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Culture

1984 -1985: Exhibition explores Thatcher’s lasting impact on mining communities

By Stephen Price
Miners Picket, Port Talbot Steel Works - 3 April 1984. Streic 84-85 Strike

An exhibition that brings to life the historic story of the Miners’ Strike and the profound impact it had on our nation is set to open this autumn.

Marking the 40-year anniversary of the Miner’s Strike, the exhibition at National Museum Cardiff follows a year of politics, passion and protest.

From the summer of hope and high-spirited defiance, leading to a winter of violence, hardship and loss of livelihoods across some of Wales’ hardiest communities.

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Streic ’84-85 Strike

Tickets are now on sale for Amgueddfa Cymru’s brand new exhibition Streic ’84-85 Strike which opens at National Museum Cardiff on 26 October.

For a year, miners, their families and trade unions went head-to-head with government. A government which sought to break union power and assert authority. Forty years later, the effect of the 84-85 Miners’ Strike lives on.

Amgueddfa Cymru’s Director of Collections and Research, Dr Kath Davies, said: “The ’84-85 Miners’ Strike fostered unprecedented solidarity and political awakening in Wales.

"The human cost was immense: families suffered hardship, communities divided, and the mining industry's decline continued.

“From photos and placards of protest to personal stories of comradeship, loss and hope, we’re proud to introduce this moving exhibition which recounts a momentous year that permanently changed the social, political and geographical landscape of Wales.”

Amgueddfa Cymru’s exhibition programme has been made possible thanks to players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

Tickets for Streic ‘84-85 Strike (26 October 2024 – 27 April 2024) are on sale from 8 August 2024 here.

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11 comments

Dai Ponty

You would have to be bloody blind to not see the impact of the bitch and her government impact on mining and steel communities in Wales the devastation is still there for all to see they say it cost ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND JOBS IN WALES and that is a lot with a population of around 3 million less than that of working age nothing replaced those jobs and Blair labour government did sod all for Wales to replace those jobs that is all Tory and labour alike just put Wales down come the next Welsh Government election and General election i think Wales will turn against Labour hopefully towards Plaid or Even Lib/Dems but not Reform or the party i HATE TORIES being a former striking miner of 1984 Hope thatcher rots in hell and people wonder why people partied when she died

Reply
Arthur Owen

I am afraid that the largest single gainer from Labour's (presumed) unpopularity will be Reform,but how long that will last is uncertain.

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Alecs Brien

Thatcher made the tough decisions, the necessary ones. If people partied when she died, it shows more about their small-mindedness than her policies. History will remember her as a leader who made hard choices for the greater good. So keep your hate and your nostalgia. The world has moved on, and it's high time you did too.

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Crom

"A government which sought to break union power and assert authority." Shouldn't that say "A legitimately elected government which sought to break union power and assert democratic authority."

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Billy James

Workers suffered badly under Thatcher but on a smaller workforce scale 17,000. The Great Strike of Penrhyn Slate quarry, which was the longest dispute in British industrial history that lasted for three years from 1900 is conveniently forgotten.... And in them days it was even harder to survive where the police & military were called in to intimidate the strikers ....

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Alecs Brien

The real devastation would have been letting the country sink into economic ruin by refusing to evolve. Yes, a lot of jobs were lost, but clinging to dying industries wasn't going to save anyone in the long run. Thatcher pushed for a shift towards a more modern economy, something that Wales desperately needed. It's easier to blame her than to admit that the mining industry was a sinking ship long before she took office. So enough with the Thatcher bashing. The woman faced the facts and did what she had to do. Wales needed to move forward, and so does the endless parade of whiners stuck in 1984.

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Ceri

Thatcher created an economic disaster with monetarist policy that helped create massive unemployment and destroyed manufacturing industry. She massively increased inequality, subsidising tax cuts with North Sea oil money. She will go down as a dogmatic PM who didn't fully understand the changes she was helping to make. But even if you don't agree, that would not justify the brutal way the mines were closed. The industry had been in decline for decades, and could have been wound down with care. Nor has the violent use of the police by government aged well.

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T3DSK1

And then she sold off the electric, gas ,water and whatever else they could find to make a quick buck and where are we now. And where is the modern economy? has Wales moved forward? What has replaced the dying industries? Thatcher was just the figurehead the true power were the tory party grandees, the unions were instrumental in bringing down the Heath government in the 70`s so they bided their time and the miners strike gave them what they wanted the chance to pull the unions teeth. I see the past as history but there are lessons to be learnt but we seldom learn anything by it as we still seem to be sinking to economic ruin as they say go figure

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Billy James

And this modern economy is low paid 16 hour/zero hour contract jobs..

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Billy James

Possibly but it was done far to callously ... I well remember when they shut down Shotton steelworks & 6,500 people were thrown out of work as well as thousands involved in the supply chain and it was & still is the biggest industrial redundancy on a single day in western Europe..

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T3DSK1

Yes B J it is true what you say and the conservatives were willing to carry the 6,500 + job losses on the employment exchange it was all part of the EEC reset one great con job.

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Replying to Dai Ponty Cancel

You would have to be bloody blind to not see the impact of the bitch and her government impact on mining and steel communities in Wales the devastation is still there for all to see they say it cost ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND JOBS IN WALES and th...

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