#windrush generation

[blackstarlineage]

Afro-Caribbean Migration and the Windrush Generation: A Garveyite Perspective

The Windrush Generation, the wave of Afro-Caribbean migrants who arrived in Britain between 1948 and the early 1970s, represents one of the most significant movements of Black people in the 20th century. These migrants came with hopes of economic opportunity, stability, and full participation in British society—only to be met with racism, systemic exclusion, and second-class citizenship. From a Garveyite perspective, this migration was not a success story of integration but a continuation of colonial exploitation, where Black labour was welcomed, but Black people were never truly accepted.

Marcus Garvey warned Black people that seeking equality in white-dominated societies was a trap—one that would always position them as outsiders, no matter how much they contributed. The true path to liberation, according to Garveyism, was not integration but self-determination, economic independence, and repatriation to Africa. Through this lens, the Windrush Generation’s struggles with racism, economic marginalization, and political betrayal were predictable outcomes of a system designed to exploit, not uplift, Black people.

1. The Colonial Roots of the Windrush Migration

The British Empire spent centuries enslaving, exploiting, and underdeveloping the Caribbean, extracting wealth while keeping Black people in a state of economic dependency. After World War II, Britain faced a labour shortage and turned to its former colonies for cheap labour.

A. The Illusion of British Citizenship

Caribbean people were legally British subjects, yet this citizenship was conditional on their usefulness to the empire.

Britain actively recruited Caribbean workers to rebuild its economy, presenting the idea that they were coming to a “motherland” that welcomed them.

This was a lie—they were only seen as labourers, not equals.

Example: The arrival of the HMT Empire Windrush in 1948 was symbolic of how Black people were invited to contribute to Britain’s economy but denied full participation in its society.

Key Takeaway: The British Empire never intended to treat Caribbean migrants as equals—it only needed their labour, not their presence.

2. Betrayal and Racism: The Windrush Experience in Britain

Upon arrival, Afro-Caribbean migrants were met with hostility, racism, and segregation, contradicting the British promise of inclusion.

A. Employment and Economic Exploitation

Windrush migrants were given low-paying, undesirable jobs in public transport, the NHS, and manufacturing.

White workers resented their presence, despite their essential contributions.

Discrimination in hiring and promotions kept many in poverty, despite their skills and qualifications.

Example: Many Black professionals, such as teachers and nurses, had their qualifications dismissed and were forced into menial labour.

B. Housing Discrimination and Social Rejection

Black migrants were refused housing by landlords with “No Blacks, No Irish, No Dogs” signs.

Many were forced into overcrowded, poorly maintained accommodations in segregated areas.

The government did nothing to address racial inequality, leaving Black people in economic and social isolation.

Example: Notting Hill Riots (1958)—White mobs attacked Black communities, proving that Britain’s “inclusion” was a lie.

Key Takeaway: Black people were brought in to serve Britain, not to be part of it. Their contributions were necessary, but their presence was unwanted.

3. The Windrush Scandal: The Final Betrayal

Decades after their arrival, the British government launched the Windrush Scandal (2018), deporting and stripping the rights of the very people who built modern Britain.

A. How Britain Used and Discarded the Windrush Generation

In the 2010s, the UK government began deporting Afro-Caribbean elders, claiming they were illegal immigrants.

Many lost jobs, homes, and access to healthcare due to racist immigration policies.

The same people who were invited to rebuild Britain were now being exiled from it.

Example: Elderly Windrush migrants who had lived in Britain for 50+ years were suddenly detained and deported, despite being legal residents.

Key Takeaway: This was proof that Black people would never be considered truly British, no matter how much they contributed.

4. The Garveyite Perspective: Afro-Caribbeans Must Prioritize Self-Determination Over Integration

Marcus Garvey predicted this long ago—integration into white nations is not liberation, but subjugation.

A. The Failure of Seeking Acceptance in White Societies

Windrush migrants spent decades building Britain, only to be discarded when they were no longer needed.

Assimilation into a white nation will never lead to true equality—Black people will always be second-class citizens.

Relying on white governments to recognize Black contributions is a mistake.

Example: Garvey warned that Black people must never beg white nations for rights but must build their own institutions instead.

B. The Need for Economic Independence and Pan-Africanism

Caribbean nations remain economically dependent on Britain, just as Windrush migrants remained dependent on a racist state.

The solution is Pan-African economic self-sufficiency—building Black-owned businesses, schools, and governments free from European control.

Caribbean people must stop seeing Britain as a future and look toward Africa, the Caribbean, and Black nations for their destiny.

Example: Garvey’s UNIA movement aimed to create a Black nation built by Black people, not dependent on white acceptance.

Key Takeaway: Afro-Caribbean people must stop seeking approval from Britain and instead build economic and political power for themselves.

5. The Future: Reparations, Repatriation, and Black Sovereignty

The Windrush Generation’s story is not just one of migration—it is a warning about the dangers of Black dependence on white systems.

Britain owes reparations for the exploitation, racism, and betrayal of Afro-Caribbean migrants.

Afro-Caribbean youth must shift their focus away from Britain and toward Black economic and cultural independence.

Repatriation to Africa, economic investment in the Caribbean, and Pan-African unity must replace the outdated belief that integration into European society is the path to freedom.

Example: Marcus Garvey’s dream was a self-sufficient Black world, where no Black person had to beg a white government for survival.

Final Takeaway: The Windrush Generation’s suffering proves that Black people must build for themselves—because white nations will always turn their backs on them.

[thewales-family]

The Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Grange Pavilion as they celebrate the beginning of Black History Month and the 75th of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush, in Cardiff, Wales -October 3rd 2023.

[luvmesumus]

[youfillmewithinertia-xoxo]

Whitechapel, London (1964) by Ian Berry

[ryanwclement]

Windrush Day 2024

[mrsm-h]

Happy Windrush Day! 🌟

Today, we honor and celebrate the incredible men and women who came to Britain to help rebuild the nation after World War II. 🌍✊🏾

76 years ago, the Empire Windrush arrived at Tilbury Docks with 1,027 passengers from the Caribbean.

Today, we remember our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents who left everything behind to restore a war-torn Britain.

However, we must also acknowledge those still affected by the Windrush scandal. Many are living in poverty, awaiting compensation after decades of unjust immigration policies.

As of March 2024, around 1,050 claims are still pending.

For more details on the Windrush Compensation Scheme, click on the link below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/windrush-compensation-scheme-data-march-2024

Artwork by: Rosie Williams

[thewales-family]

The Princess of Wales visits Fitzalan High School as she celebrates the beginning of Black History Month and the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush, in Cardiff, Wales -October 3rd 2023.

[yearningforunity]

Without The Windrush Generation, British MC Culture Would Be Non-Existent

Over the decades, descendants of the Windrush Generation have built legacies that have changed Britain musically and culturally forever. Today, we say thank you.

[e5e5e5e5e5]

So just, like, in theory;

If I walked the width of the new world, Dayna Point to Cobscook Bay or whatever;

Proclaimers on the Bluetooth speaker the whole way,

Would you yankee dunces shut up about immigrants?

Cause, the economic history says that immigrants are always good for the economy. Someone's gotta wash these dishes.

The political history says that anti immigration stances only lead to emigration. So, economic stagnation at best.

The moral history says that anti progressive stances always fall with time. Progressing towards the future (walking) versus Conserving the past (tripping yourself up).

The geographical history says that poor people and immigrants understand generational wealth much better than citizens of the imperial core.

The geopolitical history says that we all love living in post-communism, no matter how badly the communist state got attacked on it's way there.

Nationalising assets leads to wealth generation, who'dve fecking thunk it other than Norway, Qatar and the USA.

Who'dve gone around bombing anyone who tried to nationalise other than the USA.

New Zealand spent a decade or so tryna nationalise half a century ago and we are still living off the last of those benefits now.

Not for long though. The well is almost dry. Tiwai Point is closed, last I heard.

Guess who made us rejoin the IMF? Guess what happened to Australia when they dared to ask the USA for rent money?

So yeah, what's the price? Cause I have no interest in leaving my paradise to live in a shithole like the USA.

If I walk those 5,000 miles and then get the fuck off your doorstep, what's the price?

Will you realise how huge your country is and stop hassling immigrants? Cause Siberia isn't anti immigration cause no one wants to fecking live there.

I'll walk Cali to NYC, sleeping in a tent. Then you can Coney Island me and take my fecking name away. Then ship me straight to Cuba, your pick of which bay I land in. Gitmo or Pig.

If it means y'all shut up about immigrants for 10 or 20 years til your economy is back on track.

Cause NZ is starting to stagnate so I need to convince my government of the same thing.

And all your tourists come here and complain to me about having to leave home cause of all the immigrants.

And then say how nice it is here, smdh.

Do I look Polynesian to you? Do I look Australian or Chinese? Do you know where New Zealand Aotearoa is on a map?

Shut up and learn to make a decent kebab, you German cunt. Or wash some dishes.

Don't talk to me about fecking immigrants I'm a Galway boy. You made me emigrate cause you knew it would be good for the new world economy.

And you needed the new world economy to provide for the old world cause yours was stagnating.

Cause you didn't wanna support primary industries any more cause your populace was wealthy enough to not want to wash their own dishes.

Off the back of, well, stealing.

Like stealing boat loads of West Africans, South Asians and Caribbeans but only letting them live in fecking Bristol.

[cupofteajones]

Quote of the Day - February 4, 2025

[sexypinkon]

Sexypink - Sabine Kaner’s eclectic stitching in the age of Windrush.

[alpha-mag-media]

Kate and Wills welcomed with open arms at event celebrating Britain’s Windrush generation | In Trend Today

Kate and Wills welcomed with open arms at event celebrating Britain’s Windrush generation Read Full Text or Full Article on MAG NEWS

[ur-mag]

Kate and Wills welcomed with open arms at event celebrating Britain’s Windrush generation | In Trend Today

Kate and Wills welcomed with open arms at event celebrating Britain’s Windrush generation Read Full Text or Full Article on MAG NEWS

[interact-if]

Black History Month Author Spotlight: Kiki

Our third edition of the Black History Month Author Spotlight series, features Kiki (@scapegoated-if)!

(I’m rly happy to have gotten to know Kiki better through the feature, and the interview contains really interesting insights on gender and race-locked main characters in interactive fiction, among other things! If you haven’t yet played Scapegoated (and if you’re a fan of Infamous/music IFs, definitely give it a go!)

Author: Kiki Born and raised North London, but ethnic background Jamaican (my parents are a part of the Windrush Gen)

Games: Scapegoated (slice-of-life, music, hollywood, '70s)

Short blurb: Scapegoated is about a female musician in a band that is seguing into an acting career. She is facing a lot of blame and scandal regarding the split between her band that happened in 1968. Not only are a lot of the general public hurt and angry about it, but so is an infamous serial killer that has been terrorising the west coast...

Quotes from the interview

I’m from North London. My parents moved to London when they were children from the Caribbean and are a part of the Windrush generation. I am a black, bisexual woman growing up in the UK, a place that tends to disguise its wider prejudices as a classist issue in all cases. […] A huge part of my love for music is strongly intertwined with my relationship with my late father. He passed away in June of 2023, and he was very much so kickin’ it in the ‘70s. He was a DJ throughout his life, so the legacy of LPs that he left behind was unspeakable and very ‘70s.

Read on for the full interview!

Tell me more about yourself! What are some things new readers or long-time readers might not know about you?

I graduated from a Russell Group university with an English Literature BA (Hons). I think a part of me has always wanted to be a writer in some capacity; I know that I’ve always wanted to write a book. So, I think beginning this IF has existed for me as a gateway to see what that would be like. I thought of it as a brainteaser–the prospect of exploring different outcomes and different pathways that a character may undertake. It has been challenging, dare I say more challenging than writing an actual book, but that’s exactly what I wanted out of this process.

Can you tell me a bit about what you’re working on right now and your journey into interactive fiction? What inspired the game/story you’re currently writing?

My best friend introduced me to the world of interactive fiction one day last year. She introduced Infamous to me and asserted that I would really like it because I’m a huge music nerd. Of course I fell in love with the characters and the world, but I also fell in love with the format of IFs. 

A huge part of my love for music is strongly intertwined with my relationship with my late father. He passed away in June of 2023, and he was very much so kickin’ it in the ‘70s. He was a DJ throughout his life, so the legacy of LPs that he left behind was unspeakable and very ‘70s. I am a huge music lover with such a wide-spanning eclectic taste, but the period of music post-”Dylan going electric”, post-”Elvis being on the out”, Quincy Jones (rest in king) and Beatlemania is just everything to me, so the idea for Scapegoated came into my life in a very natural way. I knew that whichever story I told, I wanted it to explore the Sunset Strip, groupies, rock ‘n roll, The Beatles, The Manson Family and Cher all at its core. 

I am of the opinion that coverage of the ‘70s music scene has been run into the ground lately. There has been a resurgence of nostalgia within the public consciousness when reflecting upon this time due to Daisy Jones & The Six, which was one of my favourite shows the year it was released. So, including Hollywood and murder was my attempt at innovation.

How has your identity, heritage/background, upbringing, or personal experiences influenced your storytelling or writing process? OR How does your work feature aspects of your identity / experience?

I’m from North London. My parents moved to London when they were children from the Caribbean and are a part of the Windrush generation. I am a black, bisexual woman growing up in the UK, a place that tends to disguise its wider prejudices as a classist issue in all cases. I am writing Scapegoated as someone that has only been to the US twice for two weeks at a time. I am writing Scapegoated as someone that can only relate to two aspects of my main character. I am writing Scapegoated as someone that has experienced discrimination and has been scarred by instances of discrimination. In university, I tended to be quite outspoken; in my first year, I felt quite ostracised by my predominantly white cohort during the BLM movement, because I seemed to be the only one willing to speak out in favour of it.

When I first wrote Scapegoated, I was inboxed on Tumblr and replied to on the Choice of Games Forum with genuine curiosity about my choice to gender and race lock my protagonist. This is an excerpt of my response:

I didn’t want to have a self-insert MC because I wanted to ensure that the conversations had revolving these social issues and the murders that unfold aren’t danced around. Perspective is an extremely important factor in that, and I want to ensure that the MC is directly involved–rather than just there as things happen because it wouldn’t be interactive. [...] Initially when I planned this story, before it was titled and the only thing I knew was that I wanted to write an IF about the '70s music scene, it was neither gender or race locked [...]. But I did toy with my ideas by self-inserting (I’m a black woman) when I was attempting to figure out the logistics of gameplay. That’s when I realised that due to the time period and all of the change that was happening at the time, social issues had to be discussed.

To this day, I am extremely proud of my decision and the conviction in my decision. I asserted a level of loyalty to the story I am telling in a way that I didn’t know I was capable of; retrospectively, I think I took a kind of power in it. But I really love the story I am telling and the range of representation. 

I am trying to work the line of prioritising my vision, all the while giving weight and importance to my readers’ opinions in the way that these very interesting and thorough opinions deserve. It warms my heart that even one person might care about my characters just as much as I do.

what are some of the most rewarding or challenging aspects of writing Interactive Fiction for you?

Songwriting. I’m tragic at it, but I like to think I’m self-aware enough. There are different characters with different voices and different reasonings behind their songwriting styles. I struggle to ensure that their songwriting oozes with their individual personalities. 

What does your writing process look like? Any rituals or habits? Any tips, tricks, philosophies or approaches that have worked very well for you?

Story beats. However, planning and writing can exist as two entirely different realms to me. What I think the story may be, can develop into something entirely new all on its own once I begin to write. Sometimes characters that I think I know transform into someone entirely new once I start to get to know them through writing their dialogue. I’ve experienced this with several characters already. On the contrary, some characters are so secure in my mind that they can’t be anything other than who I’ve introduced them to myself as.

I really love the writing process I’ve conjured up. It hasn’t failed me yet, but it isn’t secure–writing can never be anything other than an insecure process. Writing, for me, always remains in a constant stage of planning.

Do you have favourite interactive fiction games, characters, scenes or authors that you’d like to recommend?

I have received a lot of IF recommendations due to how new I am to IFs. I truly haven’t read very many, so all I can recommend to anybody are the 3 IFs that I have read which I each loved enormously: Infamous; College Tennis: Origin Story; and Apartment 502.

If you were to say one thing to your readers, other authors, and/or the interactive fiction community: what would it be?

I only got here in December, and so far everyone has been extremely welcoming and helpful. Honestly, I have no notes. All I can do is encourage everyone to give writing a chance. It’s been so fruitful and rewarding for me, so I strongly urge everyone to give it a shot if you’re considering it. Stop thinking, just do!

Any books, music, movies etc. you’re obsessed with at the moment, or which changed your life (or perspectives on something)?

I’m currently reading I’m With The Band by Pamela Des Barres as research for my IF, which has been a great insight into the mindset of groupies on an intimate level.

As for something that changed my life, I recently watched Sing Sing (2024)--which wasn’t something I did in relation to Scapegoated, I am just an avid film-watcher–and it was such an incredible de-stigmatising eye into the prison system. An extremely important watch for Black History Month, too!

This-or-that segment: (bold = Kiki's pick)

Coffee or tea?

Early mornings or late nights?

City or countryside?

Angsty or Cozy romances? (Or enemies-to-lovers or best-friends-to-lovers?)  

Steady progress or frenzied binge-writing followed by periods of calm?

Summer or Winter?

First drafts or editing?

Introvert or extrovert?

Plotter or pantser?

Characters or plot first?

Kiki’s custom “either-or” pairing: writing in silence or with music playing?

[thewales-family]

The Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Grange Pavilion as they celebrate the beginning of Black History Month and the 75th of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush, in Cardiff, Wales -October 3rd 2023.

[shuinami]

Part 1: What Exactly is Hobie’s Accent and Who Has It?

Part 2: When, Where, Why (Black Londoner Culture since Windrush) | Part 3: How (Writing Tips)

As a black Londoner, a large reason Hobie is so special to me is because I really saw and heard myself in him, while also not seeing a stereotype or typical, lacking in nuance portrayal of a black Londoner.

A lot of people have given great advice about how to write the dialogue of a British person; however, though the U.K. is a small place, different areas, like anywhere, have very different cultures and accents. Even somewhere as geographically small as London has a few different native accents, as many of you have picked up on, Cockney is one but there is also Received Pronunciation (RP), Estuary English and the one Hobie uses for most of his intro: Multicultural London English (MLE). 

I’m an MLE user myself, as are most black Londoners, including Daniel Kaluuya (who voices Hobie and was asked to make the dialogue sound authentic). Aside from tilting my head in slight confusion at some of the slang floating around the fandom, one of the last times I rewatched the movie, I noticed Hobie actually only uses one relatively ubiquitous Cockney phrase… and apparently, it was used inauthentically? On the other hand, he uses quite a few MLE phrases and constructions but it seems few people represent that in their fan content. 

It made me want to give my two cents and some advice on how to write the dialogue of an MLE user since I haven’t seen anyone do something like this yet.

In addition, I wanted to give a little bit of context about life as a black Londoner, since Windrush brought the first mass migration of black people to England in 1948 until now, since it’s another thing that I haven’t seen anyone talk about how it differs from the typical depictions of British life. And also how that intersected with punk culture and what it says about Hobie. Everyone is entitled to their personal interpretations but, of course, as someone who Hobie’s a bit closer to home for than most, I felt a lot of people are missing a key part of who he is without understanding the youth culture of black Londoners.

To answer these questions, I think it would be good to put names to the four main London accents so you can understand exactly what Hobie’s purposefully mixed accent is made up of and the one thing it is not.

I also want to say before we get into it that some people have unique accents/accents that may not seem to match their status or ethnicity, etc. so it’s not that nobody speaks using other accents but if we hear it, it would be noticeable.

Starting off, we have Received Pronunciation which is that posh, fancy and stuffy accent you probably first associated a British accent with. This is the accent of the rich, associated with types who go to private schools like Eton, with the royals’ accents and political figures. Nothing to do with Hobie.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, there’s Cockney. Cockney is an interesting one; it’s a term referring to people that are from East London, and according to Google “traditionally one born within the hearing of the Bow Bells” which means in earshot of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow Church. 

The term is also used to cover the accent and slang; the Cockney accent is not necessarily exclusive to Cockney people but rather is one that, nowadays, floats around the working class. The culture, on the other hand, such as familiarity with rhyming slang and stuff like eating jellied eels is not so ubiquitous amongst the working class not from the area. An example of a Cockney with this accent would be Danny Dyer, who plays Mick Carter in EastEnders and some of the other characters also have a proper Cockney accent. Here’s an iconic clip from EastEnders that showcases the Cockney accent lol

However, there is a more general accent, which refers to the varying mixtures of RP and cockney that most Londoners have: Estuary English. The estuary in the term refers to the Thames Estuary in the South East of England, near but outside of London. The accent is not locked there, however, and extends to London, especially as people have tended to move further out from London with time due to housing prices and thus accents of outer and inner parts of London mix. It’s not associated with class the way the other two previous accents are.

There are no clear boundaries between Estuary English and Cockney, mainly due to upward mobility and movement around London. I’m not a linguist so it’s hard to describe but I would personally say that proper Cockney has some ways of pronouncing things that even Estuary English speakers on the Cockney end of the spectrum don’t typically do. 

Some examples I would consider Estuary English or more typical accents would be those of people like Amelia Dimoldenberg (chicken shop girl 😂) and Tom Holland; on the more Cockney end of this accent, you’d have people like Adele (who I’m pretty sure has Cockney family members).

Then there’s Multicultural London English, influenced mainly by the dialects of the ethnic immigrants that have come to the U.K., most notably Jamaican Patois but also, more recently, borrowing a lot from West African Pidgin languages, as well as some words and phrases here and there from other immigrant communities. Most black people speak MLE and many other ethnic Londoners do too, as due to the effects of colonization and structural racism, many are relegated to the working classes and live in community together. Examples of this accent would be John Boyega, Jasmine Jobson, Letitia Wright and, of course, Daniel Kaluuya.

Now that we’ve got the accents down, which does Hobie have?

While the term Cockney is thrown around a lot, there is a strong implication that Hobie was born and raised in Camden, especially given the casting of Daniel Kaluuya, who was born and raised in that area himself. 

Here’s a map of London, I split us up based on how I understand people typically refer to it, which is a mix of geography, government designation and postcodes. The rainbow in the middle is considered Central London, it’s a very commercial and touristy area, where all our classic landmarks are and it’s very expensive to live there. 

Part of the borough of Camden is in central London and, currently, it starts to get more residential near Camden Market, which is 3 miles away from St Mary-le-Bow-Church, aka. The Bow Bells. A true Cockney is said to be within 3 miles or earshot of the bells (for geographical reasons, the sound carries more East). I’m not sure about the balance of residential to commercial areas in the 70s, although apparently, the area near Camden Lock was industrial. London has changed and expanded over time so someone from an east-most part of Camden at a point probably would have been easily counted as Cockney but I have no clue about the timeline. It’s uncertain whether or not Hobie would fit the criteria but if he was born today, Hobie definitely wouldn’t be considered or consider himself a Cockney. 

So again, while there’s no clear distinction of what makes a Cockney accent, Hobie is probably not a Cockney (unless you hc as such).

Does that mean he uses Estuary English? I would say no. I think his accent is predominantly Cockney and he uses some of the slang, as most Londoners do, but being black and not from East London, he mostly uses MLE slang and sentence constructions.

I believe this was the creative intention, given the casting of Daniel Kaluuya, most known for his roles in movies tackling black issues, and the freedom he was given to make the dialogue authentic, meaning Hobie’s blackness is a core part of his character design for Spider-Verse. You can also hear Daniel exaggerating the accent for Hobie at points; as he’s said himself, it’s not just his regular accent, which might not be too obvious to those not so used to London accents. It's a more Cockney accent, particularly in the intro, that he’s putting on instead of speaking normally, despite not necessarily using much Cockney lingo. Bear in mind, that Daniel naturally has a stronger Cockney twang to his natural speaking voice than a lot of MLE speakers.

Returning to the point that the one Cockney phrase, “scooby doo” was used inauthentically; it’s worth noting that you’ll be hard-pressed to find an up-to-date and thorough reference or guide on how to write the use of Cockney slang authentically because Cockney is a somewhat dated culture. For example, jellied eels? Not a common thing anymore, Some people, probably older East Londoners, still do eat them but extremely few places sell them and most of us will have never even seen them in our lives. As mentioned above, upward mobility along with people moving around means that the accent, slang and general culture have been watered down over time. On top of that, a lot of East London has been gentrified, such as the Isle of Dogs (in Tower Hamlets), which has had Canary Wharf transformed - a mall, a business centre and a major transport link and Stratford (in Newham), which has similarly had a giant mall and major transport links added to it.

Some Cockney rhyming slang stuck and is known to all Londoners, such as “telling porkies/porky pies” and “copper”. “I ain’t got a scooby (doo)” is a more common one, although not even that is known to all. Typically, Cockneys only say the first half of the rhyming slang phrase (even if it no longer rhymes). I couldn’t tell you which Cockney rhyming slang phrases have been absorbed into more general London vocab other than those, because again, it’s not used as most lists you could probably find online have it written out in full but know that a lot of phrases have been absorbed. 

Cockney slang is an oral tradition of the working class and so until more recently, when literacy rates went up, probably wouldn’t have been written, on top of people tending to write in standard English instead of using slang when writing. Unless you’re talking to a boomer/gen-x/older millennial from East London, it’s not so likely that you could read off a list of cockney phrases to a Londoner and they would be familiar with them. Because Daniel Kaluuya and I’m guessing the other people involved in writing Hobie’s dialogue aren’t Cockneys, well, that’s how we ended up with what we got.

So, whilst a dated dialect probably would be perfect for Hobie, it’s hard to get right or for it to read as natural to a Londoner because it’s difficult to pinpoint people that still talk like that on a regular basis, even in East London and it’s ESPECIALLY not black people/MLE users that talk like that these days. Cockney Rhyming slang was code language, after all so it figures that it’s a bit elusive.

Funnily enough, Hobie’s use of MLE is probably a slight anachronism, a little ahead of his time. Because the mass migration of Caribbeans began in 1948, by the 70s, most young black people would be the first big wave of second gens or immigrants themselves; ‘Black British’ culture would’ve still been quite young and not had enough time to carve itself as its own thing. The MLE we (including Hobie in the movie) use today started to really be what it is today in the 90s. Point being, you’re not going to find documentation of black Londoners from the 70s or early 80s who talk like Hobie.

Basically… Hobie’s accent is not authentic to the time period so if you wanted to write a historically authentic accent/slang… then you probably wouldn’t really write one… buuut it’s less fun and less Hobie! So let’s learn about black British youth culture and racism in London since the 70s, then we can understand the context in which the language is used before we learn the lingo + how to use it 😎