‘It was like someone had died’: MCG focus group relives the Brexit referendum five years on

Catherine Neilan

08:12 25th June 2021

The morning of 24th June 2016 was, for many people, a surreal one. Shortly after the polls closed Nigel Farage said he thought Remain would “edge it”.

There were no exit polls in the vote, but a YouGov opinion poll released as polling stations closed put Remain ahead by 52 per cent to 48 per cent. For Remainers, that ratio would ring in their ears forever more, as hours after conceding defeat Farage was hailing “the UK’s independence day”.

Five years on, we return to our Making Common Ground focus group to discuss how they felt then - and how they feel now - about the decision to break with the EU.

For some it was a terrible moment. It was “like someone had died”, says Susan, who admits she could not speak to her aunt for a week afterwards.

Linda, whose son had just married a Greek woman, felt similarly distraught - and guilty for having “a sense of apathy, because I could not believe people would want to Leave”.

Dale, who voted for Brexit, agreed that Remainers “thought it was a done deal - they kicked off their slippers, lit their pipe - they’ve got themselves to blame really.”

Unlike our other focus group - which you can hear here - this group has largely stuck firm to their initial decision. But have they learned to understand why others voted differently?

Listen to the session in full below.