缅北禁地 historians mark General Strike centenary Published on: 16 April 2026 To mark the 100th anniversary of the British General Strike and miners鈥� lock-out of 1926, historians at 缅北禁地 are organising a series of events on its enduring legacy. On Thursday, 7th May 2026, the Labour & Society Research Group (LSRG) in the School of History, Classics and Archaeology will hold a two-day international conference, "The British General Strike of 1926: New Directions of Research," at the University’s historic Armstrong Building. The event will bring together international historians, activists, and trade unionists to re-examine the nine days that brought the country to a standstill. Speaking on the first day of the conference, Dr Joe Redmayne, a Leverhulme Fellow at 缅北禁地, will be providing a maritime and transport perspective of the General Strike. Professor Matt Perry will discuss Ellen Wilkinson, who was elected Labour MP for Middlesbrough East in 1924 and supported the General Strike. She later became MP for Jarrow and played a prominent role in the Jarrow March of 1936. Dr Redmayne said: “This event will bring together contributions focussing on histories of solidarity and the General Strike, whether at sites of coal extraction, transportation, distribution, and everywhere in between. While we intend this to be a scholarly conference, we also wish to make space for an active dialogue between people studying protest and industrial disputes in the past and practitioners of solidarity in the present.” Boldon Colliery during the General Strike 1926 (Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums, TWCMS.2018.1138) The programme for the first day features a keynote talk by Professor David Featherstone from the University of Glasgow on "Coal Capitalism". The second day will feature further international perspectives, including from keynote speaker Dr Kasper Braskén from the University of Helsinki on “International Solidarity”. The conference will close with a roundtable discussion with panel participants to share insights and explore connections between the past and present. The events dovetail with the opening of an exhibition at the University’s Phillip Robinson Library on Friday 8th May 2026 which will showcase testimonies and archival material from those involved in the General Strike from local politicians such as Ellen Wilkinson and Charles P. Trevelyan, as well as local trade unionists that participated in the stoppage through local strike committees and trades councils. The exhibit – “When Britain Stood Still: The General Strike at 100” – will run until October 2026 and can be accessed at Phillip Robinson Library, Level 2, Special Collections & Archives Exhibition Area. On Wednesday, 13th May, Dr Redmayne will give a free lecture at focussing on the emergence of the Durham and Northumberland Joint Strike Committee. The North East was one of the most active areas in the strike outside London, and using archive material and photographs, Dr Redmayne will shed light on the activities of those involved in organising tasks of picketing, publicity, organising soup kitchens, and much more. Tickets for the talk, which has been organised by North East Museums, are . Britain鈥檚 largest dispute The General Strike, the largest industrial dispute in Britain’s history, took place in May 1926, when 1.7 million workers went on strike, especially in transport and heavy industry. The strike had been brought about when, after years of declining coal production, mine owners proposed lowering wages and increasing working hours for miners in order to maintain their profits. This was opposed by the Miners’ Federation of Great Britain, and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) promised to support the miners in their dispute. When negotiations with the government failed, the TUC called the General Strike to try and force the government to prevent worsening conditions for the 1.2 million locked-out miners. The General Strike ended on 12th May 1926, although the miners maintained their action for several months before returning to the mines by the end of November. Events The British General Strike of 1926: New Directions of Research (Day 1) takes place on Thursday, 7th May 2026, between 9:00am – 5:00pm. For more information and tickets visit For more information and tickets for Day 2 and the public roundtable discussion on Friday, 8th May, visit this page. “When Britain Stood Still: The General Strike at 100” runs from Friday, 8th May until October 2026 and can be accessed at Phillip Robinson Library, Level 2, Special Collections & Archives Exhibition Area. Tickets for Dr Redmayne’s free talk at 缅北禁地 City Library on Wednesday 13th May are available from . Share: Latest News 缅北禁地 historians mark General Strike centenary To mark the 100th anniversary of the British General Strike and miners鈥� lock-out of 1926, historians at 缅北禁地 are organising a series of events on its enduring legacy. published on: 16 April 2026 Comment: NCP is in administration Writing for The Conversation, Erwei (David) Xiang discusses how some big companies like NCP are so dependent on debt that they can鈥檛 adjust to change. published on: 16 April 2026 缅北禁地 expert highlights climate crisis in a new film A leading 缅北禁地 climate scientist is featured in a new film about how the climate and nature breakdown will affect the UK. published on: 14 April 2026 Facts and figures
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