Britain: An Island people. Exposure Awards 2014

Britain: An Island people. Britain, the planet's ninth largest & Europe’s largest island, where nowhere is more than 70 miles from the sea, populated by three different nationalities, to the tune of almost 61 million souls, has, in 2014 already faced one referendum with a "Yes" or "No" vote to ascertain if Scotland would break away from the political union that has bound itself to England for three hundred years. A referendum which is more than likely to re-appear in the not too distant future, with an newly invigorated & galvanised Scottish Nationalist Party, buoyed up by their 45% of the Scottish vote, and their promise to go it alone should the central powers in Westminster renege on the raft of political pledges made in the summer in a what seemed to be an attempt to appease the Scottish electorate at the 23rd hour; yet post referendum it seems Scotland is still very much on a collision course with England and Wales. Unsurprisingly, both the Welsh & to a lesser extent, the English electorate made their own views & disquiet known. 2016 will see a General Election for Britain, potentially feeding the fires of Nationalism and separation, political posturing and yet more promises of devolved power for the regions, lessening Westminster’s grip upon this union of three nations under one flag, coexisting on this one island. In 2017, there is proposed another collective referendum for all three nations, this time to decide on Britain’s future within or outside of the European Union. Are three countries, Wales, Scotland and England, each living together on the one island, allied together under political union, united in so many aspects of their daily lives for so long, so intertwined, such that they are, in effect, indivisible? 5500 miles later, this is the photographic record of a seven month 'cycle ride around the island of Britain to attempt to answer this question.