No other political party in the history of Britain's fascist tradition has been as successful at the ballot box as today's British National Party (BNP). It has won increasing success at local elections and now threatens to follow the wider European trend and break through into the national arena of mainstream politics. Contemporary British Fascism offers the first in-depth study of the BNP and its quest for social and political legitimacy. Founded in 1982 and led by John Tyndall until 1999, the 'old' BNP is thoroughly investigated. Nigel Copsey then moves on to discuss Nick Griffin's 'modernization' strategy as well as the factors behind the party's recent electoral success. In the final chapter, the subject is placed in its wider European context. This is a thought-provoking book that serves as a wake-up call for those who take the party's growing respectability at face value.