In the frenzied aftermath of his infamous 1968 ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech, Conservative MP Enoch Powell was asked by an interviewer to comment on ‘the patience of the British people’ towards uncapped immigration. He sighed, and muttered wearily: ‘Well, there are limits to everything.’

And so it would seem. Last week that limit finally reached breaking point, and Britain — along with many countries throughout the European Union — underwent a major convulsion, as political parties long deemed fringe dwellers and extremists grabbed seats and power.