Erdington, eh? That's where me Dad's from. Not relevant to the thread but just thought I'd say.

Could I also say that despite various of my ancestors being here for a long while, my surname is of Norman origins, so maybe I'd better repatriate myself back to the wilfully flattest bit of France I can find.

To me, espousing views on immigration that almost exactly replicate those of the BNP is at worse racist, at best stupid. If that shower o' shite got any real power, you'd probably get your monocultural, retrogressive England, but at a hell of a price. Maybe you think it's one worth paying, but if you truly joined forces with those who'd like to expel or marginalise my black and asian British mates, as a modern Englishman, I'd be forced to indulge in the "tradition" of fighting you all the way to A&E in their defence. Bollocks to the niceties, then. Don't you realise you're playing with fire with these fascistic opinions, WAV?

Why can't we celebrate that many of our best traditions either originated abroad or were influenced by things brought in from abroad? Morris (possibly 'Moorish') dancing, for instance. What we have becomes stronger when it takes on new life.

It's a bit like the European royals. Keep it in the family for too long and you start growing prehensile tails and webbed feet. Allow a - shall we say - broadening of the cultural gene pool and there's loads of new and exciting tangents to explore. Culture - like folk music - is a process not an arbitrarily frozen moment in time.

WAV - please try to enjoy the England you live in. If you truly don't like it, may I suggest a move to a small town (any small town) in New Zealand? It won't be the imaginary 1950s Britain you dream of, but it does in some ways replicate aspects of 1970s Britain, complete with the "shite comedy" style racism. You'd probably feel right at home. I couldn't wait to get back to good old multicultural Blighty, myself.