Charging Around

Exploring the Edges of England by Electric Car
A retired teacher approaching his eightieth birthday attempts to drive around the edges of England by electric car, despite the alarming lack of charging points. With endless patience and good humour, this unlikely pioneer is a wise and witty guide to the country’s left-behind periphery

'Tense, funny - electric' - Sunday Times
‘A delightful, original, amusing tour of some of the UK’s less explored places’ – Chris Mullin

Having crossed a continent by train and sailed around the world by container ship, Clive Wilkinson has always had a penchant for slow travel. As his eightieth birthday approaches, he and his wife Joan set out on a new expedition: to tour the edges of England by electric car. How hard could that be?

Given the parlous state of the country’s charge-point infrastructure back in 2018, the answer turns out to be ‘very’. In a 1,900-mile odyssey through fading seaside towns, rainswept hilltop passes and England’s only desert, each day’s driving for these unlikely pioneers is overshadowed by a cloud of apprehension. Will they make it to the next charge point? Will it be in working order? Will someone else be using it?

You could only undertake such a trip with a calm temperament and robust sense of humour. Fortunately, Clive has both. With a relentless curiosity for history, geography and, above all, people, he and Joan explore the reality of life on England’s periphery – the ‘left behind’ areas that, by voting for Brexit, changed the course of British history – making new friends with every mile.

Pages: 304

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