Edinburgh Mayday 2004

Edinburgh May Day Committee in association with The Bongo Club present:

“Never The Same Again: 20 years on from The Miners’ Strike"

Featuring the photographs of Ross Murray and Douglas Robertson

The exhibition runs from 27th April until 9th of May at the Bongo Club cafe.

The Bongo Club

37 Holyrood Rd, Edinburgh.

Opening times Monday to Friday 11am till late, Saturday opening 12.30pm

The 2004 May Day celebrations began on Monday the 26th April with the opening of this great exhibition remembering 20 years of the miners' strike.
Colin Fox MSP spoke at the opening about his memories of the strike and its resonance today.

Douglas Robertson was involved in the support groups at the time of the strike in ’84-’85. Ross Murray has been working with ex-miners and their families in Gorebridge over the last few years for the Workers Education Association. Ross has gone back this week to interview women who were heavily involved at the time, revealing the memories and depth of feeling that is still felt about the strike today in the ex-mining communities.

“Memories of the strike....bananas, given so many bashed bananas from the grocer, my house as a soup kitchen, begging the building society for a bit of space, oh aye, getting harrassed by the police in the car with the kids trying to visit their gran, Jackie on the doorstep, not coming in cause he was going back after 8 months, I made him a cuppa anyway, we’re still friends. Now I’m a manager at a childrens centre, we can’t strike with the nursery nurses because the children are so vulnerable but I told them that if it ended up me being the only senior on duty and there was a picket line then the centre wouldn’t open. Frank never crossed the picket line. Neither will I.” Winnie McIlhone

email us: mayday@mayday.org.uk