If the National feeling had been weighed against joining the EU then I think that Britain, rather than completely stay out of the EU, could well have opted to follow the route of Switzerland who in 1972/73 choose to sign a free-trade agreement followed some time later by bilateral agreements but not formally choosing full membership.
Subsequent developments mainly, as fas as I can see, concerning funding issues and the free movement of all member nations finally became too much of an issue for the Swiss and in March this year the Swiss National Council voted to withdraw its suspended application for EU membership.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switze...nion_relations
So .... Hindsight bares heavily on my answer to the question posed on this thread. Considering the idealist views I held in the early 70s I would still have wanted to join together with the rest of Europe, but with hindsight I realise I would have wanted to retain more of the things that made Britain the country I love than we were allowed to retain. Switzerland managed to keep their identity and control of much of their own independence but in the end they have withdrawn from a United Europe and I wait to see with interest what happens next with them. As will, I am sure, the Netherlands who are also questioning whether they made the right decision all those years ago.
http://townhall.com/columnists/bgasc...ve-eu-n2180133