I have not experience the problem of separation at the base, but with English papers I have also noticed the brittle nature of the construction. While American papers, like Federals, have a waxy texture, and seem flexible, the British cartridges seem to have a hard coat of some kind. I've had the experience mentioned above of the mouths flying off when fired. This was with Gamebores, not Eleys, but I suspect the problem is the same with either. While I love Federal papers, the UK product is not cut from the same cloth.
