Thanks for posting this Richard. As a UK resident, and a middle aged one at that, perhaps my perspective might be of interest.
I think the basic point to remember is that the UK referendum was not a vote to leave Europe (which is how some more hysterical pundits seems to paint it). Rather, it was a vote to leave the political construct of the European Union.
The EU has always been a polarising institution. It was, and is, a wholly political creation. Nothing wrong with that, as anyone who values even standards would admit. However, I believe the widening between the polar opposites began to widen with the creation of the single currency which, from a basic economics perspective just does not work in either concept or practice. Whilst capital has proved itself enviably mobile, the other factors of production have not. Mass migration does not prove that labour is mobile.
Each country in the EU has its own "character", for want of a better phrase. Because of this, and the lack of factor of production mobility, locking members into a single currency could only ever create the fiscal instability we have seen, with northern Europe running large trade surpluses, and several southern states building up serious deficits. Unable to allow their currencies to depreciate (as would have been the case pre Euro), the members will continue to diverge in this sense.
My feeling is the same as many here; the EU is an admirable idea but imperfectly executed and administered. Reform is necessary, but the bureaucrats in Brussels seem unwilling in this respect. Maybe the UK has to leave in order to create the pressure for future reforms...