Strike - 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 little prospect of a deal with the Coal Board over pit closures, and thousands of miners are throwing in the towel and going back to work, with the prospect of a special bonus before Christmas. In south Wales only a few make this choice and they have to run the gauntlet of angry pickets as they go into work. The atmosphere starts to turn ugly, and there is violence in the air.
This leads to a tragedy: a taxi driver taking a miner to work is killed when a concrete block thrown from a motorway bridge lands on his car. Some believe this is a turning point for the strike, and that support for the miners now ebbs away.
Presenter: Jonny Owen
Series Producer: Clare Hudson
Executive Producer: Steve Austins
Assistant Producer: Ffion Clarke
Development Producer: Branwen Davies
Sound Designer: Meic Parry
Sound Editor: Adam Whalley
Composer: Richard Llewellyn
Series Consultant: Dr Ben Curtis
Strike is a Bengo Media Production for BBC Sounds
Published on Tuesday, 30th April 2024.
Available Podcasts from Strike
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