2015. The United Kingdom's just discovered enough oil to guarantee prosperity for the next 100 years. The Government sees this as the final cog in its project to make the United Kingdom the enterprise capital of the world and to restore the country's greatness.

The only problem is that most of the oil lies off Scotland and Wales. And the Scots and Welsh want their share of the bonanza.

Over the next six years, the United Kingdom descends into a spiral of conflict in which old nationalisms re-emerge and threaten to drag in European neighbours and the United States as the violence spills over beyond the country's boundaries.