Tag: Labour Party

Events

Collection encounter: Ramsay MacDonald – behind the politics

Drop in to the John Rylands Library in Manchester on Saturday 20 January for an opportunity to see objects relating to James Ramsay MacDonald (1866-1937), the UK’s first Labour Prime Minister, and talk to archivists about his role in the Labour movement and the man behind the politics. Marking the centenary of the first Labour government, this free event, organised jointly by the John Rylands … Continue reading Collection encounter: Ramsay MacDonald – behind the politics

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Labour History Review

‘Sunderland Has Lost a Figure That Will Go Down in History’: Marion Phillips in the North East of England, 1923–1932

Author: Sarah HellawellThis is the abstract of an article published in Labour History Review (2023), 88, (3), 221-243. Read more. Selected as the Labour Party’s chief woman officer in 1918, Dr Marion Phillips played a prominent role in the British labour women’s movement before, during and after the Great War. However, her brief stint as Labour MP for Sunderland between 1929 and 1931 has not attracted the same … Continue reading ‘Sunderland Has Lost a Figure That Will Go Down in History’: Marion Phillips in the North East of England, 1923–1932

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Labour History Review

Book reviews in Labour History Review Volume 88 (2023), Issue 3

The books listed below are reviewed in Labour History Review (2023), 88, (3), 279-293. Read more. Hester Barron reviews Agnes Arnold-Forster and Alison Moulds (eds), Feelings and Work in Modern History: Emotional Labour and Emotions about Labour, London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2022, pp. xii + 265, h/b, £85, ISBN 978 13501 97183 Micaela Panes reviews Daryl Leeworthy, Causes in Common: Welsh Women and the Struggle for Social Democracy, Cardiff: University of Wales … Continue reading Book reviews in Labour History Review Volume 88 (2023), Issue 3

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Commentary

In tune: Think Positive, Act Positive, Vote Labour

Not all songs in labour history turn out to be very inspiring, as this definite dud from the 1983 general election shows all too well, says Mark Crail Think Positive, Act Positive, Vote LabourPerformer unknown (writer unknown, 1983) The song you are about to hear was written for the 1983 general election campaign. Fortunately, someone at Labour Party headquarters had the common sense to block … Continue reading In tune: Think Positive, Act Positive, Vote Labour

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Commentary, Labour history news, SSLH news

Video: The Rising Sun of Socialism and the Labour Movement in West Yorkshire 1884-1914

The Labour Movement originated not in a single event or location but over time and as the result of events in many places. Among the most important of these was the West Riding of Yorkshire, where the Independent Labour Party was formed in the 1880s. In the second annual John L. Halstead Memorial Lecture, Professor Keith Laybourn spoke on ‘The Rising Sun of Socialism: The … Continue reading Video: The Rising Sun of Socialism and the Labour Movement in West Yorkshire 1884-1914

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Obituaries

Alan Haworth (1948 – 2023)

Family, friends and others who knew and respected Alan Haworth (Lord Haworth) continue to mourn his death on 28 August while on holiday in Iceland. There have been many tributes, including the obituary linked here in the Guardian. I first got to know Alan in the visceral days of 1970s Newham North East Labour Party. It was a difficult time for many people but Alan never lost his … Continue reading Alan Haworth (1948 – 2023)

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Events

1923: a year that changed politics forever

The North West Labour History Society is holding a celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the 1923 general election that led to the first Labour government, and telling the stories of some of the newly elected MPs of 1923. The event takes place at Manchester Central Library on Saturday 11 November, starting at 10am. North West Labour History Society. Continue reading 1923: a year that changed politics forever

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Commentary, Labour history news

Ticket to Ryde: how Labour’s leaders took a weekend break to write a manifesto

By the spring of 1949, the post-war Labour government had already delivered great swathes of the manifesto on which it had been elected less that four years earlier. The Bank of England had been in public ownership since 1946; the railways, coal industry and road freight had all been nationalized; and the National Health Service was up and running. All of which raised the question … Continue reading Ticket to Ryde: how Labour’s leaders took a weekend break to write a manifesto

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Bursary reports, Research bursaries

Left-wing, woman, aristocrat: in search of Elinor Bethell (1869-1943)

Dr Quentin Gasteuil explains how he tracked down Elinor Bethell, a little known British woman who played a leading role in the Labour Party in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, with help from an SSLH bursary. I came across the widely unknown character of Elinor Frances Bethell during my PhD research. When I first made archival contact with her, she was a British woman … Continue reading Left-wing, woman, aristocrat: in search of Elinor Bethell (1869-1943)

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Documents & objects, Notes & queries

‘Your Britain’: Labour’s programme for a general election that never was?

Labour’s policy document offers a radical programme for government, and presents it in persuasive language and an attractive package. But Mark Crail wonders whether anyone can put a firm date on it. ‘A Labour Council has built this pleasant estate of happy homes for the people,’ declares the caption on the front of this vintage Labour Party magazine. Printed in bright colours, and with its … Continue reading ‘Your Britain’: Labour’s programme for a general election that never was?

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