Overview
My research examines how the elite-level case was made for and against EU membership in British politics.
In my thesis, titled ‘How Britain was Talked out of Europe: Political Rhetoric on the European Project During Critical Membership Junctures’, I adopt a long-view approach to explore the nature of political rhetoric on Europe during critical moments for Britain’s membership. The timescale for my thesis covers key flashpoints during the early years of membership (the 1975 EEC referendum campaign) and the latter ones (the 2016 EU referendum campaign).
Publication
2025
- Bolt, M. 2025. Review of Parnell (2024): Constructing Brexit Britain: A Corpus-Assisted Approach to National Identity Discourse [Book review]. Journal of Language and Politics 24 (2), pp.352-355. (10.1075/jlp.24204.bol)
- Bolt, M. 2025. Beyond the meadows and uplands: The Leave campaign’s vision of the post-Brexit future. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations (10.1177/13691481251395308)
- Cini, M. , Pérez-Solórzano Borragán, N. and Bolt, M. 2025. Ideology and policy design after Brexit: explaining the UK subsidy regime. West European Politics (10.1080/01402382.2025.2585439)
2023
- Bolt, M. 2023. Britain, Britishness, and exceptionalism within the rhetoric of David Cameron. British Politics 18 , pp.128-146. (10.1057/s41293-022-00203-0)
Articles
- Bolt, M. 2023. Britain, Britishness, and exceptionalism within the rhetoric of David Cameron. British Politics 18 , pp.128-146. (10.1057/s41293-022-00203-0)
- Bolt, M. 2025. Review of Parnell (2024): Constructing Brexit Britain: A Corpus-Assisted Approach to National Identity Discourse [Book review]. Journal of Language and Politics 24 (2), pp.352-355. (10.1075/jlp.24204.bol)
- Bolt, M. 2025. Beyond the meadows and uplands: The Leave campaign’s vision of the post-Brexit future. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations (10.1177/13691481251395308)
- Cini, M. , Pérez-Solórzano Borragán, N. and Bolt, M. 2025. Ideology and policy design after Brexit: explaining the UK subsidy regime. West European Politics (10.1080/01402382.2025.2585439)
Research
My research spans aspects of British politics, British political history, and political economy, with a particular emphasis on Brexit and the 2016 EU referendum.
My research interests include political rhetoric, Euroscepticism, Brexit, and British politics.
My additional research interests also include the UK’s post-Brexit subsidy/state aid policy.
I have also published an article in British Politics on David Cameron’s party conference rhetoric.
Teaching
I currently teach on modules covering European integration, British Politics, and Parliament.
Contact Details
Specialisms
- UK government and politics
- Brexit