Midnight Traveller: a Film Night with Tyneside Welcomes. Black Swan Centre, Newcastle
2021-12-09 19:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London) | Black Swan Centre, Newcastle Arts Centre, 67 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1SG
A showing of “Midnight Traveller”, a multi-award winning documentary film by Hassan Fazili filmed by the Fazili family as they document their journey from their home in Afghanistan to Europe seeking safety.
Details and Booking here.
The film will be followed by a live question and answer session with the director from Germany via zoom, and an opportunity to socialise.
Rotten Tomatoes gives this film 100%
This showing is organised by Tyneside Welcomes which works to resettle refugees from the Syrian War.

Tyneside Irish Centre (Zoom). Prof Marie Coleman will talk about: Who were the Black & Tans? The Crown Forces in Ireland during the War of Independence
2021-12-09 19:30 - 21:00 | Zoom
Professor Coleman will look at all the different groupings within the Crown Forces – Army, RIC, Tans, Auxiliaries, B Specials etc. She is particularly keen to examine the social composition of the Tans and Auxiliaries in particular and will be covering the controversy over the commemoration plans in 2020.
Marie Coleman is Professor of Twentieth Century Irish History at Queen’s University, Belfast.
The event is part of the Tyneside Irish Centre’s series of 1921 Centenary talks.
Click here to register and get the zoom link https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_M9Su18K7Q-eF9qjqUbMa_w

The Society's Christmas Quiz
2021-12-14 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom
The Society’s Christmas Quiz takes place next Tuesday 14 December at 7.00pm

Peter Brabban and Pat Candon will test your historical knowledge (to its limit) and after that you are welcome to stay for the ‘chat’.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84946680511?pwd=[REDACTED]

Meeting ID: 849 4668 0511

Passcode: [REDACTED]

Zoom now available: NELH Tuesday Meeting: Mike Barke will talk about his new book on the history of Newcastle: Mapping the City
2022-01-25 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86337404230?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 863 3740 4230
Passcode: [REDACTED]
Our first Tuesday meeting of the year will take place on 25 January at 7.00pm when Mike Barke will talk the history of Newcastle-upon-Tyne based on his new book, Mapping the City (co-authored with Brian Robson and Anthony Champion).
Newcastle has a long and distinguished history through two millennia: a Roman fortress at the eastern end of Hadrian’s Wall; an important centre of monasticism; a ‘royal’ bulwark against attacks and invasion from Scotland; and the principal centre for the export of coal to London. In the 19th century it was transformed into an elegant Georgian townscape with dramatic streets and handsome public buildings.

It and other towns on the Tyne – Gateshead, Jarrow, Wallsend, Tynemouth, North and South Shields – developed important industries: shipbuilding, glass and heavy engineering. Tyneside suffered severe contraction in the 20th century as heavy industry declined, but it has begun to reinvent itself and create new growth shoots, not least its vibrant cultural industries including music and art.
This book takes an innovative approach to telling the story of the area’s history by focusing on the historic maps and plans that record the growth and development of Newcastle and Tyneside over many centuries.
Michael Barke was Reader in Human Geography at Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, where he taught from 1974 until his retirement in 2016. His research interests include the demographic and urban history of the North East.

A link for the meeting will be posted nearer the time.

Morpeth Methodist Church: John Stirling will talk about William Morris
2022-01-29 10:00 - 12:30 | Morpeth Methodist Church, Howard Terrace, Morpeth, NE61 1HU
From Joanna Keith at the Workers Educational Association

We are putting on a course about William Morris in the Morpeth Methodist Church on Saturday 29 January from 10.00am to 12.30 pm. The speaker is John Stirling (Vice-Chair of the William Morris Society and NELHS Committee Member). There is a fee of £8.00, reductions available.
If any of your members in Morpeth (or anyone from North Tyneside, Newcastle or Northumberland) are interested they can enrol onto the course through this web link:-
https://enrolonline.wea.org.uk/Online/2021/CourseInfo.aspx?r=C2527581 or they can ring 0300 303 3464 if they prefer to enrol by telephone.

POSTPONED: Using Trade Union Banners for Education: The Case of the 1938 ‘Red’ Follonsby Miners’ Banner - a talk by Lucy Grimshaw (Northumbria University) and Lewis Mates (Durham University)
2022-02-15 19:00 - 20:30 | To be advised
From David Connolly, Secretary, North East Labour History Society:
To: NELHS Members and Supporters
Our apologies for the short notice but this is to let you know that we are postponing our Zoom meeting on Using Trade Union Banners for Education: The Case of the 1938 ‘Red’ Follonsby Miners’ Banner which was due to take place on Tuesday evening.
Both Lucy and Lewis are supporting the industrial action that their trade union UCU is taking tomorrow in defence of pensions, pay and conditions in the university sector.
There are ten days of strike action over the next three weeks and for more information about the dispute please see: https://www.ucu.org.uk/he2021 and https://www.ucu.org.uk/article/11818/Four-fights-dispute-FAQs
I’m sure all expressions of support for the action would be appreciated.
In solidarity with the UCU.
David

This talk considers the use of trade union banners as tools for mainstream education in the context of the recent reclamation, recuperation, and re-articulation of industrial heritage taking place in localities in the former Durham coalfield, north-east England. It does so by focusing on the educational work undertaken by the Follonsby Miner’s Banner Association in partnership with a local primary school.
It is divided into four substantive sections. The first locates our approach theoretically, primarily in the rich pedagogical literature, while the second briefly contextualizes the Association and the school. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with teachers and activists, it offers a chronology of a project that, catalysed by the replica Follonsby miners’ banner, developed spontaneously in several exciting directions.
These included the school developing its own miners’-style banner, unveiled by the late Tony Benn, who featured on it. The third section offers some wider observations about the educational partnership and then considers the specific challenges that the Follonsby banner’s iconography posed in terms of teaching and how these were overcome.
Finally, we discuss legacies and lessons, arguing that the wider impacts of the project went far beyond the specific learning experience they offered the children involved. Here is the link:

Leeds University: Chartism Day 2022 in honour of Professor Malcolm Chase
2022-03-19 09:00 - 16:50 | University of Leeds
From the Society for the Study of Labour History
Chartism Day returns in March 2022 after an enforced absence of two years. This year’s event, held jointly with the Social History Society, is in honour of Professor Malcolm Chase, who died in February 2020. Malcolm was a great historian of Chartism, a stalwart of the Society for the Study of Labour History over many years, and a central figure at Chartism Days.
Chartism Day 2022: Register here to attend

Various locations: Wor Bella, Blyth Spartans Ladies. A play by Ed Waugh
2022-03-25 - 2022-04-03
Click on image for full size

Tyneside Irish Centre: Sylvia Topp, Remembering Eileen O'Shaughnessy
2022-03-25 19:30 - 21:00 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
In conjunction with the Orwell Society, we are hosting an in person meeting at the Tyneside Irish Centre, Friday 25 March at 7.30pm when Sylvia Topp will be in conversation with North East History editor, Rosie Serdiville about her recently published biography of Eileen O’Shaughnessy, Eileen: The Making of George Orwell. This meeting will also be livestreamed (see below).
Eileen was born in South Shields in 1905, married George Orwell in 1936 and sadly died in a Newcastle hospital at the relatively young age of forty.
Sylvia Topp has worked in publishing since college, starting as a copy writer on medical journals, then moving to freelancing editing at a major literary publishing houses.

She was the long-time wife and partner of Tuli Kupferberg, a Beat poet who later was a co-founder, in 1964, of the Fugs, a legendary rock and roll band. Together Sylvia and Tuli wrote, edited, and designed over thirty books and magazines, including As They Were, 1001 Ways to Live Without Working, and Yeah! magazine.

Sylvia joined the staff at The Soho Weekly News and later The Village Voice, before finishing her publishing career at Vanity Fair. Eileen is her first book. She lives in Kingston, Ontario.
The meeting will be livestreamed.

You are invited to a Zoom webinar.
When: Mar 25, 2022 07:30 PM London
Topic: Eileen: A Life – a conversation with Sylvia Topp
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_9gCrRs1XRWWA7RR6FrXJog
This is part of a visit by members of the Orwell Society who will be on Tyneside from 25 to 27 March to commemorate the life of Eileen O’Shaughnessy.

The Word, South Shields. Sylvia Topp will talk about her book Eileen: The Making of George Orwell
2022-03-26 14:00 - 15:30 | The Word, 45 Market Place, South Shields, NE33 1JF
BOOKING REQUIRED: BOOK HERE Suitable for ages 16+
Sylvia Topp, author of the novel Eileen: The Making of George Orwell, will be joining us at The Word to discuss her book which is the never before told story of George Orwell’s first wife, Eileen O’Shaughnessy, a woman born in South Shields who shaped, supported and even saved the life of one of the 20th century’s greatest writers.
The event will also include Jarrow-born Tom Kelly ‘in conversation’ with Richard Blair, the adopted son of author George Orwell and patron of the Orwell Society, and there will be an opportunity for the audience to ask their questions.
During the event, there will be a showing of Gary Wilkinson’s Wildflower film, about Eileen O’Shaughnessy, and Tom Kelly will also read his poem about Eileen, titled You, you, you.
Copies of Sylvia’s book will be available to buy at the event.
The event has been planned with The Word by The Orwell Society whose members are in South Shields for a weekend of events originally scheduled for March 2020, which would have been the 75th anniversary of Eileen’s sadly premature death.
The Orwell Society is at https://orwellsociety.com/

NOW INVITATION ONLY: South Shields: Unveiling of a Blue Plaque for Eileen O'Shaughnessy
2022-03-27 11:00 - 12:00
Apologies for this change of plan. This unveiling is now by invitation only as space is limited.

Northern Stage, Newcastle: Red Ellen - The Story of Ellen Wilkinson MP
2022-03-29 - 2022-04-10 | Northern Stage, Barras BridgeNE1 7RH, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 7RH
“A working class woman inside the walls of Westminster? If that is not espionage, I do not know what is.“
A Northern Stage, Nottingham Playhouse & Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh production
Booking details here

This remarkable new play from Caroline Bird tells the inspiring and epic story of Ellen Wilkinson, Labour MP, who was forever on the right side of history, forever on the wrong side of life.
Caught between revolutionary and parliamentary politics, Ellen fights with an unstoppable, reckless energy for a better world. Running (quite literally in some cases) into the likes of Albert Einstein and Ernest Hemingway, she battles to save Jewish refugees in Nazi Germany; campaigns for Britain to aid the fight against Franco’s Fascists in Spain; and leads 200 workers in the Jarrow Crusade, marching from Newcastle through Nottingham and the Midlands, all the way to London delivering a petition to reduce unemployment and poverty. She serves as a vital member of Churchill’s cabinet, and has affairs with communist spies and government ministers. But, despite all of this, she still finds herself – somehow – on the outside looking in.​
This is the story of Ellen Wilkinson.
There is more than one way to kill a revolutionary…
Preview performances: Tue 29 – Thu 31 Mar
Preview performances give audiences the opportunity to be one of the first to see a new show. During previews, the show is still being developed and changes may still be made ahead of the official press night. As the show is still being developed, tickets are a little cheaper than our regular prices. We will always try to give you the best experience no matter what show you attend but if there are a few hitches on the night then we appreciate your patience and goodwill while we polish the show.

First Tuesday. Dr Christopher Massey, Teesside University will talk about: The Man at the Back: Lord Tom Sawyer and the modernisation of the Labour Party
2022-04-05 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
‘The Man at the Back: Lord Tom Sawyer and the modernisation of the Labour Party’ with Dr. Christopher Massey
This talk highlights the significant contribution of Lord Tom Sawyer to the Labour Party’s modernisation between 1983 and 1997. Sawyer, as a key trade union official and later General Secretary of the Labour Party, played a crucial role in the redevelopment of Labour’s internal structures, policy making and campaign machinery.
Sawyer’s political journey in these years closely mirrored Labour’s national position, shifting from the hard-left towards the centre-left. His contributions to Labour’s renewal included vital roles during the Inquiry into the Militant Tendency in Liverpool (1986), the party’s Policy Review (1987-92), the shift to One Member, One Vote (1993), the change to Clause IV of Labour’s Constitution (1995), and Partnership in Power (1997).
Through such input, Sawyer played a crucial, and often undocumented, role in the modernisation which led towards the party’s 1997 general election victory.
Christopher Massey is the Principal Lecturer for Programmes within Humanities and Social Science at Teesside University. His research focuses on the Labour Party and the labour movement. His recent work includes the official biography of Lord Tom Sawyer, The Man at the Back, and a 2020 monograph, ‘The Modernisation of the Labour Party, 1979-97.’
He was elected as a Councillor for Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council in 2011, and was Deputy Leader between 2017 and 2019.
Here’s the link:
Topic: Tom Sawyer and the Labour Party
Time: Apr 5, 2022 07:00 PM London
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89729662565?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 897 2966 2565
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Tyne & Wear May Day Celebrations: May Day Social (Newcastle Irish Centre, Fri 29 April), March and Rally (Exhibition Park, Sat 30 April)
2022-04-29 - 2022-05-01 | Various North East Venues
Please click on the image to enlarge it.

BBC Radio 3: The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff
2022-05-01 19:30 - 20:30 | BBC Radio 3
Award-winning North East folk band The Young’uns – Sean Cooney and David Eagle with Jack Rutter (for Michael Hughes) present their production of The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff, recorded in front of a live audience in their hometown of Stockton-on-Tees.
It’s the true story of one man’s journey from unemployment, through the Hunger Marches of the 1930s, the mass trespass movement, and the Battle of Cable Street, to fighting fascism in the Spanish Civil War. A touching and often hilarious musical adventure, its themes of war, hunger, poverty, and displacement have a powerful resonance almost a hundred years on.
To be broadcast by BBC Radio 3 on the 1 May 2022 at 7.30pm – UK time.

First Tuesday: 'Hidden Chains: The Slavery Business and North East England' with John Charlton
2022-05-03 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
North East England is rarely associated with the African slave trade, but new research has shown that the region was inextricably involved in that shocking state-sanctioned traffic in human beings. “Hidden Chains” reveals the links between some of the North East’s wealthiest, most prominent families and the plantations of the New World. It also tells the story of ordinary people from Northumberland, Durham and Tyneside who were caught up in the slavery business.
Some were bonded labourers; others crossed the Atlantic on ships carrying human cargo, returning with tobacco, sugar, rum and other profitable goods. At the same time the North East’s men and women were playing a determined part in the anti-slavery movement and their vital contribution to abolition is also explored.
John is a member of the NELHS Committee and Editorial Board.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85154499646?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 851 5449 9646
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Durham Town Hall, The Miners’ Strike in County Durham: A Family and Community Conversation
2022-05-24 18:00 - 19:30 | Durham Town Hall, Market Place, Durham, DH1 3NJ
Register here for tickets to attend in person or here to join online via Zoom.
A free public event hosted by Durham University History Department.
Although the Miners’ Strike took place nearly forty years ago, the families and communities that experienced it in County Durham still have vivid memories of that year and have had to wrestle in their lives with the destruction of an industry.
This event features historian Robert Gildea, who is writing an oral history of the strike, in conversation with one of the families he interviewed. David Wray was an electrician at Sacriston during the strike. He and his wife Dorothy ran a soup kitchen in Leadgate and their daughter Sam, a teenager at the time, enjoyed the visits of musicians who helped to raise funds for striking families. They will be joined by Sam’s daughter, Caitlin, now a student at Newcastle University, who speaks for a third generation that has been shaped by the strike.
Following a conversation with the family the floor with be open to members of the audience who would like to share their own memories of the strike and its legacy.
Robert Gildea is Professor Emeritus of Modern History at the University of Oxford. His most recent book is Empires of the Mind: The Colonial Past and the Politics of the Present (2019), and he has published many books on modern European and transnational history, especially on the Second World War and Europe’s 1968. His work has been awarded the Wolfson Prize for History.
With thanks to Tom Hamilton, Associate Professor, History Department, Durham University.

Event commemorating Nigel Todd, Bike Garden, Nuns Moor, Newcastle
2022-06-18 12:00 - 15:00 | Bike Garden, Nuns Moor, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 5NU
Nigel, with his daughter Selina, on an anti-austerity march in Manchester, 4th October 2015. Photograph courtesy Peter Brabban.
Music by Bethany Elen Coyle and pizzas from the pizza oven. Opportunity to share memories about Nigel and his work in the community. Open to all.
The bike garden is located in Nuns Moor Park here: https://goo.gl/maps/Q1LwGLu3ZRZxmJT96

The Active Utopian: A Celebration of The Work and Passions of Nigel Todd, Neville Hall, Newcastle
2022-06-20 10:00 - 15:00 | Common Room, Neville Hall, Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1SE
Nigel Todd
Friends and colleagues of Nigel will gather on 20th June to celebrate his life, his work and most of all his passion for progress, social justice and lifelong learning.
North of Tyne Mayor, Jamie Driscoll, will give the keynote address and there will be local and national speakers from the Workers Education Association, Co-operative College, Newcastle City Council, the Green movement and other parts of Nigel’s life. There will be music, a slide show from his 1983 General Election campaign and a memory board, as well as an opportunity for reunions with old friends and making new ones.
This will be a joyous occasion, following-on from and in the same spirit as the community event in his memory which will happen at the Bike Garden, Nuns Moor on Saturday 18th June.
Sold out. Check here for any places that may become available from cancellations.

Programme

There will be a memory board. If you have anything you would like to put on it please contact silviefish@yahoo.com
9:30 Coffee
10.00 Welcome and Introduction: Chairs for the day, Liz O’Donnell and Kath Connolly
10:05 Keynote Speaker. Jamie Driscoll, North of Tyne Mayor
10:15 Workers’ Education Association
Keith Hodgson. Chair NE Region WEA, formerly NUPE/UNISON Education Officer
Jude Murphy. WEA Education Co-ordinator, Musician and Historian
Anne Staines. WEA Regional Education Manager – retired
Simon Parkinson. General Secretary & Chief Executive at WEA
10:45 Nigel’s Centenary Commission colleagues
Centenary Commission on Adult Education, John Holford. Robert Peers Professor of Adult Education, University of Nottingham
Nigel’s work on Raymond Williams and the New Diggers. Sharon Clancy, Assistant Professor of Education, Nottingham University
Building community, democracy and dialogue. Iain Jones. Associate Lecturer, The Open University
11:05 WEA Green Network: Ruth Hayward. Co-founder WEA North East Green Branch
11:15 Discussion and Q&A of WEA topics
11:30 Coffee
11:45 Nigel’s Political Activism, Internationalism, Palestine, Kashmir, Bangladesh, Ann Schofield. Internationalist and Political Activist
12:05 Greening Wingrove: Dave Webb. Director, Greening Wingrove
12:25 Slide show of Nigel’s 1983 GE campaign. Peter Brabban, Professional Photographer
12:45 Lunch: Ordinary Heroes. WW1 Documentary
Rochdale Pioneers Songs (recorded)
13:30 Irim Ali. Chair of Greening Wingrove
13:50 Joseph Cowen and the Chronicle. Andy McSmith. Journalist and Author
14:10 The Co-operative college. Hazel Johnson. Co-operative college trustee
14:30 Round Table:
Matt Perry. Historian, Newcastle University
Charlotte Alston. Historian, University of Northumbria
Simon Parkinson. General Secretary & Chief Executive at WEA
15:00 Close and songs from Bethany Elen Coyle with Jude Murphy
About
This is a collaborative event by the Workers’ Educational Association, the Co-operative College, The Labour and Society Research Group at Newcastle University and the North East Labour History Society
Our thanks to the Workers’ Educational Association for their generous sponsorship of this event

Rebel Town Festival: Tyne Pedestrian Tunnel - South Entrance.
2022-06-25 10:30 - 12:00 | Tyne Pedestrian Tunnel – South Entrance, Jarrow, NE32 3PS
As attached, the sixth annual commemoration of turbulent events in Jarrow in the 1830s takes place this Saturday 25 June with particpants asked to assemble by the Pedestrian Tunnel NE32 3PS at 10.30am.
The speakers will be Jeremy Corbyn MP, Kate Osborne MP for Jarrow and Dave Douglass, Follonsby Miners Lodge Association and former NUM official. Music will be provided by the Felling Silver Band followed by refreshments at the Albion Gin & Ale House.

NELH Tuesday Meeting: Bob Clay (former MP), The Closure of the Sunderland Shipyards and the thwarted Cuban orders
2022-06-28 19:00 - 20:30 | To be notified
Further details to be added

Tyneside Irish Centre: Tyneside Irish Brigade Memories Project - 1 July 1916
2022-07-01 10:00 - 16:00 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
From Rosie Serdiville:
Tyneside Irish Brigade Memories Project
We are all very aware of the 7200 Tyneside Irish who served during World War 1 and, in particular, of those who never made it home. 1200 of them died, many on the first day of the Battle of the Somme – 1st July 1916. Friends and families were left behind to mourn and to remember.
For the past year volunteers of the Tyneside Irish Cultural Society, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, have worked with those families, researching and recording their memories. They feature in a new exhibition which has been touring the North East.
On Friday 1st July, it returns to Newcastle. We plan to celebrate and commemorate at a gathering at Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG. The exhibition will be open from 10 – 4, with a special event taking place at noon.
It is, of course, the anniversary of the first day of the Battle of the Somme so it is fitting that there should be a short ceremony to mark the occasion. This will be followed by free refreshments and a chance to meet the volunteers and families.
We would be delighted if you would be able to join us. It would be useful to know if you are coming so we can gauge numbers for catering – just hit the RSVP button below to register or send us an email.
Do let us know if you can think of anyone else who should be invited.
Regards,
Rosie Serdiville
RSVP here

Tyneside Irish Cultural Society

43 Gallowgate
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 4SG
(+44) 0191 261 0385

www.tynesideirish.com

Online: Seminar on the History of Trade Union Education
2022-07-06 18:00 - 20:00 | Online
​This seminar will explore the history of Trade Union Education – both learning for activists and broader learning for members. It will discuss current issues and how to shape future Trade Union Learning.
Speakers: John Holford (Nottingham University), Teresa Donegan (Unison), Kevin Rowan (TUC), John Lloyd (academic)
Book here
Organised by Professor John Holford, Nottingham University.

Newcastle University: Newcastle Antiquaries Conference, Eighteenth-Century Political Participation and Electoral Culture
2022-07-07 - 2022-07-10 | Old Library Building, Newcastle University
From Newcastle Antiquaries
Newcastle University have announced the programme for their conference on Eighteenth-Century Political Participation and Electoral Culture, on 7-9 July. This is part of a wider project, which aims to explore how ordinary people participated in parliamentary elections in England, from 1695 until the Reform Act of 1832, run by the University in conjunction with Liverpool University and the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Follow this link to register.
The Antiquaries were in at the beginning of this when we digitised our copy of the Poll Book for the Newcastle election of 1780, and it was then transcribed by a group of volunteers. We have supported the project since then, and are providing the funds for four £50 travel bursaries for unwaged participants. Closing date for applying for these is 1 May, and they will be allocated by the Conference organisers.

Bridge Hotel, Newcastle. Memorial for Peter Burnett
2022-07-08 16:00 - 17:00 | The Bridge Hotel, Castle Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, NE1 1RQ, United Kingdom
From Kate Routledge, daughter of the late Peter Burnett
We are holding a small memorial for my Dad at the Bridge Hotel in Newcastle on Friday 8th July from 4pm. Could you let anyone that might want to come along and raise a glass to him know.
It would be lovely to see you there if you could make it.

Durham Miners Gala 2022
2022-07-09 08:00 - 17:00
This year’s Gala takes place in Durham City on Saturday 9 July and it’s the first in three years.
For more information see here

Gala information – Friends of Durham Miners’ Gala
The Durham Miners’ Gala is the world’s greatest celebration of c ommunity, international solidarity, and working class culture. It is a unique and inspiring spectacle. More than 200,000 people pack the streets of Durham to enjoy the sights and sounds of The Big Meeting.
www.friendsofdurhamminersgala.org

The Gala is funded by subscription and donation through the Friends of Durham Miners’ Gala and those who contribute are known as ‘Marras’, a Durham miners’ term for a friend who can be relied on in times of need.
To support the Gala, join the Marras here https://www.friendsofdurhamminersgala.org/join_us

Cleadon Park Library. Peter Chapman will talk about his book: A Tyneside Heritage: Reflections
2022-07-18 16:15 - 18:45
LECTURE AND BOOK SIGNING ‘A TYNESIDE HERITAGE: REFLECTIONS’
Peter Chapman, author of A Tyneside Heritage: Reflections will be talking about his book at a meeting organised by South Shields Local History Group on Monday 18 July, 5.15pm – 6.45pm.
It takes place in Room A (upstairs) at Cleadon Park Library, Primary Healthcare Centre, The Nook, South Shields NE34 8PS. Admission £1 for non-members.

South Shields Local History Group Presents:
Peter Chapman’s book, spanning 150 years of South Shields’ changing fortunes, was published a year ago. In this lecture he will discuss the boom years of coal exporting and shipbuilding, the business and community leaders who made it happen, the ensuing problems of unemployment and political turmoil in the inter-war years and the peacetime challenges after it ended. He will highlight the leading role of the Chapman family in the town and in County Durham, and reflect on topics which are still relevant today.

NELH Tuesday Meeting (date to be notified): Nkechi Managwu, university student will talk about The Work of the Decolonise Durham Network
2022-07-19 19:30 - 21:00 | To be notified
My name is Nkechi Managwu and I am currently a History and French student at Durham University. I recently held the position of Decolonisation Intern for the History Department, which aims to ‘engage with the past to orientate ourselves in the present’ whilst acknowledging the involvement of educational institutions in imperialised and racialised views and divisions.
As part of my Decolonisation internship at Durham University’s History Department, I reflected on my views on the importance of having a diverse bank of resources in today’s day and age as we become increasingly aware of how crucial different views and understandings of events can be in a learning, and personal, environment.
As a result of this, I put together a resource list to allow students to access a wider range of resources which they might otherwise not be aware of to help in their studies and individual interests. Moreover, this document was created to give lecturers and module convenors a chance to perhaps explore a wider array of resources to those they commonly use as they structure seminars, lectures, and their own research. Students and educators alike will hopefully be able to gain new insight into different histories through a range of channels, immersing themselves in a novel, inclusive perspective.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88199676107?pwd=[REDACTED]

Meeting ID: 881 9967 6107
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Elswick’s Shipyard and its Colonial Legacy 1885-1918 with Celina Hart on Tuesday 26 July at 7.00pm by Zoom
2022-07-26 19:00 - 20:30
Scholarship surrounding the history of the North East is dominated by its industrial heritage, and more specifically, the global reputation it held for shipbuilding. Existing scholarship on Lord Armstrong’s shipbuilding business at Elswick, in particular, has been explored from a biographical, industrial, and military perspective.
Existing work has not made the link between shipbuilding at Elswick and colonialism. Despite such an established global reputation and market, historians have stopped short of researching what the ships were used for and involved in beyond their launch date.
This presentation aims to challenge the dominant narrative which has been created because of the copious literature on the subject. This dominant narrative emits what the ships went on to achieve and conquer. The project will create new perspectives which highlight the global ramifications it had at the time when European powers scrambled to own as much of the Earth’s surface as possible.
Furthermore, Newcastle as a city profited from the money and philanthropy which came from both Armstrong and the profits which were made from sales at his Elswick works. Therefore, this research will also challenge the idea that only those directly involved with colonising other countries, through the ships produced, were enriched by it.
Celina is an MA student in Public History at Newcastle University.

A Zoom link will be sent nearer the time.

NELH Tuesday Meeting: Forbidden Kinder: The 1932 Kinder Scout Mass Tresspass Re-examined with Keith Warrender
2022-08-16 19:00 - 20:30
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82214641133?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 822 1464 1133, Passcode: [REDACTED]
The 1932 Kinder Scout Mass Trespass is mired in myth and controversy but Keith Warrender, author of the recently published FORBIDDEN KINDER, reveals the truth behind the many claims made for it.
In his talk he will describe the iconic protest in the campaign for ramblers’ right to roam, in which five of the ramblers were jailed after the confrontation with keepers, and how it has divided opinion ever since.
Keith will deal with the spurious claims that the protestors were not dedicated ramblers and explain the politics behind the Trespass.
Critics have said that the Trespass made little impact to free up the wild Derbyshire moors for all, but Keith will show how rambling organisations were spurred on by the event, and the landowners felt pressured into negotiation.
Many of the people on the Trespass went on to live extraordinary lives – and Keith will detail how they were involved in the higher echelons of post-war Government planning, how they attained high office in local government and were involved in social justice around the world. One achieved fame as a top speedway rider, another was a professional footballer, while a further Kinder protester became a science expert on TV shows.
Did the Trespassers actually reach Kinder Scout? It had been thought they hadn’t but Keith will share an interesting discovery.
His book, FORBIDDEN KINDER is the fullest and most comprehensive publication ever written on the Kinder Mass Trespass, setting the scene how Kinder became barred to ramblers, and then outlines the fight to make it open to all.
Keith Warrender is an author and publisher specialising in the local history of Greater Manchester, Cheshire and the Peak District.
He has been interested in the Kinder Trespass since his first book ‘High Peak Faces & Places’ in 1978. Over the years he has given many talks on the subject, and in 1982 published Benny Rothman’s account of the protest.
In 2012 he co-wrote ‘Battle For Kinder Scout’, and then this year, to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Trespass, Keith has written and published ‘Forbidden Kinder’ – the most comprehensive work on the subject.
