nottingham post miners' strike spread

18 Nottingham Post Thursday December 8, 2011 Visit our website www.thisisnottingham.co.uk NEP-E01-S2 EP01 NEP-E01-S2 EP01 Visit our website www.thisisnottingham.co.uk Thursday December 8, 2011 Nottingham Post 19

Bygones

Diary tellsstory of theminer whobecame ageneral

NOTTS miner John Lowe was52 years of age in March 1984.Riddled with health issuescaused by almost 40 years un-derground, he was off sickfrom work when the NationalCoal Board’s pit closure pro-gramme was announced andthe miners’ strike erupted.

With the initial pickets bymembers of the National Unionof Mineworkers (NUM) fromoutside the county havingtailed off in his absence, heattended the April monthlybranch meeting at Clipstonefeeling that something neededto be done.

“Twelve Derbyshire ladswere outside lobbying,” hewrote on that day.

“At one point I stood andasked just how much we wereprepared to take, or if we weregoing to stand up and fight theclosure programme.

“My final words were, ‘Ifthere are any men left herewith red blood in their veins,they’ll follow me outside nowand stand beside those Derby-shire lads’. The invitation wasaccepted by 50 men almost im-m e d i at e ly. ”

The dispute was particularlyvicious in Notts and parts ofthe Midlands. With the major-ity remaining at work, thestrikers were treated as lepers,whereas other NUM areas,such as Yorkshire andDurham, were solid in theirsupport for strike action.

Notts’ reputation as a “s c abcounty”, fashioned whenGeorge Spence formed a break-away mining union followingthe General Strike of 1926, hadreturned to haunt it – as Johnalluded to in his diary notes.

“[Tonight saw] the most dis-graceful reaction that I haveever seen: when ‘Spencerism’was mentioned as a danger, theresult from the other side was

one of cheers and shouts.“When the break-up of the

union was brought up, this wasopenly encouraged again, tocheers. I felt physically sick.”

John had been elected chair-man of a “rank and file” Clip-stone strike committee andwas privy to the organisationof the strike in the Notts area aswell as at pit level. Neithercould be described as straight-fo r w a rd .

The events of 1984-85 politi-cised him. He was appalled bythe treatment of his union andthe portrayal of the miners inthe media, while feeling it washis duty to fight for the jobs of

“If I was to be asked whetherpeople could turn into giants,politically and industrially, asa result of a battle with themanagement and the Govern-ment and the police, I wouldput him in the top ten of thosep e o p l e. ”

The aggressive policing ofthe picket line saw manystrikers arrested at Clipstone,John among them.

“I stood my ground becauseof my intention to check theline, a regular practice I havefollowed right through the dis-p u t e, ” John Lowe wrote in hisd i a r y.

“A local constable amongstthem was saying, ‘Mr Lowe, go

back please’.“I asked repeatedly what I

was doing wrong and, if I wascausing an obstruction, to tellme how and where. My ques-tions were ignored while theofficers continued to jostlem e.

“I sat on the grass, tellingthem I was refusing to move;two grabbed me, one on eachside, by the arms and pulled meto my feet.

“I pulled back and one ofthem must have lost his footingbecause the one to the left of mefell, pulling me down with himwhich in turn pulled the one onthe right down on top of me.

“What followed then is

something of a nightmare: Iwas conscious of at least threeother officers on the floor hold-ing me down; one said ‘put thehandcuffs on him’ and I re-ceived a clip to the right side ofmy jaw followed by a forearmbrought viciously down acrossmy throat.”

Ultimately charged with ob-struction and assault, John’sfaith in law and order was des-troyed forever.

Despite the myriad diffi-culties, there were moments ofh o p e.

Support for the Clipstonestrikers arrived from unexpec-ted sources around the countryand beyond: money and goods

were sent while children werehosted on holidays. Within theintense fires of hardship,friendships were forged.

Such contacts meant thatChristmas 1984 was an uplift-ing time for their familieswhen it could so easily havebroken their will.

“Time for the kids’ party fi-nally came around and rightfrom the start the place wasbursting at the seams: not onlythe kids – around 90 – bu tmums, dads, grandparents andeven the ones with no kids.

“Not for one moment did thetempo and enthusiasm slackenand I, for one, was completelyknackered by the end. Maggie,you should have been there tosee just how beaten we are!”

But in the spring, the fightwent away from the NUM.There was a crushing drift

Journalist Jonathan Symcox talks about hisnew book which remembers with deep pride hisgrandfather John Lowe and the stand he tookduring the 1984 Miners’ Strike

Standing together:Clipstone NUM members withJohn Lowe, front left

Bitter dispute: Pickets at Clipstone Colliery in 1984 rally support for their cause.

On this day in

1985THE Republic of Ireland wasstepping up its bid to land Bri-an Clough as manager of thenational side.

President Des Casey was tosend a letter to Forest chair-man Maurice Roworth, offi-cially asking permission toopen negotiations. Casey’sonly previous contact with theForest chairman had been onan informal basis.

Clough remained the Repub-lic’s top choice to replace EoinHand, who had resigned theprevious month after Irelandfailed to land a spot in the 1986World Cup.

The Forest boss had madeencouraging comments aboutthe opportunity to discuss theposition with Casey, who wasin London with Irish FA ex-ecutive member Dr TonyO’Neill.

But the chances of Ireland

actually landing Cloughie wereseen as slim.

■ A Nottingham firm was beg-ging British Telecom to takeaway a new telephone systemand bring back its old one.

Dunkirk Metals had boughtthe new five-line Pentara 100Merlin system for £3,000. Sinceits late-November installation,company bosses said, they hadbeen isolated.

“Not a day has gone bywithout the phones breakingdown – we ’ve had 15 differentBT technicians in trying to fixit, without success,” said dir-ector Andrew Spalding.

The scrap metal companyhad a Queen’s Award for In-dustry and an annual turnoverof £12m – but a fat lot of goodthat did it if the phones didn’two rk .

The firm had hoped the newphones would improve effi-c i e n cy.

“But it’s costing us a for-t u n e, ” Mr Spalding said.

“It was a bit of a joke at firstbut enough is enough. We’veasked them several times andwe want it taken away and ourold system brought back.

“The problem is not the newtechnology. The problem is thatthey don’t seem to know how itwo rk s.

“On some days there havebeen up to three engineers try-ing to put it right.

“They put in new circuitsand it works for a while – thencuts out.”

Seating used byyobs is removedSEATING which has attractedantisocial behaviour on aRipley walkway has been re-moved by the council.

The seating formed part of asculptured archway installedin 2004 on part of the RipleyG re e n w ay.

The project saw a landscapedwalkway on a former railwayline near to Park Street andAlbion Street transformed intoa trail for cyclists and walk-e r s.

Since it was installed, thesculpture – made from a fab-ricated concrete and recycledglass – has become the focus forcomplaints from residents wholive nearby about noise, an-tisocial behaviour and vandal-ism.

The council also said thearea has also become a magnetfor underage drinking and bon-fires – particularly in the last12 months.

As a result of the number ofcomplaints, Amber Valley Bor-ough Council has decided toremove the seating part of thestructure to deter people fromcongregating there.

Councillor Liz Bowley, cab-inet member for green andthriving places to live, said:“The Greenway is a wonderfulasset and is there for everyoneto use with respect. If peoplec a n’t respect public propertythen that’s a shame but we haveto take action to protect theneighbours’ quality of life.”

Help to surveyfeatures of riverARCHAEOLOGISTS are tocarry out an audit on part ofthe banks of the River Trent.

People can join Nottingham-shire Community Archaeolo-gists on the survey of the riverbetween Laneham, Dunham,Trent Port and Littleborough,on Thursday, December 15.

The audit day includes awalk along the riverbank, not-ing down archaeological fea-tures and taking pictures andGPS locations.

People should meet at Lane-ham Church, in Church Lane-ham, opposite the Ferry BoatInn, at 10am. The afternoonsession will start at MartonChurch at 2pm.

People should bring suitablefootwear and clothing.

To book a place call EmilyGillott on 0115 9772160 or07917212554.

Pupils plantingfor the futureSCHOOLCHILDREN hopetheir hard work planting bulbsin their community will pay offcome spring.

Youngsters from BrinsleyPrimary School planted wild-flower bulbs and trees at Brins-ley Headstocks nature reserveon November 25 as part of Na-tional Tree Week.

The Year 2 pupils plantednative hazel trees and snow-drop and bluebell wildflowerbulbs to make the park moreattractive and attract wildlifeto the area.

The event was led by theGreenwood Community ForestTeam on behalf of BroxtoweBorough Council.

Gill Grievson, community li-aison officer, said: “It is im-portant to involve local chil-dren to plant trees and bulbs intheir community. Hopefullythey will come back to see wild-flowers next spring and in fu-ture years.”

back to work which left Johnand his colleagues hanging onat the start of March.

“This report is the hardestI’ve ever had to try and write. Ifeel so full of emotion – ang er,frustration, shame, bewilder-ment. I’m finding great diffi-culty in putting my thoughtsto gether.

“Mid-afternoon the newscame through that the [NUMdele gates’] conference had de-cided narrowly, 98 to 91, thatthe strike was at an end. Al-though expected, it came as abody blow, well below the belt.My wife cried tears for me thatI couldn’t cry for myself; they’llprobably come later.

“I feel so proud of her for thesupport she’s given in spite ofall the difficulties andheartaches she’s suffered.When the history of this dis-

pute is written, the Elsie Lowesof this world will surely standout above everything: Thatch-er pales into insignificance andwill never bear mention in thesame breath.”

John Lowe died in 2005, andhis funeral was marked by nu-merous NUM banners and ref-erences. As speeches re-membered him, his fellowstrikers unashamedly inter-rupted with cries of “GeneralJo h n ” – the moniker they gaveto this unlikely hero.

For that is how he is re-membered by his colleagues,despite the loss of their in-d u s t r y.

“John Lowe was a big man inN o t t i n g h a m s h i re, ” MansfieldMP Alan Meale announced atthe launch of John’s publishedd i a r i e s.

“He came right fromnowhere to become a leader ofmen. He was decent, honour-able, a trade unionist first andforemost and a community per-son. If we follow the principlesthis man had, there is hope forus all.”■ If Spirit Alone Won Battles:The 1984-85 Miners’ Strike inNottinghamshire is publishedby Pen and Sword (£12.99).

‘General John’: Clipstone miner John Lowe.

CLIPSTONE’S COAL

COAL was first mined atClipstone Colliery in theearly 1920s – after theGreat War had delayed thesinking of its shafts – andthe model village of NewClipstone sprung uparound it on the old Armycamp.Initially sunk to a depth of640 yards to exploit theBarnsley tophard seam, inthe 1950s the shafts weredeepened to 920m toexploit other seams. Thissaw the old steam windersscrapped in favour ofKoepe friction winders,which required the iconic65m headstocks stillstanding today, the tallestmetal headstocks inEurope.The National Coal Board,which took overmanagement of the pitfrom the Bolsover CollieryCompany in 1947, closed itin 1993 and it wasreopened the followingyear by RJB Mining.The headstocks andwinding house have beenprotected with GradeII-listed status since thecolliery’s definitive closurein 2003. Several attemptshave been made todemolish them.

Under arrest: Officers hold down John Lowe as he is arrested.

My wife cried tears forme that I couldn’t cryfor myself; they’llprobably come later

John Lowe

future generations.Dennis Skinner MP, the

famed “Beast of Bolsover”,provides the foreword to a newbook of John’s experiences – IfSpirit Alone Won Battles: The1984-85 Miners’ Strike in Not-t i n g h a m s h i re.

He recalls knowing John as ayoung man in Clay Cross be-fore encountering him again asan activist during the strike.

“Early in the dispute I did abig meeting at Worksop set upprincipally to galvanise thelocal NUM forces in Notting-h a m s h i re, ” writes Mr Skin-n e r.

“And there was John Lowe –and he wasn’t just a member ofthe crowd! He was asking ques-tions, making speeches… I hadto say to someone, ‘is that thesame fella?’ And the reply wasyes! It was a revelation to me.

Students hit heights as they prepare for world of workA COLLEGE principal haspraised her students for theirsuccess in vocational qualific-at i o n s.

Vision West Notts achieved a95 per cent achievement ratefor vocational qualificationsstudied last academic year – uptwo per cent on the year be-fo re.

The college had 6,611 stu-dents who achieve a range ofBTEC, NVQ and professional

Chance to see award-winning girls’ choirTICKETS to see Mansfieldg i rl s ’ choir Cantamus performthis Christmas are still avail-abl e.

The choir is due to performat the Palace Theatre, Mans-field, at 7.30pm on Sunday,December 18, and tickets are onsale for £15.

The concert will be a specialoccasion for the choir becauseformer members who left inthe summer will be presented

with silver goblets to thankthem for their work.

There are also seats availableto see the choir perform onFriday, December 23, at Not-tingham’s Royal Concert Hallat 7.30pm, with prices rangingfrom £12 to £20.

Saxophonist Alistair Parnellwill perform with the choir onthe night.

The Cantamus concert onDecember 17 at Southwell Min-

ster is already sold out.Tickets for the Nottingham

and Mansfield concerts areavailable from Sheila Haslamon 01623 627764 or at sheila-h a s l a m @ n t lwo rl d . c o m .

Tickets for the Royal Centreevent can also be bought bycalling 0115 989 5555.

The choir was set up in 1968and has won many competi-tions, including the WorldChoir Games.

qualifications in areas such asperforming arts, childcare,hairdressing, health and socialcare, fashion and textiles, con-struction and sport science.

Courses ranged fromentry-level to university-level,with more than half of the 461programmes run by the collegegaining 100 per cent successr at e s.

Principal and chief executiveAsha Khemka said: “The col-

lege has enjoyed great successin recent months, first with ourbest-ever achievement rates forA-levels and GCSEs and nowour vocational students havedemonstrated equally highs t a n d a rd s.

“Vocational learning equipspeople of all ages with the prac-tical skills for the world of workcombined with essential the-ory that underpins their know-ledge of the subject.”

Delight:PrincipalAshaKhemkahas seenvocationalstudentsmatchsuccessesinA-levelsandGCSEs.

Health walk atnature reservePEOPLE are being invited totake part in a health walk atAttenborough Nature Reserve.

The walk, on Monday,December 19 from 10am, willlast for about an hour.

Anyone who wants to takepart in the free event shouldmeet at the nature centre.

For more information, con-tact the Attenborough NatureCentre on 0115 972 1777.