I have to agree with redsnail on this one.
I think it wont be long before you get the posts on the amount of British Pilots flying in other countries.I am one of them.I came out to Australia as a British Citizen and had to jump through their visa hoops and I dare say there are a number of locals who would prefer my job to have gone to one of them.If I and all the others returned to the UK there would be even less jobs available!Like it or not it is a worldwide market now.
I too went modular-spent a lot of years instructing AND it still took a long time to get that airline job despite several thousand hours.I went through the recession early nineties, lost my job, unemployed for two years and I am sure there are plenty of others who also had it "tough."
The UK has been fairly unusual to the extent that 250 hour pilots could get a direct entry job with an airline - if and when the worldwide problems subside and things pick up I would expect them to return to "normal". However you will then be competing with newly qualified pilots that may perhaps have the edge so if you are willing to take a bit of advice from someone who thinks he has also been through it in the meantime get any flying in you can (whether you think you will enjoy it or not), instructing, para dropping, glider tugging, paid or unpaid.This will at least keep your hand in giving you a chance when that sim ride comes up and perhaps more importantly give you a chance to create "contacts", a large amount of pilots getting jobs that I have come across have achieved their break that way.
Finally I would say dont give up but dont have unrealistic expectations - it can be a long and slow road getting there.