Is the tilt of the Thames valley towards the east caused by a distal lobe of the Icelandic mantle plume?

Over the last 30 years, a growing body of research has shown that first-order control of the elevation of Earth's surface is exercised by thermal anomalies in the upper asthenosphere. One line of research is to test models and observations of mantle behaviour against the sedimentary record. A second line of research is to use the sedimentary record to further understanding of mantle behaviour. Here this second line of research is adopted: a particular hypothesis of mantle behaviour is tested against the Quaternary sedimentary record of the Thames valley, England. Schoonman et al. (2017) have proposed that a warm finger of mantle material extending from the Icelandic plume underlies southern England at the present day. That warm finger would represent the distal end of the influence of the Icelandic plume in this area, and would have advanced broadly from west to east, causing a progressive tilt of the surface of the Thames valley towards the east. The warm-finger hypothesis is supported by the evidence reviewed here. That evidence consists of two main sets of observations, both sets established beyond reasonable doubt by many researchers over many years. First, there is the progressive increase in elevation westward from the present-day coast of the North Sea of the 2.5–2 Ma shallow-marine Red and Norwich Crags. Second, there is the subsequent Quaternary record of progressive eastward tilting of the Thames valley shown in the river terraces.