Director Ken Loach is coming to the home of the Durham miners for a screening of his acclaimed new film.
Sorry We Missed You is a powerful exploration of the contemporary world of work, the gig economy and the challenges faced by one family trying to hold it all together.
The two-time Palme D’Or winner will take part in a Q&A at a special screening at Redhills: Durham Miners Hall on Thursday 5 December.
Proceeds from the event will go to The Redhills Appeal, the campaign to renew the home of the Durham Miners Association (DMA) as a centre for heritage, culture and education.
Set in Newcastle, the film by writer Paul Laverty and the team behind I, Daniel Blake, is both an intimate family drama and an angry, meticulously researched indictment of a callous, inhumane economic system.
The screening will begin at 7pm on Thursday 5 Decemeber. Doors open at 6pm and refreshments will be served in the Committee Room. Parking on site at Redhills is limited and restricted to blue badge holders only. Nearby on street parking is free after 6pm. Redhills is a short walk from both Durham railway and bus stations.
The 15-rated film runs for 100mins and will be followed by a Q&A with Ken Loach.
The annual Christmas Concert at Redhills – with the Durham Miners Association Brass Band.
The concert was a highlight of the festive season for DMA members and their families, who would come to Redhills for a special brass band performance.
Last year, the much-loved festive tradition was revived – and opened to the public for the first time.
It returns this year on Saturday 7 December and all are welcome to celebrate in the magnificent setting of The Pitman’s Parliament.
- Doors open at 6.30pm
- The performance will begin at 7pm.
- Mince pies and hot drinks will be served in the Committee Room.
Proceeds will go to The Redhills Appeal – the DMA campaign to renew Durham Miners Hall as a centre for culture, heritage and education.
Professor David Olusoga: We need to talk about Windrush
***Rearranged from October 28***
Historian, broadcaster and film maker David Olusoga will join us in The Pitman’s Parliament at Redhills for this keynote lecture marking Black History Month.
Co-hosted by Durham University Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Unit, Ustinov College and Durham Miners Association, this event is open to all staff and students of Durham University as well as members of the local community, free of charge. Admission is by ticket only and there will be no tickets available on the door on the evening of the event. The event will begin at 18.00 and therefore doors will close at 17.55.
There is limited on-street parking outside of Redhills which is free after 18.00. If you require a disabled access parking space, this can be arranged by notifying Katie Stobbs on katie.j.stobbs@durham.ac.uk in advance.
David Olusoga is a British-Nigerian historian, broadcaster and film-maker. His most recent TV series include Black and British: A Forgotten History (BBC 2), The World’s War (BBC 2), A House Through Time (BBC 2) and the BAFTA winning Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners (BBC 2). David is also the author of Black & British: A Forgotten History which was awarded both the Longman-History Today Trustees Award and the PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize. His other books include The World’s War, which won First World War Book of the Year in 2015, The Kaiser’s Holocaust: Germany’s Forgotten Genocide and the Colonial Roots of Nazism and Civilizations: Encounters and the Cult of Progress. David was also a contributor to the Oxford Companion to Black British History and writes for The Guardian and is a columnist for The Observer and BBC History Magazine. He is also one of the three presenters on the BBC’s landmark Arts series Civilizations.
The Redhills Appeal
The event is free of charge, though donations to The Redhills Appeal would be welcome.
The Durham Miners Association marks its 150th anniversary in 2019. The DMA was founded on 20 November 1869, when a small number of miners met at the Market Tavern in Durham city.
Within three years, the association had organised to abolish the system of bonded labour that had operated across the coalfield for generations, and had founded the Durham Miners’ Gala.
By 1915, the DMA had grown in membership to more than 150,000, and had established its magnificent headquarters Redhills: Durham Miners Hall. For generations, elected delegates from each of the county’s collieries met in the council chamber at Redhills, known as The Pitman’s Parliament. From The Pitman’s Parliament, the DMA created a social system across County Durham before the creation of the welfare state. The DMA provided sickness and unemployment benefits, retirement homes, medical care, community centres, libraries, and sports fields.
On 20 November 2018, the DMA launched The Redhills Appeal to secure the future of Durham Miners Hall as a centre for heritage, education, and culture.
To support The Redhills Appeal, go here.
School children will bring the past to life at a public performance in the historic home of the Durham miners.
The event will mark the culmination of an arts and education project at Redhills: Durham Miners Hall.
The Pitman’s Parliament Project will see pupils from St John’s School, Bishop Auckland, explore the tumultuous history of life on the Durham Coalfield through industrialisation, mining disasters, and unionisation.
The pupils will spend five days in the magnificent Redhills, learning about brass bands, banners, and building communities.
The project is a collaboration between education charity Hand Of, the Durham Miners’ Association, The Parliamentary Archives, and brass musicians Clara Hyder, Martin Thomson and Ian Sankey.
Working with historians, archivists, musicians, and artists, the children will create a new and unique performance piece.
St John’s pupils will present their new performance piece at Redhills: Durham Miners Hall on Friday 14 February. Doors open for a drinks reception at 3.30pm. The event is free, by registration here.
For more information, click here.
An acclaimed play exploring the Miners’ Strike performed at the historic home of the Durham miners on the anniversary of the start of the dispute.
This performance of Undermined will be followed by a Q&A with actor and writer Danny Mellor, and local people who were active in the strike.
Based on true stories and events from the 1984-85 strike, the play features just one man, one chair, and one pint. It comes to Durham following an acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Festival.
It tells the epic tale of the brave men and women who stood up and fought for what they believed in. It evokes a year when friendships were strengthened, and communities came together in the face of adversity.
Our thanks to Nasuwt North East for their support for this event.
• Doors open at 7pm
• Performance begins at 7.30pm followed by a discussion and Q&A
• Refreshments will be served in the Committee Room
Age rating for the show is 14+.
Tickets are priced £6 and £4 concessions (over 65, under 18, unwaged), with a solidarity price at £10 for those able to contribute more and support our efforts to renew Durham Miners Hall. All proceeds to The Redhills Appeal.
Free video stream of the DENNIS performance at the home of the Durham miners, marking the release of the band’s new EP – ‘DENNIS: Live at Redhills’.
DENNIS, who combine folk rock and colliery brass band music, performed live at Redhills, Durham Miners Hall in December 2018.
Video highlights of the concert, in The Pitman’s Parliament at Redhills, will be screened live online on Facebook at 7pm. Link to follow.
June 19th will also see the release of the DENNIS, Live at Redhills EP across streaming services, including Spotify and Apple Music, and on CD.
Dan Gibson, singer with the Hetton-le-Hole-based nine piece band, said: “For our band, coming from a mining community with our families living and working in pit villages, we felt a bursting sense of pride playing at Redhills. It’s such a unique place to play with social and cultural history and important heritage built into every part of the place.”
During the performance, DENNIS were joined for the encore by the national award-winning Houghton Area Youth Band, featuring young musicians from across Durham’s coalfield communities.
JOIN THE EVENT HERE.
Explore the history and meaning of Redhills with a guided tour of the home of the Durham Miners’ Association.
With the help of expert guides, visitors will be able to explore The Pitman’s Parliament, where elected delegates from each of Durham’s collieries met for generations. The tour will also include the rooms and corridors of Redhills which serve as a living archive of labour movement history and culture.
The guided tours last 90 minutes and places are limited to 20 per tour. People are advised to book early to secure their places.
A standard ticket costs £6, with concession (over 65/ under 18/ unwaged) priced at £3. A solidarity ticket is £10 for those able to contribute more.
All proceeds will go to The Redhills Appeal – the DMA campaign to renew the Miners Hall as a centre of education, heritage, and culture.
Explore the history and meaning of Redhills with a guided tour of the home of the Durham Miners’ Association.
With the help of expert guides, visitors will be able to explore The Pitman’s Parliament, where elected delegates from each of Durham’s collieries met for generations. The tour will also include the rooms and corridors of Redhills which serve as a living archive of labour movement history and culture.
The guided tours last 90 minutes and places are limited to 20 per tour. People are advised to book early to secure their places.
A standard ticket costs £6, with concession (over 65/ under 18/ unwaged) priced at £3. A solidarity ticket is £10 for those able to contribute more.
All proceeds will go to The Redhills Appeal – the DMA campaign to renew the Miners Hall as a centre of education, heritage, and culture.
***UPDATE*** – Durham Brass Festival has been postponed until 2022. Read more here.
‘Eleanor Rigby for the Durham coalfield’
North East band Field Music have joined forces with the Durham Miners Association (DMA) for a new musical project exploring the region’s coal mining heritage.
The band will debut ‘Binding Time, Songs and Stories from the Durham Coalfield’ in the home of the DMA as part of this year’s Brass Festival.
Field Music has been working with the DMA on the project, visiting Redhills and researching the rich history of the Durham coalfield to inspire new compositions featuring brass band music.
The Mercury Award nominees will perform two sets in The Pitman’s Parliament at Redhills, Durham Miners Hall, on Sunday 18 July. The band will be accompanied by members of NASUWT Riverside Brass Band. Support comes from Gateshead singer-songwriter Ami McGuinness.
The concerts will take place on Sunday 18 July at 2.30pm and 7.30pm. Capacity has been limited and tickets are being sold socially distanced.
Tickets go on sale at 9am on Friday 11 June online here: https://brassfestival.co.uk/brasspost/field-music/
The Redhills Christmas Concert will provide the last chance to visit Durham Miners Hall before it closes for a major programme of restoration and renewal.
Join us for a festive performance from the Durham Miners Association Brass Band on Saturday 4 December. Redhills will then close to be fully restored and renewed as a centre for heritage, culture and education, reopening in Spring 2023.
The band will perform a series of Christmas favourites, and will be accompanied by soloist Lily Banev, who sings with the Durham Cathedral choir. The Redhills team will also provide updates on the project, and a provide a look at the future of the Miners Hall.
The Christmas Concert at Redhills will begin at 7pm on Saturday 4 December with doors opening at 6.30pm. Mince pies and hot drinks will be served in the Committee Room.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, this is a limited capacity event and Covid mitigations will be in place. Attendees will be required to wear masks in restricted spaces including toilets and refreshment areas. Anyone with Covid 19 symptoms should not attend.