I think Anu's citations of ‘Blighty’ were modern, almost post-modern ironic ones, and from Canadian and New Zealandish (not British) newspapers. ‘Blighty’ was a colloquial term used by the older generation of British people, when we still had an empire. I have warm memories of the term from my father’s generation, but my generation has seldom used it. It was only ever used by Brits when abroad, and I would say it's most often used now by outsiders, non-Brits.

In short, I'd say it represented a 'mystical yearning' from abroad, not a name for the UK itself. The citations were not necessarily erroneous – they mean what the writers meant them to mean -- but I don't feel they represented the soul of the word as the Brits created it.

>In short, I'd say it represented a 'mystical yearning' from abroad,


Not having seen the email in question, I'm shooting in the dark, but, at least here in Zild, your "ironic" comment is nearer the mark for Blighty's usage today. Either that, or in the phrase "bugger off back to blighty" directed at a particularly loud whinging Pom.

By 'mystical yearning' I meant the way the word was originally and sentimentally used by the expatriate British 'diaspora' themselves. As in "...when I get back to Blighty". I've never, ever heard it used within the Kingdom itself.

There was also a magazine:

http://www.nls.uk/experiencesofwar/weewindows/pic-wounded-mid-1.html