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Marching to the Fault Line: The Miners' Strike and the Battle for Industrial Britain
The 1984 Miners’ strike was one of the defining moments in modern British history. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was determined to transform Britain and break the power of the Unions. On March 5, steered by the leader of the NUM, Arthur Scargill, the miners decided to protest the closures and called for industrial action.
Over the next eleven months, Britain would be dragged to the precipice of civil war as violence and resentment spilled out along the picket lines and on the streets. Thatcher was convinced to the end that the government might fall. However, the final defeat of the protest would mark the end of a way of life for hundreds of thousands as Attlee’s vision of a welfare state, trade unions and strong government was replaced by Thatcher’s Britain.
In Marching to the Fault Line leading journalists Francis Beckett and David Hencke have unrivalled access to key government and union players at the heart of the story; they have also uncovered material that the powerful would have liked to remain secret, including ‘dirty tricks’ and secret payments, jaw dropping incompetence, back biting, and double dealing.
From Downing Street to the picket lines, this book will reveal the true story behind the strike.
Over the next eleven months, Britain would be dragged to the precipice of civil war as violence and resentment spilled out along the picket lines and on the streets. Thatcher was convinced to the end that the government might fall. However, the final defeat of the protest would mark the end of a way of life for hundreds of thousands as Attlee’s vision of a welfare state, trade unions and strong government was replaced by Thatcher’s Britain.
In Marching to the Fault Line leading journalists Francis Beckett and David Hencke have unrivalled access to key government and union players at the heart of the story; they have also uncovered material that the powerful would have liked to remain secret, including ‘dirty tricks’ and secret payments, jaw dropping incompetence, back biting, and double dealing.
From Downing Street to the picket lines, this book will reveal the true story behind the strike.
329 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 26, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 17, 2014
This book is regarded as one of the first all encompassing narratives of the Miners Strike in the mid-eighties, while it is very much that I think failed to deliver its claimed dispassionate analysis. The book is well researched and well written with a sympathetic nod in the miners direction. One person who wouldn’t speak to the authors during the writing of the book is Authur Scargill and seemingly it is because of this that there is a sense of bitterness in the text whenever his name is mentioned. There is perhaps an inflated sense of blame laid at the Yorkshireman’s door for the whole debacle and subsequent destruction of Industrial Britain.
Scargill was no saint, and made some pretty remarkable mistakes in his leadership of the miners through the great strike, but surely more blame can be attached to the ruthlessness of the police and security services, the government, MI5 and even the military, not to mention Neil Kinnock who, on the strength of this book alone would seem the battle scarred hero of the hour, rather than weak-willed, insignificant former Labour leader we all know him to be.
Very little is made of the corrupt nature of Roger Windsor and the aftermath of the strike which tried to destroy the lives and reputations of senior figures within the NUM. Given that one of these was Scargill we can assume safely that the authors didn’t want to give him, or his associates any helpful publicity. A minor nod is paid to the media bias too, which was vociferous in its support of Thatcher’s government. Mick Macgahey comes off poorly in the authors telling too, thanks to much hearsay and second hand rumour and disinformation.
This is a good history of the strike and of certain incidents and battles such as Orgreave but would be much better if it itself was depoliticised. A fair better account of the strike and its conclusions and aftermath is available in The Enemy Within by Seamus Milne.
Scargill was no saint, and made some pretty remarkable mistakes in his leadership of the miners through the great strike, but surely more blame can be attached to the ruthlessness of the police and security services, the government, MI5 and even the military, not to mention Neil Kinnock who, on the strength of this book alone would seem the battle scarred hero of the hour, rather than weak-willed, insignificant former Labour leader we all know him to be.
Very little is made of the corrupt nature of Roger Windsor and the aftermath of the strike which tried to destroy the lives and reputations of senior figures within the NUM. Given that one of these was Scargill we can assume safely that the authors didn’t want to give him, or his associates any helpful publicity. A minor nod is paid to the media bias too, which was vociferous in its support of Thatcher’s government. Mick Macgahey comes off poorly in the authors telling too, thanks to much hearsay and second hand rumour and disinformation.
This is a good history of the strike and of certain incidents and battles such as Orgreave but would be much better if it itself was depoliticised. A fair better account of the strike and its conclusions and aftermath is available in The Enemy Within by Seamus Milne.
December 2, 2017
As the old adage goes, the victor gets to write the history - and so it is that history tells us Thatcher smashed the unions and freed Britain, putting us on a path of unparalleled prosperity.
She didn't, but hey - she won, she writes the version.
Which is why books like Marching To The Fault Line are so important.
From previously unreleased documents, interviews and first-hand accounts of what happened, Beckett and Hencke have done their best at explaining just what happened - and what the repercussions were - during and after the miner's strike of 84/85.
It's not a complete account, sadly, as the one man who could explain some of the odder actions of the miners - Arthur Scargill - still refuses to speak to the media, seemingly convinced they will warp his words.
It could be, of course, that there are questions he doesn't want to answer - actions he doesn't want to explain (such as why he didn't cast the deciding vote when miners were deciding on wether to end the strike). If he doesn't speak, we don't know and we're left forming our own conclusions of a man who thought going to Libya for some cash when their leader was public enemy number one was a good idea.
And that's a shame, because with him Beckett and Hencke would have done a brilliant job at showing both sides of the fight. Instead, there's a big gap in the story.
But that's not their fault.
Around the chasm left by Scargill's absence, we see a detailed picture of a man fighting for a cause, a woman determined to stop him at all costs, and an entire industry and many communities torn apart and left for dead.
If the industrial dispute had been fought by two different people, we may still have a mining industry. Towns and villages might not have become centres for crime and drug addiction. But it wasn't and they were.
No one comes out of this well. Scargill becomes more and more the stubborn Yorkshireman as the dispute rolls on, while Thatcher becomes cruel and vindictive, determined to break the spirit of those simply trying to fight for the right to have a job.
Scargill did a lot of damage, that is clear - but Thatcher was equally to blame, as mines were shut and blocked up with concrete, leaving centuries of a viable fuel source out of reach while we go cap-in-hand to overseas supplies for our fuel.
In the end, no one really won - and that is something this book conveys brilliantly.
It's a must-read for anyone who cares to know how we got to where we are today - and you should care.
She didn't, but hey - she won, she writes the version.
Which is why books like Marching To The Fault Line are so important.
From previously unreleased documents, interviews and first-hand accounts of what happened, Beckett and Hencke have done their best at explaining just what happened - and what the repercussions were - during and after the miner's strike of 84/85.
It's not a complete account, sadly, as the one man who could explain some of the odder actions of the miners - Arthur Scargill - still refuses to speak to the media, seemingly convinced they will warp his words.
It could be, of course, that there are questions he doesn't want to answer - actions he doesn't want to explain (such as why he didn't cast the deciding vote when miners were deciding on wether to end the strike). If he doesn't speak, we don't know and we're left forming our own conclusions of a man who thought going to Libya for some cash when their leader was public enemy number one was a good idea.
And that's a shame, because with him Beckett and Hencke would have done a brilliant job at showing both sides of the fight. Instead, there's a big gap in the story.
But that's not their fault.
Around the chasm left by Scargill's absence, we see a detailed picture of a man fighting for a cause, a woman determined to stop him at all costs, and an entire industry and many communities torn apart and left for dead.
If the industrial dispute had been fought by two different people, we may still have a mining industry. Towns and villages might not have become centres for crime and drug addiction. But it wasn't and they were.
No one comes out of this well. Scargill becomes more and more the stubborn Yorkshireman as the dispute rolls on, while Thatcher becomes cruel and vindictive, determined to break the spirit of those simply trying to fight for the right to have a job.
Scargill did a lot of damage, that is clear - but Thatcher was equally to blame, as mines were shut and blocked up with concrete, leaving centuries of a viable fuel source out of reach while we go cap-in-hand to overseas supplies for our fuel.
In the end, no one really won - and that is something this book conveys brilliantly.
It's a must-read for anyone who cares to know how we got to where we are today - and you should care.
May 31, 2015
I thought I would hate this because of all the politics. I found that I really enjoyed the book and I feel the author critised both sides fairly. What is disheartening is the fact whole communities were ripped apart and even today they are still suffering from the aftershocks of Thatcher's government. She may have been a strong woman but a lot of people suffered under her government. It also didn't help that Labour didn't do anything to help the miners and since the miner's strike they have moved away to the right and distanced themselves from the unions.
April 12, 2020
I felt this book did a good job of setting the strike within a wider political context. While at times the book treats Arthur Scargill unfavourably I am not yet convinced this isn't justified.
The author has drawn on a large range of sources and I feel that adds to its credibility. It is well written and an approachable text.
This is the book to read if you want to understand the strike from beginning to end, particularly the aftermath of the strike and what it meant for mining communities.
I particularly enjoyed glimpses into first hand accounts from the miners themselves as well as their wives and friends. This is important as it prevents the commentary from being solely political which would detract from the really brutal impact this had at a community level.
The author has drawn on a large range of sources and I feel that adds to its credibility. It is well written and an approachable text.
This is the book to read if you want to understand the strike from beginning to end, particularly the aftermath of the strike and what it meant for mining communities.
I particularly enjoyed glimpses into first hand accounts from the miners themselves as well as their wives and friends. This is important as it prevents the commentary from being solely political which would detract from the really brutal impact this had at a community level.
January 3, 2018
Fantastic book, a real page turner. A thoroughly researched story on the mining strike in the mid 80s and how it shaped the future of employment unions and the energy sector in the UK. What appears on first impressions to be a dry read is actually a fascinating, detailed sequence of events written with a very entertaining and articulate style. It's one of those books I'll be reading again, it was that great!
December 15, 2019
A timely read,reminding us of the Thatcher years and the appalling regime that came to pass.this book is a good starter for anybody wanting to read an unbiased account of the miners strike.the NUM did themselves no favour by not balloting their members,if they had done so the cracks in the union would not have happened.i read it as a personal fight between Thatcher and scargill with the working man used as a pawn in the game.since this dabiacal the rights of the working man has been eroded away,so hence we have nobody to turn to when offered zero hours contracts and rewriting of contracts on a whim.we now have high unemployment Micky mouse jobs in call and distribution centres who treat staff with total disregard for their employees.to quote one labour politician if all the employers had treated their employees fairly there would not have been any need for unions.
April 1, 2024
Written twenty five years after the miners' strike, this account lacks some of the longer perspective which has been included in the several TV documentaries in this its fortieth year anniversary. The book does get over how and why opinions were so divided at the time and paints a lively picture of the main players. I would have given the book a higher rating if it had included a few more first hand accounts from the police, strikers, bosses, politicians etc to give a flavour of the time rather than the need to draw neat conclusions from its authors. In the later chapters of the book, I picked up certain prejudiced comments about Arthur Scargill's mindset at the time and the "screaming" Trotskyists who supported him. I remember the miners' strike clearly and it was my introduction to the way the media distorts and lies in order to support the views of the Establishment. As I write this, I can feel all the anger rising up once again at the injustice of it all, thus proving how hard it is to strike the perfect pitch when recounting an event that involved the opinions of the nation.
March 14, 2023
Excellent!
An enthralling read and I really appreciate it being born in a colliery in County Durham in 1981 and moving to a gold mine in Africa in 1985 after the strike which transformed my life for the infinitely better. Thank you Margaret Thatcher. Highly recommended.
An enthralling read and I really appreciate it being born in a colliery in County Durham in 1981 and moving to a gold mine in Africa in 1985 after the strike which transformed my life for the infinitely better. Thank you Margaret Thatcher. Highly recommended.
February 27, 2025
Growing up as a teenager I was aware of the “miners strike” but didn’t really know the reasons behind the actions. This book served as a great introduction to the subject, being both informative and balanced.
September 28, 2022
Quietly devastating. As you read every single page, you know that the strike’s failure is coming closer, and you see so many opportunities to stop it, but it just doesn’t. And it’s tragic.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 25, 2023
I didn't know much about the miners strike, this gave a good balanced overview
March 30, 2024
It's a good piece of introductory non fiction to the miners strike but does feel like there's a lot more which has been omitted
August 13, 2013
An interesting book that examines the intrigue, machinations, and back channel meetings that took place during the miners’ strike and which seeks to underscore and examine why it failed through the use of documents obtained under Freedom of Information and through interviews with the key players on either side.
The book takes an issue that is black and white for many depending on your politics (NUM good, Thatcher evil) or (Thatcher good, NUM evil) and demonstrates that it is really many shades of grey, depressing grey. The authors reveal that throughout the strike and right through until January 1985 that the Government were not sure they were going to ‘win’ the dispute with the NUM, and they also reveal that throughout the dispute there were many attempts at negotiating a deal between the National Coal Board (NCB), and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
Talks were orchestrated by Stan Orme, the Labour Shadow Secretary of Energy between Scargill and McGregor. Separate talks were arranged by Bill Keys, a left wing printworkers union leader between Lord Whitelaw (Deputy Prime Minister) and Mick McGahey, the Communist vice president of the National Union of Mineworkers. Talks were held by Norman Willis, General Secretary of the TUC (Trade Unions Congress) and Iain McGregor (Chairman of the NCB).
All of these talks, with the exception of the Scargill one, produced some form of agreement. An agreement that the union leaders involved at each point felt was reasonable, was something that would save the NUM, and was something that would be a negotiated settlement of the dispute that would allow the NUM to remain strong. Each time any agreement was rejected by Scargill according to the authors.
Scargill’s finances are put to the sword as well and his unusual financial arrangements come under the spotlight and are questioned by the authors. Also examined are his justifications for sending Roger Windsor to Libya for money, and the fact that after the strike Scargill apparently told the other Union leaders who had tried to help (even though he publicly accused them repeatedly of doing nothing and being class traitors) that the NUM could not repay the many hundreds of thousands of pounds that many other trade unions had lent to the NUM to help them in their struggle.
The sore conclusion from this book, disputed by those on the left and Seamus Milne, is that it was Scargill’s intransigence, his refusal to compromise, or accept a 95% victory that led to the Mineworkers losing the strike and going back to work without a settlement and without having prevented what eventually happened to miners throughout Britain.
What is also clear is that the Government were heavily involved and that Peter Walker, who could have been in Brighton but for the strike, played a crucial role in ensuring that it was the Government that endured, rather than those on strike.
It is also clear, through the facts presented, that this was not just a dispute between the NUM and the NCB, or between Scargill and Thatcher, but in fact a civil war within the mining community, miner versus miner. Many thousands of miners, especially in Nottinghamshire refused to strike and wanted to work, it was here that clashes occurred between miner and miner, between pickets and police. Where violent intimidation of ‘scabs’, those who wanted to work, occurred and how the strike organised was not as effective as in the past due to poor organisation, police tactics, and a lack of unity amongst the miners.
From this book the conclusion drawn is that Kinnock tried hard to help and was a noble man in the eyes of the authors, that McGahey knew a compromise had to be sought but could not challenge Scargill, that Bill Keys tried his best to negotiate a settlement, and that the TUC were marginalised by Scargill and told to stay out of it but still tried to prevent the complete and utter defeat that the miners eventually suffered. Scargill on the other hand is vilified and on the evidence presented, rightly viewed as a fool who was on a ideological class war for which only total victory would do and for which any deal with the Government/NCB was not enough unless they capitulated.
As for Scargill who refused to co-operate with the authors, in 1984 he went into a strike with a big union and a small house. When he retired as President of the National Union of Minerworkers in 2002 he was the head of a small union, and had a big house. He also receives an extravagent pension while setting himself up for a job working for a NUM fund as well as claiming to retain the use of a 3 bedroom flat paid for by the NUM in the Barbican. According to the authors of this history of the strike, "the miners trusted Arthur Scargill with their homes, their families, their future, their safety, everything they had and he let them down". For Scargill the only history he wants written is one which proves he was right.
The book takes an issue that is black and white for many depending on your politics (NUM good, Thatcher evil) or (Thatcher good, NUM evil) and demonstrates that it is really many shades of grey, depressing grey. The authors reveal that throughout the strike and right through until January 1985 that the Government were not sure they were going to ‘win’ the dispute with the NUM, and they also reveal that throughout the dispute there were many attempts at negotiating a deal between the National Coal Board (NCB), and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
Talks were orchestrated by Stan Orme, the Labour Shadow Secretary of Energy between Scargill and McGregor. Separate talks were arranged by Bill Keys, a left wing printworkers union leader between Lord Whitelaw (Deputy Prime Minister) and Mick McGahey, the Communist vice president of the National Union of Mineworkers. Talks were held by Norman Willis, General Secretary of the TUC (Trade Unions Congress) and Iain McGregor (Chairman of the NCB).
All of these talks, with the exception of the Scargill one, produced some form of agreement. An agreement that the union leaders involved at each point felt was reasonable, was something that would save the NUM, and was something that would be a negotiated settlement of the dispute that would allow the NUM to remain strong. Each time any agreement was rejected by Scargill according to the authors.
Scargill’s finances are put to the sword as well and his unusual financial arrangements come under the spotlight and are questioned by the authors. Also examined are his justifications for sending Roger Windsor to Libya for money, and the fact that after the strike Scargill apparently told the other Union leaders who had tried to help (even though he publicly accused them repeatedly of doing nothing and being class traitors) that the NUM could not repay the many hundreds of thousands of pounds that many other trade unions had lent to the NUM to help them in their struggle.
The sore conclusion from this book, disputed by those on the left and Seamus Milne, is that it was Scargill’s intransigence, his refusal to compromise, or accept a 95% victory that led to the Mineworkers losing the strike and going back to work without a settlement and without having prevented what eventually happened to miners throughout Britain.
What is also clear is that the Government were heavily involved and that Peter Walker, who could have been in Brighton but for the strike, played a crucial role in ensuring that it was the Government that endured, rather than those on strike.
It is also clear, through the facts presented, that this was not just a dispute between the NUM and the NCB, or between Scargill and Thatcher, but in fact a civil war within the mining community, miner versus miner. Many thousands of miners, especially in Nottinghamshire refused to strike and wanted to work, it was here that clashes occurred between miner and miner, between pickets and police. Where violent intimidation of ‘scabs’, those who wanted to work, occurred and how the strike organised was not as effective as in the past due to poor organisation, police tactics, and a lack of unity amongst the miners.
From this book the conclusion drawn is that Kinnock tried hard to help and was a noble man in the eyes of the authors, that McGahey knew a compromise had to be sought but could not challenge Scargill, that Bill Keys tried his best to negotiate a settlement, and that the TUC were marginalised by Scargill and told to stay out of it but still tried to prevent the complete and utter defeat that the miners eventually suffered. Scargill on the other hand is vilified and on the evidence presented, rightly viewed as a fool who was on a ideological class war for which only total victory would do and for which any deal with the Government/NCB was not enough unless they capitulated.
As for Scargill who refused to co-operate with the authors, in 1984 he went into a strike with a big union and a small house. When he retired as President of the National Union of Minerworkers in 2002 he was the head of a small union, and had a big house. He also receives an extravagent pension while setting himself up for a job working for a NUM fund as well as claiming to retain the use of a 3 bedroom flat paid for by the NUM in the Barbican. According to the authors of this history of the strike, "the miners trusted Arthur Scargill with their homes, their families, their future, their safety, everything they had and he let them down". For Scargill the only history he wants written is one which proves he was right.
January 27, 2011
After reading some reviews I was a little apprehensive that the book may be unduly biased against Arthur Scargill. I did not find this to be the case, though the book doesn't always paint him in a great light it does also do a pretty good job of documenting alot of the context. That context being that the strike was actually not an industrial dispute but a class war, and unfortunately for Scargill it was a war of attrition that he could not win, the battle lines were drawn before the strike had started. So he may have had many faults, single minded stubbornness being the main one, but the two questions remain, in the end were his predictions of the future of mining in Britain correct and without the strike would it be much different now. We'll never really know, though I have my own opinions.
I was interested in reading the book, because as a 10 year old living in Doncaster and who's father working not as a miner but in an industry who built and supplied heavy industrial mining equipment, I was very aware of the strike and its effect, only in the last 10 years have 'scab' slogans been removed from walls in Armthorpe, they may have still remained as recently as 2003 - I'm not sure exactly. Of course at that age I couldn't appreciate the reasoning or the political side of the strike hence my interest.
In particular I found some of the latter chapter interesting, which highlight the continuing issues in the UK, some of which can be traced back somewhat to that strike - the resulting destruction of the industry now resulting in spiraling energy costs partly due to the importation of so much of it. The rise of the drug culture and whole families who have never worked, the breaking of community, the increased policing in towns once almost self policed, the list of related social woes goes on.
The book does a good job of reliving the strike and placing it in the context of todays issues. The strike ended over 25 years ago, its legacy lives on.
I was interested in reading the book, because as a 10 year old living in Doncaster and who's father working not as a miner but in an industry who built and supplied heavy industrial mining equipment, I was very aware of the strike and its effect, only in the last 10 years have 'scab' slogans been removed from walls in Armthorpe, they may have still remained as recently as 2003 - I'm not sure exactly. Of course at that age I couldn't appreciate the reasoning or the political side of the strike hence my interest.
In particular I found some of the latter chapter interesting, which highlight the continuing issues in the UK, some of which can be traced back somewhat to that strike - the resulting destruction of the industry now resulting in spiraling energy costs partly due to the importation of so much of it. The rise of the drug culture and whole families who have never worked, the breaking of community, the increased policing in towns once almost self policed, the list of related social woes goes on.
The book does a good job of reliving the strike and placing it in the context of todays issues. The strike ended over 25 years ago, its legacy lives on.
May 5, 2013
Says it's the 'full inside story of the strike' and there is indeed a lot of useful information in this book. However the anti Scargill bias is obvious throughout and some of the subject matter i.e Scargills political affiliations and the rift between him and Mick McGahey seem to be based on anecdotal rumors rather than on factual evidence
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews