Dave still mining a rich seam of stories
THEY usually prefer pints to prose, and spirits to songs.
But drinkers at The Broadway Hotel in Dunscroft put their glasses to one side when the venue was transformed for the launch of a book by one of its best- known former regulars.
Long-serving Hatfield NUM branch secretary Dave Douglass read and sang his way through part two of his autobiographical trilogy Stardust and Coaldust – in front of some of the characters who made its pages.
Dave published the first part of his trilogy, Geordies Wa Mental, last year. Now, the second element, The Wheel's Still in Spin, takes his tale of life in the mining communities into Doncaster.
Born and bred in the North East, Dave moved to Doncaster to work at Hatfield Colliery, and became one of the miners' leaders.
Volume two of his book takes the story into the 1970s through three coal strikes and to the point at which Margaret Thatcher came to power.
In the words of the publisher, the latest book tells the miners' story through the perspective of one its working class revolutionary activists, and explains the history as viewed from the ground and a number of those turning points and crossroads.
It describes insights into the hidden world of underground labour in its harsh and gritty reality and adds: "Throughout the whole story the air of sexual freedoms, which broke free of constraints in the previous decade, survive and prosper."
The book deals with the coal strikes of 1969, 1972 and 1974, when Dave was at Hatfield.
During his session at The Broadway, Dave read extracts and sang songs from the volume, without musical accompaniment. He also signed copies of his work for fans.
He said: "I always come back to Dunscroft with a bit of trepidation. It has changed after the pit closed three times over the years. There are only about 200 men working there now, and many don't come from Dunscroft any more.
"It is still an area of high unemployment, and to some extent it's lost its militant spark of resistance.
"As it turned out lots of people turned up. I think there were some at the bar who had come for the launch who pretended they were just out for a drink!
"There were a lot of the old lads from the pit who worked with me, and they had a few laughs from some of the sections.
"Chapter one of the book is called Dunscroft, so it was important to read that. I think Dunscroft was the ideal place to launch the book.
"Some of the people there were in the book. But I think for a lot of people who came down, the last time they had someone reading out loud to them they were probably three years old – I'm not sure how many had been to this sort of event before.
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Latest sport I don’t think it was like your average night at The Broadway.”
Dave, who retired last year after a spell as an organiser for the TGWU in the North East, says he still misses mining for the physical challenge and the community life it brought, which he says still remains.
The Doncaster launch was the first of a number of events he is taking part in to promote the book up and down the country.
The Wheel’s Still in Spin (Christie Books) is available from bookshops or from Central Books (ISBN number 978-1-873 976-36-4).
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