“It’s the closest this country came to a revolution…”
A hundred years ago workers across Britain come out in support of over a million miners locked out of work for refusing to accept lower pay.
This documentary account of the historic events of 1926 is based on interviews with many involved in the strike, including people on both sides of the dispute, the film explores what happened against the political background of the time.
The strikers faced the full force of the establishment including Winston Churchill, upper class volunteers, the BBC, the police and the army. But in the end many believed they only failed because they were betrayed by their leadership in the TUC.
The failure of the strike was a hugely traumatic event. Many individuals came out the strike devastated. Whole communities were left in pieces.
This historic documentary, made in 1974, was unearthed in the archive of Platform Films and pieced together by Platform’s Chris Reeves.
With a Q&A by Platform Films’ Norman Thomas.
From the Platform film archives and edited by Chris Reeves
Year: 1974
Language: In English
Country: UK
Running time: 1hr 13mins