UK referendum on voting system

‘The deepening loss of personal trust at the top of the coalition government engendered by the bitter AV referendum campaign was exposed when David Cameron was accused of a systematic and shortsighted attempt to trash Nick Clegg’s leadership.’

One can’t help thinking that this is more of a ‘parlamentarian opera’ than a real political rift.
Is the general public really that concerned, or even understanding the issues? The young British voters who carried Nick Clegg to a position of power are vastly disenchanted; the rest of the population anesthetized by Royal Wedding euphoria and/or rising costs of living woes.