Callum Campbell (Northumbria) on Unity Theatre and the Spanish Civil War

My dissertation considers how innovative theatre and cinema produced across Spain and Britain during the Spanish Civil War mobilised new audiences to engage with political propaganda. The final chapter considers the actions of Unity Theatre to reach working-class communities and contest national policies of non-intervention. The bursary allowed me to visit four archives in Manchester and London: the Working Class Movement Library (WCML) in Salford, … Continue reading Callum Campbell (Northumbria) on Unity Theatre and the Spanish Civil War

Chartism, the great strike of 1842 and the possibilities of drama

Dramatists have been slow to pick up on the events at the heart of the great strike of 1842 and its complex relationship with Chartism. Michael Crowley, the author of Waiting for Wesley, explains how he went about bringing the story to life on stage Waiting for Wesley is being staged at Calderdale Industrial Museum on Sunday 6 August at 3pm Tickets are available via … Continue reading Chartism, the great strike of 1842 and the possibilities of drama

Strike! The story of the Dunnes Stores strikers…

Ardent Theatre Company presents STRIKE! By Tracy Ryan and directed by Kirsty Patrick Ward. Dunne’s Stores, Dublin, July 1984: a South African grapefruit starts something that will take nearly three years to finish… It’s a hot, hot summer and Frankie Goes to Hollywood are riding high in the charts. At Dunne’s Store, shop assistant Mary Manning refuses to ring up a grapefruit, sticking to her … Continue reading Strike! The story of the Dunnes Stores strikers…

Enter stage left: when Unity Theatre put the politics into panto

Established in 1936, Unity Theatre was without doubt the most important focus for political theatre of the mid twentieth century, providing a venue for new work that would never have seen the light of day on the traditional stage and offering a way into the acting world for many working-class performers who would go on to become significant figures in post-war stage, screen and television. … Continue reading Enter stage left: when Unity Theatre put the politics into panto