Last Whites Of The East End

Danthus

Danthus

Danthus

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It's popcorn time!

Newham in London's East End is home to a tight-knit white working-class community who have lived there for centuries. But over the past 15 years something extraordinary has happened to this cockney tribe - more than half of them have disappeared. Now the few who remain are struggling to hold on to their identity in the place they have always called home.

Newham has been shaped by immigration for generations, but the past 15 years have been defined by it, as Newham welcomed the highest numbers of new residents anywhere in the country. At the same time more than half the white British population have vanished - breaking apart the tight-knit families their community was built on.

A decade of mass immigration and 'white flight' has brought Newham to its tipping point, and now Newham has the lowest white British population of anywhere in the UK.

Filmed over several months, this documentary records the thoughts, feelings and experiences of the white residents of Newham, as they leave the place where they've grown up.

From young mum Leanne, who has made the difficult decision to leave her tight-knit extended family in search of 'a better life' in Essex, to mixed-race Tony who wants to find somewhere to bring up his baby daughter that feels more like what he knows, these are the stories of people who are struggling with rapid change.

Many cling on to the past, fighting to keep the last places going where the white community meet, like Peter Bell, manager of the East Ham Working Men's Club. This is now a hidden world of tea dances, boxing and drinking in the last club left - an oasis for those left behind.

This thoughtful, reflective film hears these voices for the first time. It uncovers what it really feels like to have society change around you.
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Tuck in at 10.45pm this evening!
 
I lived there for thirteen years, first in Stratford and then Manor Park, not far from that Mac 10 in ten minutes member. I miss the convenience for airports and Central London etc but that's it.
 
Their accents are how I imagine taking a drill to your head feels/sounds.

"It's hard to find someone that speaks English in Newham" at least that's what the subtitles say :D.
 
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OldCoals said:
Quite interesting that immigrants themselves are worried about immigration and how their children will integrate.
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I've heard the same concerns from immigrant friends of mine and it's quite comical to hear a Ukrainian say he is struggling for decent paying work because of, "too many foreigners" (ie: being undercut).
 
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uvarvu said:
I lived there for thirteen years, first in Stratford and then Manor Park, not far from that Mac 10 in ten minutes member. I miss the convenience for airports and Central London etc but that's it.
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I lived in Stratford for six years too. There's something admirable about its immunity to gentrification despite all of the Olympics money.
 
OldCoals said:
Quite interesting that immigrants themselves are worried about immigration and how their children will integrate.
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that is quite common, once people have integrated they're going to have similar views to the rest of the population so there will be a fair few immigrants who've settled here or maybe the sons/daughters of immigrants who aren't so happy with say 'all the bloody Polish shops on the high street' (next to the Halal butchers and the Turkish Kebab shop which have been there for a couple of decades now)
 
If this show was all about the savage Tory cuts or how unlimited migration has enriched our culture would it have been hidden away at such a late hour.?
 
John40 said:
If this show was all about the savage Tory cuts would it have been hidden away at such a late hour.?
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It wouldn'tve been made. They'd just churn out another series of Benefit Street or something.
 
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More like the whites are selling up their 3 bed terraced house for half a mil and moving to Cheaper areas in Essex. Makes sense I guess
 
property prices are doing just as much to drive out the white working-class community in all parts of London, where I grew up in London one bed flats are now £600 + per week
 
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