Defiant migrants will try 'until they die' to cross English Channel and reach UK. (PA) People living in camps on the coast of France have said they will “try until they die” to reach the UK. Around 2,000 migrants are currently living around Calais and Dunkirk awaiting an opportunity to cross the English Channel on board small boats or via lorries. The defiant message comes despite the Home Office targeting migrants with Facebook ads pleading with them not to make the journey. One 16-year-old boy from Afghanistan said: “I need to go to the UK. I am ready for anything to try and get there.”