On June 23, 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, triggering a immediate and severe panic in global financial markets. The pound sterling fell to its lowest level against the U.S. dollar since 1985, losing more than 10% of its value in a single day, while stock markets around the world experienced sharp declines. The event marked a profound political and economic shock, with long-term implications for the UK economy and the future of European integration.

The Brexit vote was a watershed moment in British cultural life, inspiring a flood of poetry and literary commentary that explored the divisions and anxieties revealed by the referendum. Poets like Carol Ann Duffy and Simon Armitage wrote about the crisis of national identity, while the event also influenced the poetry of European writers who reflected on the future of the European project and the rise of populism.