The United Kingdom of Marlowe Isles is a massive, socially progressive nation, remarkable for its barren, inhospitable landscape, irreverence towards religion, and complete absence of social welfare. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic population of 1.209 billion Marlowans hold their civil and political rights very dear, although the wealthy and those in business tend to be viewed with suspicion.

The minute government, or what there is of one, juggles the competing demands of Public Transport, Industry, and Healthcare. The average income tax rate is 5.6%.

The strong Marlowan economy, worth 71.4 trillion Merids a year, is driven almost entirely by the private sector, which is broadly diversified and led by the Uranium Mining industry, with major contributions from Automobile Manufacturing, Retail, and Pizza Delivery. Average income is 59,052 Merids, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 4.1 times as much as the poorest.

Surveillance cameras are banned, mining is the nation's most dangerous occupation, the automotive industry soaks up huge government handouts, and videogames like 'Equalia: Knights of Self-Confidence' are proving inexplicably unpopular. Crime is a problem, with the police force struggling against a lack of funding and a high mortality rate. Marlowe Isles's national animal is the Tiger, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

Marlowe Isles is ranked 251,092^nd in the world and 12^th in West Meridian for Lowest Crime Rates, with 51.52 law-abiding acts per hour.