mass unemployment, Thatcher's right-to-buy scheme, the foot-and-mouth outbreak, the 2008 financial crisis, Tory austerity, and Brexit.
Beyond One-Dimensional Depictions
Wilding rejects simplistic portrayals of the white working class as aggressors manipulated by politicians. Instead, she offers a nuanced exploration of Sandra's dissatisfaction, showing how systemic forces shaped her choices. The book acknowledges that Sandra was an excellent care worker who endured grueling conditions, yet found resonance in the EDL's message. Wilding's prose is 'thoughtful and elegantly understated,' according to the review.
Personal and Political Blended
The memoir also examines Wilding's own position as the family member who achieved stability through education and a career in documentary-making. She credits writer and farmer James Rebanks for encouraging her to turn her lens on her own family. The result is a blend of personal narrative and political analysis, illustrating how families are shaped by circumstance and inherited trauma. At its heart is Sandra: 'wayward, charismatic, fierce, caring and – wisely or not – always up for a fight.'
These Wild English: A Family, a Class, a Country on Fire by Nicola Wilding is published by Profile (£16.99).
