Miners Strike in South Derbyshire

With flying pickets at the colliery entrance the moderate miners of South Derbyshire face the painful decision of whether to cross the picket line.

Arthur Scargill called it the 'Industrial Battle of Britain' but for the majority of miners in South Derbyshire there was no strike after they voted not to join the walk-out called by Scargill and the NUM from their Yorkshire stronghold. The flying pickets were making life hard for those crossing the unofficial picket lines but in this report the wives of the working miners of Swadlincote are more than their match.

Cadley Hilll Colliery, which featureds in this film, closed in 1988. Nearby Rawdon Colliery followed it in 1990. Although Rawdon is situated at Moira in Leicestershire it came under the control of the South Derbyshire district.