North East Labour History

NELH Tuesday Meeting. Tyneside Irish Centre. Ken Smith will talk about North-East Miners' Banners
2025-01-07 19:00 - 20:30 (Europe/London) | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
The banners of the Durham and Northumberland coal miners are an extremely important part of the heritage of the former pit communities of the North-East.
Emblazoned across their fabric are images and mottoes which reflect the history of the pitmen and their values. This illustrated talk will throw the spotlight on these wonderful icons of mining trade unionism.
Retired Newcastle journalist Ken Smith is co-author of Echoes of the North-East Miners, Splendour of the Gala, The Great Northern Miners and Remembering the Miners. He is a life member of the National Union of Journalists.

Newcastle. Holocaust Memorial Events.
2025-01-16 - 2025-01-31 | Newcastle: Various Venues
From Peter Sagar
This is to invite you a Holocaust Memorial Day event on Thursday 23rd January at the Bewick Hall in Newcastle City Library at 5.30pm and also, to a repeat event at the Community Room in Newcastle West End Library at 3pm on Friday 24th January.
The events are remembering the role of local regiment the Durham Light Infantry in the Relief of Belsen in 1945.
The following is taken from the Newcastle HMD brochure: “Two events to commemorate and celebrate the role played in the Relief of Belsen in the spring of 1945 by one of our local regiments – the 113 LAA TA, affiliated to the Durham Light Infantry. -when men from the Northeast helped Jewish, Roma and other survivors. There will be illustrated talks by local historian Peter Sagar and ex-MP Julie Ward and the screening of an interview with Frank Lavin from Hartlepool, whose father Wilfr was part of the DLI detachment at Bergen-Belsen in April and May 1945. Young people from North Benwell Youth Project, many from a Roma background, will show how they have responded to the story through artwork”
I think that it is a great story, the kind of story that can break down barriers and which we desperately need at the moment.
It would be great to see you on 23rd or 24th January!
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As well as Peter Sagar’s events there will be a full programme of Holocaust Memorial events running from 16 to 30 January. See this link for the full programme:
Newcastle Holocaust Memorial Events 2025

NELH Tuesday Meeting, Tyneside Irish Centre. Margaret Bozic, Citizens Advice Cases in 1950s Tyneside: Divorce, Domestics and Rehousing
2025-02-04 19:00 - 20:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
This talk by Margaret Bozic explores what life was really like in the North East after the Second World War. What did we eat, what was the state of the housing, what was the situation of both men and women in the family and society, why were there so many divorces after the War and why did Bingo ruin everything?
She has based her talk on case records from the Citizens Advise Bureau at that time and from what was then The Council of Social Services in Newcastle, now Connected Voice. She also outlines the work done by the CAB and the Council.
There are plenty of illustrations including one of tripe. The talk lasts for about 50 minutes and she is happy to answer questions afterwards.
Margaret Bozic is a retired Chartered Surveyor who lives in Washington. She is a former Board member of the Lit and Phil and is now Volunteer Coordinator. She is also a Trustee of the Tyne and Wear Buildings Preservation Trust. She gives regular talks to u3as, Rotary, WI groups etc. She also leads tours and walks in the area.

NELH Tuesday Meeting. Ken Smith. The role of the Tyne built Carpathia in the rescue of survivors from the Titanic
2025-03-11 19:00 - 20:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
In April 1912 the Tyne-built ship Carpathia rescued the bitterly cold and traumatised survivors of the Titanic disaster. In this illustrated talk Newcastle author Ken Smith spotlights the ship’s epic story of compassion amid tragedy.

Remembrance Event: 100th Anniversary of the Montagu Pit Disaster
2025-03-29 10:30 - 15:30 | St Margaret’s Church, Scotswood
From Judith Green,
This year marks the centenary of the disaster which killed 38 men and boys from the local area. To commemorate this, local organisations are holding a remembrance event from 10.30am – 1pm and a memorial service at 2pm at St Margaret’s Church, Armstrong Road, Scotswood NE15 6AR on Saturday 29 March.

Jarrow Cemetery: Unveiling of a Headstone to Mary Lyons (Wor Bella, Jarrow born footballer)
2025-04-27 11:30 - 12:30 | Jarrow Cemetery, Cemetery Road, Jarrow, NE32 5UU
Headstone for Mary Lyons (from Ed Waugh)
As a response to our play Wor Bella, about women’s football in WW1, there will be an unveiling of a headstone to Mary Lyons at Jarrow Cemetery on Sunday, April 27 @ 11.30am. See press release below.
FORGOTTEN WW1 FEMALE FOOTBALL STAR TO GET A HEADSTONE
She died a forgotten hero in 1979, but WW1 women’s football superstar Mary Lyons is about to get the recognition she deserves when a headstone on her previously unmarked Jarrow grave is unveiled in April.
Mary was born in 1902 in Jarrow. She became the youngest-ever England footballer and goal scorer when she netted in front of 20,000 people on her debut against Scotland at St James’ Park, Newcastle, in 1918, aged 15! It is a record that still stands today, and yet her achievements have been written out of history – until now!
Mary died in Primrose Hill hospital, Jarrow, in 1979, aged 76, and was laid to rest in an unmarked grave with three others.
The Friends of Jarrow Cemetery have been at the forefront of getting recognition for the town’s forgotten football hero and, last year after discovering her final resting place, erected a 3ft wooden cross to mark the grave.
However, Mary features prominently in Wor Bella by South Tyneside-based playwright Ed Waugh and due to the success of that play in the North East in 2022 and its hugely successful re-run in London and Newcastle Theatre Royal last year, the Friends of Jarrow Cemetery moved to get Mary a permanent headstone.
Jarrow amateur historian Stewart Hill, 73, and Tricia Vickers, 67, are members of the Friends and have led the way in getting recognition for Mary.
Stewart explained: “Mary was the youngest of eight siblings and she worked in Jarrow shipyard during WW1. She was a tremendous footballer by all accounts.
“Mary debuted for Jarrow Palmers when she was only 15 and quickly caught the eye. In May 1918, she was seconded to the mighty Blyth Spartans for the Munitionettes’ Cup final against Bolckow Vaughan of Middlesbrough.
“Mary scored a goal in the 5-0 victory at Ayresome Park, in front of 22,000 spectators and was crowned “Player of the Match”.
“The following year, 1919, Mary captained Jarrow Palmers to win the Munitionettes’ cup at St James’ Park, in front of 9,000 people, an incredible figure considering it was a time of the flu pandemic!”
Stewart added: “So by the age of 16, Mary had won two cup finals, scored in one, captained her team in the other – only two finals were ever played – and became the youngest-ever England player and goalscorer!
“What a brilliant achievement! Imagine what she would be like today, given the modern game and opportunities.”
Tricia, said: “Our great friend George Le-Blond of Abbey Memorials in Jarrow has generously donated the beautiful marble headstone and genealogist Sam Nicol has been a great help trawling through hundreds of newspaper articles for information.”
She continued: “Friends of Jarrow Cemetery work to keep the cemetery welcoming and clean, and make it safe for people and their loved ones. This is a tremendous development.
“Mary and the WW1 women footballers should be an inspiration to young women everywhere.”
The unveiling will take place at Jarrow Cemetery on Sunday, April 27, at 11.30am and everyone is welcome to attend. A brass band will lead the procession to the grave and ex-England Lionesses Christine Knox and Aran Embleton will perform the unveiling ceremony.
Christine, who won ten England caps in the 1970s and 1980s, played for Wallsend Ladies, Whitley Bay Ladies and North Shields Ladies.
Aran, the first millennial Geordie Lioness, gained four England caps and played for Blyth Spartans, Sunderland Ladies and Doncaster Belles in her illustrious career.
Aran said: “I am proud to have been invited to recognise Mary who, like the incredible Bella Reay of Blyth Spartans and other women of their generation, played women’s football until it was criminally banned by the FA in 1921.
“Players like Christine and I, and the current Lionesses, stand on the shoulders of these brilliant working class women from more than 100 years ago.”
Following the unveiling at Jarrow Cemetery, there will be refreshments and a celebration of Mary’s footballing achievements at the Iona Club, Hebburn. Due to start at noon, speakers at the event will be Wor Bella co-producer Jane Harker, Aran and Christine, and Wor Bella actress Catherine Dryden. The event is public and entry is free.

NELH Tuesday Meeting, Tyneside Irish Centre: Dr Katherine Connelly will present: 'Who stopped the War? Women and the Jolly George'
2025-05-13 19:00 - 20:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
On 10 May 1920, East London dockers made history when they refused to load the Jolly George ship with munitions that were intended to be used against the Bolsheviks in Russia. Their action precipitated a wave of working-class support that effectively forced the British government to abandon their war plans. It has remained a beacon of inspiration to anti-war activists and internationalists ever since.
But what persuaded the dockers to take this stance in the first place? In this talk, Dr Katherine Connelly explores the overlooked, but vital, contribution of former suffragettes in East London who drew on years of campaigning experience, close connections with dockers and their extraordinary ability to smuggle revolutionary literature in a tireless effort to bring about the strike. It is an inspiring story that is urgently relevant today when we face questions about how we can stop genocide and the drive to war.
Dr Katherine Connelly is a historian, writer and activist. She is a lecturer at New York University London and Boston University’s London centre. She is the author of the biography ‘Sylvia Pankhurst: Suffragette, Socialist and Scourge of Empire’ which was published by Pluto Press in 2013. In 2019, she edited and introduced Pankhurst’s hitherto unpublished manuscript about race, gender and class in the United States, now published by Pluto Press under the title ‘A Suffragette in America: Reflections on Prisoners, Pickets and Political Change.’ She is the editor of the forthcoming ‘Cambridge Companion to Women’s Suffrage in Britain’.

NELH Tuesday Meeting. John Stirling: On the edge? A 1960s Trade Unions Arts Festival in Newcastle
2025-07-01 19:00 - 20:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
It was 60 years ago in July 1965 that the Region’s trade unions planned and put on an Exhibition and Arts Festival. This talk will review just what was on offer and what the reaction was from local people and in the media. It will also reflect on the state of the unions at the time. But why would trade unions want to put on an arts festival anyway? What were they hoping to achieve? That’s open for discussion and, perhaps, contributions from anyone who has memories of the event!
John Stirling joined Northumbria University when it was a Polytechnic and has been involved in teaching trade unionists and writing about the movement ever since.

Redhills Miners' Hall: Mining the Memories Book Launch
2025-07-10 13:00 - 14:30 | The Miners’ Hall, Redhills, Durham, Flass Street, Durham City, DH1 4BE
From Kath Connolly
Education 4 Action are a group of volunteers working to celebrate our mining and union heritage. Amongst other things, we have provided tours of the Miners’ Hall at Redhills, organised meetings for major speakers in the week of the Big Meeting as well as developing our schools programme which has been successful in raising awareness of the need to work together in a democratic way to challenge injustice.

We are now publishing Mining The Memories, a collection of memories about what it was like to grow up in the mining communities of County Durham.
The book will be launched at the newly restored Redhills in Durham City on Thursday 10 July, 1.00 – 2.30pm and to book your place at our free launch please go to https://redhillsdurham.org/event/mining-the-memories-book-launch/ Special guests are Fiona Hill, Bill Elliott and the Rickleton School Choir.
If you can’t make that date we are having an evening event on Monday 7 July at 7.00pm in the People’s Bookshop, Prince Bishop’s Shopping Centre, Durham. To book your free place for this you should email me at kathleenhconnolly@hotmail.co.uk .
Please circulate to those who you think will be interested.
Best wishes
Kath and Education 4 Action

Joint NELH / Tyneside Irish Centre Talk. Chris Jones: 'The Spy who helped the Soviets win Stalingrad and Kursk'
2025-09-25 19:00 - 20:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
Details to be added

North East Labour History Society, Annual General Meeting. Tyneside Irish Centre. Speaker: Dr. Sally Watson on Protest and participation in the redevelopment of Byker, 1968-1982.
2025-10-07 19:00 - 21:30 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
Our AGM speaker will be Dr. Sally Watson on Protest and participation in the redevelopment of Byker, 1968-1982.
Byker has long divided opinion. It has been celebrated for its achievements, both architectural and social, and criticised as a failed experiment. This talk revisits Byker to reconsider some of the myths that have sprung up around its redevelopment. The neighbourhood was earmarked for demolition in 1963, with a new plan for Byker published in 1966.
Following a backlash to this proposal, Newcastle City Council appointed the architectural practice Ralph Erskine Arkitektkontor to oversee the redevelopment. They committed to retaining as many of the existing population as possible and to engaging tenants in decision-making about its future design. The talk will cover this period of protest, which generally receives less attention than the redevelopment itself. It will then go on to examine how tenants continued to campaign for housing rights alongside exerting their influence on the design of the new neighbourhood.
Finally, it considers what were the implications of redeveloping ‘Byker for Byker people’, as the rallying cry went, both for children who had no voice in this process and in terms of who could become a Byker tenant. It concludes by considering the legacy of the struggle over Byker.
Dr Sally Watson is a researcher in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at Newcastle University. Her research focuses on the relationship between changing ideas about children and the design and regulation of the urban environment since the mid 20th century. As part of her PhD research, she undertook the first extensive archival study based on the office archive of Ralph Erskine’s practice in Byker. She has also worked in museums and architectural archives in Newcastle, London and Edinburgh.

Northumbria University. Workshop: Change-making between the Local and the Global: A Conversation
2025-10-08 10:00 - 16:15 | Business Hub, Library, room 304E, Northumbria University, Sandyford Road, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 8ST
From Daniel Laqua | Professor of Modern and Contemporary History | Department of Humanities | Northumbria University
On 8 October, we’re running a workshop at Northumbria University, entitled ‘Change-making between the Local and the Global: A Conversation’. It’s part of a wider project that my colleague Henry Miller and I are involved in. The aim of this event is to use some historical examples to facilitate conversations on the links between local and global activism. I’m conscious that many NELH members are not only interested in history but also often have personal experience of various forms of activism. With this in mind, would you be able to share the details with them?
Details, including a page to book a place on the workshop, are available here:
Change-making between the Local and the Global: A Conversation Tickets, Wed, Oct 8, 2025 at 10:00 AM | Eventbrite

NELH Tuesday Meeting, Tyneside Irish Centre. Mike Fraser will talk about The Geordie Appeaser - Viscount Runciman's Mission to Czechoslovakia in 1938
2025-11-18 19:00 - 21:00 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
Runciman’s mission to Czechoslovakia was a key part of Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement. Mike has not delivered this talk in about 12 years so why revisit it now? It initially occurred to him when he recognised that Putin spoke of the Russian speakers in Ukraine similarly to how Hitler spoke of the Sudeten Germans in Czechoslovakia. The decision was confirmed when he heard the former head of the British military state that we are at the 1937 stage with Russia.
Mike will discuss how Runciman’s mission became a significant precursor of the Munich agreement with Hitler.

NELH Tuesday Meeting. The Closure of Sunderland's Shipyards: The Inside Story with Bob Clay and Martin Spence
2026-02-24 19:00 - 21:00 | Zoom
In December 1988 Sunderland’s shipyards closed despite a long and passionate campaign to save them, and 800 years of shipbuilding on the Wear came to an end. Yet this closure has always looked bizarre. Why were these sophisticated modern yards, representing millions of pounds of public investment, written off? Why did the Tory Government sideline a major shipowner keen to place an order which could have kept the yards open?
In this meeting Martin Spence will summarise his recent research into 1980s government papers which suggest answers to these questions. Bob Clay will comment on these findings in the light of his own experiences in the 1980s.
Bob Clay was Labour MP for Sunderland North from 1983 to 1992 and led the campaign to save the yards.
Martin Spence worked in ‘Days of Hope’ bookshop in Newcastle, and later for the media trade union BECTU, where he was Assistant General Secretary.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82998141605?pwd=[REDACTED]

Meeting ID: 829 9814 1605
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Chester le Street: Relaunch of the South Pelaw Miners Banner
2026-03-14 10:00 - 12:00 | Chester-Le-Street C of E Junior School, Hilda Park, South Pelaw,, Chester-le-Street
The South Pelaw Miners Banner needed a new home- where better than the local school where the children would grow up knowing of their proud mining heritage? A grant from Durham County Council’s Labour local Councillor Tracie Smith has paid for the restoration of the banner and its fine oak case .
This delicate silk banner was first unfurled on 23 July 1949 by Jack Lawson MP with portraits of AJ Cook and Peter Lee. On the reverse is the Hermitage, the grand house in Chester l e street acquired by the Durham Miners’ Welfare Committee for the rehabilitation of injured miners .

The restoration complete we are giving it a fine new launch on Saturday 14 March at 10 am in the Chester le Street CE Primary school hall.

Redhills Miners' Hall. Never Stop Learning: A Major North East Conference on Learning and Democracy
2026-04-17 10:00 - 15:30 | The Miners’ Hall, Redhills, Durham, Flass Street, Durham City, DH1 4BE
Whatever happened to Community Education or Life Long Learning?
Who controls Learning now?
How can adult education strengthen democracy?

NELH Tuesday Meeting. Lewis Mates will talk about the 1926 General Strike
2026-05-05 19:00 - 21:00 | Tyneside Irish Centre, 43 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4SG, United Kingdom
Details to follow
