in my home town of Leigh in Lancashire like many other towns has sufferd alot when the pits closed Leigh has never recoverd since the Tory govermant destroyed the coal industury, Labour are no diffurant they too did some damage, in 1969 most of the railway network closed down & ripped up now Leigh is one of the largest towns without a railway or staion, Labour also wanted to do away with trams in Manchester the people M'chester kicked off about it
I've read miners accounts, listened to ex miners, read government production projections, read minutes from meetings between the CB and NUM, read local and county council accounts, plans and projections. I've also read Marching to the Fault Line, Shafted, The Media, the Miners' Strike and the Aftermath, The Enemy Within, The Secret War Against the Miners, Loss without Limit, Thatcher and Thatcherism and Prime Minister Indominable amongst others.... Is that enough "reading" for you?
Prior to winning power, the Tories already planned mine closures so when they got in, they started stockpiling coal & waited until they had enough to see out a national strike. The union leaders could see what was coming & tried to get the miners out far earlier. Had they been successful, they would have easily won the dispute & taken Thatcher down. Whatever people say about the power of pre-Thatcher trade unions, the country was in a far better state than it is after 30 years of Thatcherism.
@Jacada123 I lived on a council estate for 20 years mate. I loved it. Its a great place to grow up. I wasn't berating council housing or council house tenants. Its Thatchers "right to buy" that was wrong. Look at the thusands who cannot get affordable housing because of the lack of council housing.
For the record, I wasn't trying to be patronizing. Although she's a bit old & it'd be a bit mean, I think the people who dislike her should DO something about it. Seeing her losing on RUclips/ National TV would be just revenge for the hurt she caused up North. I personally don't think she's wrong, but it'd be persuasive to see her arguments taken to pieces...
...and New Labour of course continued it.Wonder what Gordon Brown told the now Lady Thatcher when she visited No.10? "Are we still doing enough to satisfy you?"!!!!
@RichardElden We do not need to go back to the old traditional way of mining where we send young people with pick-axes on a small carriage, we live in an age of mechanical and digital technology which can do all the heavy labouring for us and we can even use oxygen masks to make it healthy.
@RichardElden I wonder if you'd be able to handle a shift down a pit? The miners may be many things, but lazy isn't a description that fits. Do your homework and come back when you know what you are talking about.
South Kirkby was very costly to run, and after the spiralling costs of a Labour government, Thatcher had no option but to cut back. Obviously South Kirkby was not competitive enough to survive. Believe me, with the amount of cheap coal from poorer parts of the world, the British coal industry had no future anyway. Oh, and the reason we are bankrupt is another 12 years of inept Labour Governance, not because the coal mines closed in 1984.
Scargill was fighting to save an industry which he knew the Tories planned to destroy. He was proved right. The Tories won their battle and we are now living with the consequences. We have no industry left in the UK apart from service industries which are mostly in London and the south east and there are no good jobs for working class people.
Depends on the Farmer, but a lot do live very comfortably & yet moan a lot! I agree about it being a waste to destroy mining totally. The Bitter Irony is that Coal Mining produced the finest Coal in the World & our farms are the most efficient in the World. Thatcher has a lot to answer for... In terms of wishing people dead, I just don't think its persuasive or moral. Part of the reason the miners failed was their perceived militancy...
@tdp1909 Since when has wishing someone dead been a threat? It was reduced gradually from 1945. Not wiped out in the space of 18 months leaving thousands with no direction. I have read production projections from the CB. Those pits we're economically viable. The Ireland Colliery in Chesterfield was the most economically efficient pit in England yet it was closed. Scargill was a zealot with delusions of granduer. I have no arguments with that. Farmers dont have a clue what poverty is.
It makes me sick how many Scargill supporters there still are today. Are people really that blinded by ideology to realise what an evil, conniving little man he was? The fact that he was perfectly prepared to bring Britain to it's knees to get his miners a few extra quid a week shows just how short-sighted and despicable he was. I'm not saying Thatcher was perfect, but she was a damn sight better than Callaghan or any other weak labour leader.
I know he played a part. I wrote my dissertation on it. I know the unions and their influence needed tameing but the way she did it was totally disgusting and inhumane. Arthur Scargill may well have been an unorganized zealot with a one track mind, but I think what he stood for with regards to safegaurding communities livelihoods was spot on.
i come from a x pit village in south yorkshire. an people that thatcher here. an loads of x miners here say when she die's they'll be having day off work to go out celibrate!!!!!!
Ian MacGregor described his plan for the industry as "intelligent and progressive" - very similar to the rhetoric being used by today's government in defense of its public sector cuts. Looking back, we can see the utter devastation caused by these "progressive" plans, so for anyone working in industries under attack today (and particularly to those who still can't see what's coming), please bear in mind what happened to the miners & support your union. We can't let the government do this again.
correction: 'the skiving really not that many'. the main reason there's so much unemployment is because there are no decent jobs in traditional working class industries (thanks, maggie). under a socialist system we would simply create more jobs such as dealing with the lack of social housing (again, thanks, maggie). and people would support those who are actually unable to work such as disabled or single parents. the idea of 'skiving millions', however, simply does not stand up to scrutiny
People blame the unions but if they had never had one strike all their jobs would still have gone to China. I was just watching the Morning Line about how George Ward was such a benefactor tto horse racing. There was a hoge strike in the 70's which was a precursor to the minors strike. Well he gave £25 million to racing and charities to try and impress his posh friends but was unwilling to give his workers who made him rich even anything close to a working decent wage.
zensho.... sounds like a shodan (1st dan) in zen budism... didnt know there was such a thing... anyway i agree with owler spot on mate. notts people were the same in the national strike of 1926 .. when they formed there own union called the spencer union only to come back into the fold .. wonder how much maggie payed roy link for his part in his work mates down fall...
@tdp1909 In what way does it show that my arguments dont hold water? Tell that to the hundreds of thousands that we're made redundant. Left on the scrap heap with no other viable form of employment. Tell that to the families of those that commited suicide due to depression. Tell that to those communities that are still suffering today. High unemployment, drug problems, and crime are rife in ex mining communities.
Bloody shame, i remember it well, can anyone answer me, "What do we have left of british industry ??" there is Nothing for the working class anymore, the only jobs seem to be Call centres, and thats if your lucky,the comanies would prefer to have cheepforiegn labour than have british workers, we have no industry ,Nothing, and it just gets worse, I feel ashamed to be english, no other country or creed treats its own people so disgustingly than the last 40 years of Govt
Agreed.And what has replaced the decent working class? A sub-human grouping nicknamed 'chavs'.If there isn't any jobs for them though,what can they do but appear on The Jeremy Kyle Show?
If those of you are lucky enough to be working and enjoying your weekend remember that you would be working today without unions and would have no holidays, in short a slave. That does mean all unions (eg tube strikes holding the public not tfl to ransom!) are great. Remember these are workers and you need to differentiate them from the skiving millions we have today - under true communism those unwilling to work would not receive any benefit from society
tdp1909 I don’t think parties lose elections on the basis of which people are on their side. They lose elections down to people NOT being on their side! You’re talking crap.
wow this is three days before i was born! wonderful stuff!
This edition of the BBC Nine O'Clock News was originally broadcast on Friday 23rd March 1984
in my home town of Leigh in Lancashire like many other towns has sufferd alot when the pits closed Leigh has never recoverd since the Tory govermant destroyed the coal industury, Labour are no diffurant they too did some damage, in 1969 most of the railway network closed down & ripped up now Leigh is one of the largest towns without a railway or staion, Labour also wanted to do away with trams in Manchester the people M'chester kicked off about it
@GuienGarma It's 'The Entertainer', which is from the film 'The Sting'.
In This Clip, From 0:25 To 2:28, It Was BBC-TV's BBC News' The 9 O'Clock News Video Open From Friday Night, March 23, 1984.
BBC Nine O'Clock News 23 March 1984 and continuity
What music was used in the trailer?
watching the start of this vid up to 0:40 was like sliping back in time to my child hood lol
The footage of the miners' strike looks almost as dated as silent newsreels of the 1926 General Strike.
I've read miners accounts, listened to ex miners, read government production projections, read minutes from meetings between the CB and NUM, read local and county council accounts, plans and projections. I've also read Marching to the Fault Line, Shafted, The Media, the Miners' Strike and the Aftermath, The Enemy Within, The Secret War Against the Miners, Loss without Limit, Thatcher and Thatcherism and Prime Minister Indominable amongst others....
Is that enough "reading" for you?
It is still complicated to know who was to be blamed for the strike whether it was Thatcher or Scargill.
Uploaded on 2 May 2016
1980s Britain looks so grim. When i think of the 80s in Britain i think of grey skies smoggy air and ugly red brick terrace houses...
Prior to winning power, the Tories already planned mine closures so when they got in, they started stockpiling coal & waited until they had enough to see out a national strike. The union leaders could see what was coming & tried to get the miners out far earlier. Had they been successful, they would have easily won the dispute & taken Thatcher down. Whatever people say about the power of pre-Thatcher trade unions, the country was in a far better state than it is after 30 years of Thatcherism.
@Jacada123
I lived on a council estate for 20 years mate. I loved it. Its a great place to grow up. I wasn't berating council housing or council house tenants. Its Thatchers "right to buy" that was wrong. Look at the thusands who cannot get affordable housing because of the lack of council housing.
Yes.
What does Kafkasque mean? I never heard that word before.
Related to the work of author Franz Kafka
im going to ask a question now that will come across as stupid are there any coal mines in england that are still going? like 1 or 2 or something?
16th March 1984
For the record, I wasn't trying to be patronizing. Although she's a bit old & it'd be a bit mean, I think the people who dislike her should DO something about it.
Seeing her losing on RUclips/ National TV would be just revenge for the hurt she caused up North.
I personally don't think she's wrong, but it'd be persuasive to see her arguments taken to pieces...
Spot on, not that there's very much to sell off now of course, unless they're interested in buying a McDonalds and a couple of B&Qs.
...and New Labour of course continued it.Wonder what Gordon Brown told the now Lady Thatcher when she visited No.10? "Are we still doing enough to satisfy you?"!!!!
I think the next source of revelations will involve the motivations for closing the mines.
Scargill was still being paid during the strike.
my 4th birthday!
@RichardElden We do not need to go back to the old traditional way of mining where we send young people with pick-axes on a small carriage, we live in an age of mechanical and digital technology which can do all the heavy labouring for us and we can even use oxygen masks to make it healthy.
@RichardElden I wonder if you'd be able to handle a shift down a pit? The miners may be many things, but lazy isn't a description that fits. Do your homework and come back when you know what you are talking about.
cheers for that only the film brassed off got me thinkin lol
You need to head to Grimethorpe and Wolley Colliery to do some face to face inteviews... you'll learn alot.
South Kirkby was very costly to run, and after the spiralling costs of a Labour government, Thatcher had no option but to cut back. Obviously South Kirkby was not competitive enough to survive. Believe me, with the amount of cheap coal from poorer parts of the world, the British coal industry had no future anyway.
Oh, and the reason we are bankrupt is another 12 years of inept Labour Governance, not because the coal mines closed in 1984.
Arthur "no-ballot" Scargill, the trot, now gone to join the megaphone bunch.
Scargill was fighting to save an industry which he knew the Tories planned to destroy. He was proved right. The Tories won their battle and we are now living with the consequences. We have no industry left in the UK apart from service industries which are mostly in London and the south east and there are no good jobs for working class people.
Depends on the Farmer, but a lot do live very comfortably & yet moan a lot!
I agree about it being a waste to destroy mining totally. The Bitter Irony is that Coal Mining produced the finest Coal in the World & our farms are the most efficient in the World. Thatcher has a lot to answer for...
In terms of wishing people dead, I just don't think its persuasive or moral. Part of the reason the miners failed was their perceived militancy...
@tdp1909
Since when has wishing someone dead been a threat?
It was reduced gradually from 1945. Not wiped out in the space of 18 months leaving thousands with no direction.
I have read production projections from the CB. Those pits we're economically viable. The Ireland Colliery in Chesterfield was the most economically efficient pit in England yet it was closed.
Scargill was a zealot with delusions of granduer. I have no arguments with that.
Farmers dont have a clue what poverty is.
It makes me sick how many Scargill supporters there still are today.
Are people really that blinded by ideology to realise what an evil, conniving little man he was? The fact that he was perfectly prepared to bring Britain to it's knees to get his miners a few extra quid a week shows just how short-sighted and despicable he was.
I'm not saying Thatcher was perfect, but she was a damn sight better than Callaghan or any other weak labour leader.
I know he played a part. I wrote my dissertation on it. I know the unions and their influence needed tameing but the way she did it was totally disgusting and inhumane. Arthur Scargill may well have been an unorganized zealot with a one track mind, but I think what he stood for with regards to safegaurding communities livelihoods was spot on.
i come from a x pit village in south yorkshire. an people that thatcher here. an loads of x miners here say when she die's they'll be having day off work to go out celibrate!!!!!!
Ian MacGregor described his plan for the industry as "intelligent and progressive" - very similar to the rhetoric being used by today's government in defense of its public sector cuts. Looking back, we can see the utter devastation caused by these "progressive" plans, so for anyone working in industries under attack today (and particularly to those who still can't see what's coming), please bear in mind what happened to the miners & support your union. We can't let the government do this again.
correction: 'the skiving really not that many'. the main reason there's so much unemployment is because there are no decent jobs in traditional working class industries (thanks, maggie). under a socialist system we would simply create more jobs such as dealing with the lack of social housing (again, thanks, maggie). and people would support those who are actually unable to work such as disabled or single parents. the idea of 'skiving millions', however, simply does not stand up to scrutiny
agree totally i will party when that witch dies
People blame the unions but if they had never had one strike all their jobs would still have gone to China. I was just watching the Morning Line about how George Ward was such a benefactor tto horse racing. There was a hoge strike in the 70's which was a precursor to the minors strike. Well he gave £25 million to racing and charities to try and impress his posh friends but was unwilling to give his workers who made him rich even anything close to a working decent wage.
zensho.... sounds like a shodan (1st dan) in zen budism... didnt know there was such a thing... anyway i agree with owler spot on mate. notts people were the same in the national strike of 1926 .. when they formed there own union called the spencer union only to come back into the fold .. wonder how much maggie payed roy link for his part in his work mates down fall...
A Yank telling us how to run our country! The good patriot Thatcher.
@tdp1909
In what way does it show that my arguments dont hold water?
Tell that to the hundreds of thousands that we're made redundant. Left on the scrap heap with no other viable form of employment. Tell that to the families of those that commited suicide due to depression. Tell that to those communities that are still suffering today. High unemployment, drug problems, and crime are rife in ex mining communities.
Should one vote for the Socialist Labour Party or the Conservative Party?
Bloody shame, i remember it well, can anyone answer me, "What do we have left of british industry ??"
there is Nothing for the working class anymore, the only jobs seem to be Call centres, and thats if your lucky,the comanies would prefer to have cheepforiegn labour than have british workers, we have no industry ,Nothing, and it just gets worse,
I feel ashamed to be english, no other country or creed treats its own people so disgustingly than the last 40 years of Govt
maggie thatchers got one ian mgreger is one,,,,,,
I wouldnt class any union as being left wing nowadays, theyre a joke, the only unions i look up to are the french ones
Agreed.And what has replaced the decent working class? A sub-human grouping nicknamed 'chavs'.If there isn't any jobs for them though,what can they do but appear on The Jeremy Kyle Show?
Eh?
If those of you are lucky enough to be working and enjoying your weekend remember that you would be working today without unions and would have no holidays, in short a slave. That does mean all unions (eg tube strikes holding the public not tfl to ransom!) are great. Remember these are workers and you need to differentiate them from the skiving millions we have today - under true communism those unwilling to work would not receive any benefit from society
Sorry that should read 'Macmillan'.
@AidanLunn Ha ha, Tosser!
@blowlamp666 Charming - its no wonder Labour lost the last election, with people like you on their side...
tdp1909 I don’t think parties lose elections on the basis of which people are on their side. They lose elections down to people NOT being on their side! You’re talking crap.
@AidanLunn if you're gonna crack a joke at least try to be original and not pinch Frankie Boyle's.....
16th March 1984