Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

This study consists of transcripts of interviews conducted as part of the research project Identity, Inequality and the Media in Brexit-Covid-19-Britain. These transcripts report verbatim on in-depth interviews conducted with interviewees who live in the South West, East Midlands and North East of England. The interviews were designed to explore the ways in which participants perceived and experienced the social and political impacts of COVID-19 and Brexit. They explore the impact of both the pandemic and Brexit on individuals’ daily lives, their sense of belonging (or not) to place and nation, as well as the ways in which individuals engage with the media. Some of the interviews include a discussion of images that the participants felt captured the processes of Brexit and the pandemic. Furthermore, some of the interviews conducted in the South West focussed specifically on the project artist’s representation of the research themes. The study authors conducted 90 interviews for this research. Of these, 80 are included in the UKDS version due to confidentiality considerations.The interviews were conducted between October 2020 and July 2021. During this time England was experiencing national lockdowns and varying degrees of social distancing restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Main Topics:

The topic guide was designed to explore with participants their experiences and views of the pandemic and Brexit, the impact of the pandemic and Brexit on their lives, the place where they lived, and the nation, as well as their daily media practices. We also explored with individuals their views and experiences of other significant social and political events that occurred during the national lockdowns, such as the global impact of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Purposive selection/case studies

Face-to-face interview: Computer-assisted (CAPI/CAMI)