Skip to main content
Work with the NEU
Turn Labour's win into a victory for ordinary people
Former miner and Labour MP IAN LAVERY reflects on how to regain trust and offer hope as we celebrate the Durham Miners' Gala
REWRITING THE SCRIPT: Joy among young Popular Front supporters at Republique Plaza in Paris, France on Sunday July 7 2024 at the projected victory at the polls. Banner read: ‘Our popular Front is anti-colonial [and] anti-racist’ and ‘The extreme right shall not pass. From Gaza to Paris Intifada’

IN 1984 the traditional Gala celebrations were replaced by a demonstration as part of cost-cutting measures brought in by the Durham Miners’ Association. 

The demonstration took place in what was described in the local press as siege city. Bars kept their doors closed and shops were boarded shut awaiting trouble which never materialised. In fact, the three arrests made were fewer than usual.

Forty years later Durham is buzzing, the pubs crammed to the rafters and the shops doing a brisk trade.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
Durham Miners' Gala 2026 [Pic: Neil Terry]
Durham Miners' Gala 2026 / 13 July 2026
13 July 2026

Durham Miners’ Association chair STEPHEN GUY speaks to Ben Chacko about the Reform threat, what’s needed from Labour and why the Big Meeting will never lose its politics

Andy Burnham surrounded by Labour Party supporters at the launch of his campaign as Labour's candidate for the Makerfield by-election during a press conference at Stubshaw Cross Community and Sports Club in Ashton-in-Makerfield, Greater Manchester, May 22, 2026
New leadership / 10 July 2026
10 July 2026

IAN LAVERY MP warns that decades of neoliberal policies have left former industrial communities behind — but a renewed Labour commitment to working people could change the political landscape

durham 2019
Durham Miners’ Gala / 9 July 2026
9 July 2026

The Durham Miners’ Gala is a celebration of working-class culture, but also a call to action — to rebuild workers’ collective strength, says KIM JOHNSON MP

DMA general secretary Alan Mardghum
Durham Miners’ Gala / 11 July 2026
11 July 2026

Durham Miners’ Association general secretary ALAN MARDGHUM speaks to Ben Chacko about the PM-in-waiting, the threat of Reform and the radical change of direction this country needs