England 'Til I Die review: Crowborough's vigilante war — SkimNews
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- Channel 4 aired the one-off documentary 'England 'Til I Die,' directed by Jamie Roberts, which chronicles vigilante opposition to an asylum accommodation centre at a disused army camp in Crowborough, Sussex
- Liam Tomsett, a utilities manager turned anti-immigration activist, is shown blocking contractor deliveries to the centre; he was arrested and charged with common assault and possession of an offensive weapon after an altercation, though the charges were later dropped
- Rachel Millward, the Green party's deputy leader and a local councillor, was heckled and abused at a council meeting by constituents — with one woman asking how she'd feel about being raped — and was then followed to her car by Tomsett, who called her 'a disgrace' as she cried
- The documentary follows three men from the asylum centre whom Tomsett's group trailed down the road; they turned out to be Iranian Christians heading to church, not the targets the activists assumed
- Roberts' previous work includes 'Angry, White and Proud,' 'Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods,' and the BBC's 'Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone,' which became mired in controversy over its child narrator's family and prompted an internal BBC review
- The documentary situates Crowborough within wider UK anti-immigration activity, citing recent balaclava-clad blockades in Dover and direct action against asylum seekers arriving by small boat in Portsmouth
Why it matters: The film lands as anti-immigration vigilantism is escalating in the UK, with recent blockades in Dover and confrontations in Portsmouth documented as a national pattern, not isolated incidents. Millward's experience — being heckled at a council meeting and followed to her car by a constituent who faces no charges — shows how local political opposition to asylum accommodation is curdling into intimidation of elected representatives.
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