The miners’ strike of 1984-5 had a profound impact on Britain’s politics, economy and society. For those on strike, and their families, it felt like an existential struggle to save not only their jobs, but their communities, and the life they knew.Jonny Owen was just 13 and growing up in Merthyr Tydfil when it began. As it was kicking off, his parents told the family that they were going to give a substantial share of their wages to the striking miners for the duration of the dispute. His father and grandfather had worked underground.Jonny couldn’t understand how anyone...
Latest episodes
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8. The Reckoning
Jonny Owen reaches the end of his highly personal exploration of the strike and finds out what happened afterwards. Saddled with debt after a year with no wages, mining families no…
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37 min ↗
7. Going Back
As the miners and their families celebrate Christmas, desperation is setting in. South Wales NUM leaders are seeing some of their members close to cracking up, and they fear the un…
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6. A Winter's Tale
As winter arrives, the striking miners are feeling the pinch. They are getting no strike pay and are surviving on donations of clothing and food. The debts are mounting.There seems…
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33 min ↗
5. Deal or No Deal
There are efforts behind the scenes to get a deal between the National Union of Mineworkers and the Coal Board to bring the strike to an end. It’s a dark time for Labour leader Nei…
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34 min ↗
4. The S Word
Nottinghamshire was the flashpoint of the miners' strike – ninety per cent of the men there carried on working, and so their pits carried on mining coal and keeping the lights on a…
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34 min ↗
3. The Enemy Within
A miner and two photographers remember the violent events of June 18, 1984 at Orgreave. Thousands of police and thousands of miners arrived at the coking works in Rotherham for a s…
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32 min ↗
2. Into The Fray
Unofficial picketing brings over 140,000 miners out on strike. Miners families in South Wales know there are tough times ahead but support is solid: within days none of the pits ar…
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34 min ↗
1. Backbone of Britain
The miners’ strike of 1984-5 had a profound impact on Britain’s politics, economy and society. For those on strike, and their families, it felt like an existential struggle to save…
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5 min ↗
Introducing Strike
The 1984-85 miners’ strike was a gamechanger for Britain. For Jonny Owen - who was 13 and growing up in South Wales - it was personal. He seeks to find out what really happened.