For a radical socialist written off by many as a no-hoper leading Britain's Labour Party to its worst-ever election defeat on June 8, Jeremy Corbyn is pulling in big crowds.

Corbyn, a 68-year-old peace campaigner, had been speaking at modestly attended fringe rallies and demonstrations for decades. But he now seems to have more of audience.

In a leisure center car park on the outskirts of Reading, 40 miles from London, more than a thousand people gathered in the middle of a working day, leaving behind their desk jobs and even climbing trees to catch a glimpse of Corbyn.