Coal Mining in Britain | The story of mining from the coal face to the strike
Man Alive | Packing Up and Moving Out
Two mining families make the decision to move from Northumberland to Nottingham.
CHANNEL | BBC 2
FIRST BROADCAST | 20 December 1967
DURATION | 28 minutes 52 seconds
FIRSTBROADCAST
1967
Synopsis
Bevercotes Colliery in Nottingham is one of the most modern in Europe, and the National Coal Board wants to recruit its workforce from pits that are due for closure in the North East. One of the communities affected is Ashington, a traditionally close-knit mining village with its roots in the 19th Century that is home to generations of mining families. How will life compare for those uprooted to the brash new housing estates of the Nottinghamshire coalfields?
Did you know?
One of the deepest mines in Britain, Bevercotes Colliery opened just a few years before this programme was filmed and remained a working mine for three decades until its closure in 1993. It is now the site of a nature reserve managed by the Forestry Commission. Many miners from the North East made the same choice as Alan Norman, inspiring pit poet Jock Purdon's 'Farewell to 'Cotia': 'But leave your picks behind you / You'll not need them again / Off you go to Nottingham / To join Robin's Merry Men.'
Contributors
Associated subjects
Related BBC Links
Related External Links
More like this...
Street Musicians | Welsh Miners' Choir
Two recordings of a Welsh male-voice choir.
Woman's Hour | Two Generations
How do the experiences of two miners from separate generations differ?
The Long Street | Road to Pandy Square
Remembering Tonypandy's role in the 1921 National Coal Strike.
Man Alive | Packing Up and Moving Out
Two mining families make the decision to move from Northumberland to Nottingham.
What Did You Do In The War, Daddy?
The story of the men who spent World War II down the mines.
A Year in the Life | Craghead: 1968-1969
A turbulent time for a mining village in the North East of England.
Man In His Place | Durham: 1: A Man's Life
Exploring the culture and social history of the Durham coal fields.
Omnibus | Shafts Of Sunlight
Where there's muck, there's brass... and pigeons and lurchers and bingo too.
Nationwide | Pit Animals
The diminishing role of animals in Britain's coal mines.
Bevin Boys
Recollections of conscription in the coal industry during World War II.
Panorama | The Coal War
Is the ongoing miners' strike turning moderates into militants?
Panorama | Is The Coal Face Crumbling?
The miners' strike continues with both sides predicting victory.
Panorama | How Much Longer?
A 'Panorama' report broadcast in the final weeks of the miners' strike.
Letter From A Mining Village
A personal perspective on life in a 1930s mining community.
A Year in the Life | Twenty Years On: Craghead
Revisiting the story of miners from a documentary made in 1969.
Galleries
County Durham Miners, 1938
Scenes from a Durham mining village that featured in a 1938 radio broadcast by Joan Littlewood.
bbc.co.uk navigation
BBC links
BBC © 2013 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.
This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.