Durham is known worldwide for its 900-year-old cathedral. But there is another historic building in the north-east city that holds a special place in the hearts of local people, one being reborn as a hub of heritage and hope for the county’s stricken communities. MARY STRATFORD explains....
A new book on Durham Coalfield communities is a timely testament to working class resilience, says MARY HULL, bringing together evocative tales of ‘marras’, meetings, strikes and marches as well as banners, brass bands and allotments. ...
Poet, campaigner and pioneering author – Blackburn ILPer Ethel Carnie Holdsworth was a radical writer of the early 20th century who made history as the first working class woman to have a novel published in Britain....
Compass and the Co-operative Party have both launched new initiatives in recent weeks aimed at understanding and tackling the rise of the far right....
In these uncertain times, trade unions are a vital counterbalance to capital, says CHRIS WILSON. So why is union membership on the decline, and could the little known World Organisation of Workers point the way forward?...
The Sheffield-based co-operative resource centre, Principle 5, has published the sixth title in its series of pamphlets unearthing forgotten writings, writers and radical groups from the South Yorkshire city and its surroundings....
For KATH CONNOLLY, Robert Gildea’s oral history of the year-long dispute is a much-needed bottom-up record that finally highlights the experiences of those most affected – the miners, their families and their communities....
Despite years of austerity and workplace exploitation, across the economy as a whole most workers are still not trade union members. CHRIS WILSON wonders why and suggests ways to halt the decline....
Joe Cragie was a founder member of Bermondsey ILP, rising from poverty to prominence as leader of the council. He played a crucial role in the socialist successes of Ada and Alfred Salter, but until now has remained hidden from history. GRAHAM TAYLOR uncovers his story....
The ILP’s 130th anniversary will be marked by a major new exhibition due to open at the Working Class Movement Library in Salford on Wednesday 16 August....
Digging through family history, RAYMOND SWEETMAN uncovered the story of his great uncle – an ILP pioneer and ‘middle ranking’ socialist whose long-lost tale deserves to be told....
Photographer Simon Weldon has published an online gallery of participants at the Indie Labour Fest event held to mark the ILP’s 130th anniversary in Bradford in January....