This film is part of Free

Doe Lea

Life in Doe Lea village in Derbyshire is so entwined with its colliery that if the pit closes the village is likely to die too.

Documentary 1968 11 mins

From the collection of:

Logo for Media Archive for Central England

Overview

This look at Doe Lea using the conventions of cinema verite was made by a group of young people from Stainsby Arts Centre. There's a feeling of nostalgia amongst the unseen older interviewees who talk freely about a decline in community spirit and a sense of cynicism from the teenagers reluctant to sign up for a working life down the pit. A gloomy picture made more real by the statement that there will be no economic reason for the community when the pit finally ceases production.

Glapwell and Bramley Vale collieries closed in 1974 with Doe Lea colliery surviving under private ownership until the 1990s.