A celebration of the 40th anniversary of the 1984/5 miners’ strike! A celebration of key working class struggles of today!
The historic miners strike of 1984 was a key moment in working class history. The government’s objective was crystal clear – destroy the most powerful union in the UK and pave the way for the full-scale roll out of neoliberalism.
“All the things that we live with today – the zero hours contracts, the food banks, the underemployment, the bogus self-employment, the huge level of inequality that has emerged in the last generation. All that was made possible by breaking the most significant obstacle to that kind of economy and society, which was the power of organised labour and the trade union movement.” Seamus Milne, Author of ‘The Enemy Within’
Battle Lines re-visits the striking mining communities Banner supported in 1984 to celebrate in song, music and video this historic working-class struggle.
Battle Lines links this historic struggle to the battles of today with songs and video from striking Amazon workers in Coventry and creative union battles in the global south like the massive farmers struggle in India which delivered the biggest general strike in trade union history.
“Banner arouse emotions ranging from joy to utter sadness, from despair to anger, and then to firm determination“. Peter Lazenby, Yorkshire Evening Post
“Banner Theatre are brilliant! They sang on our picket lines, at our socials, busked on the streets of Birmingham so we could feed our kids, inspired us to sing our own songs and tell our own stories. Their songs of struggle from all over the world gave us strength and courage and made us believe we could do anything!” Rose Hunter, North Staffs Miners Wives Action Group
Supported by: The Sir Barry Jackson Trust, The General Federation of Trade Unions, The People’s History Association North Staffordshire, Borderlines New Vic Theatre.