90th anniversary of the 1926 General Strike

Dear Friends and comrades,

Swindon TUC would like to invite you to an exciting event to commemorate the 90th  anniversary of the 1926 General Strike, to be held from midday on Saturday May 7th .

As part of an afternoon of activities, we will assemble at midday at Central Community Centre (Emlyn Square, Swindon, SN1 5BP) for a march to re-enact and commemorate the large marches that took place in Swindon in 1926 to support the strike. Edwardian dress is encouraged, but not compulsory! Union branches, trades councils, and community groups are very welcome to bring their banners for the march.

After the march, there will be a buffet at the community centre, followed by a presentation to local schools who have been completing lessons around the general strike and talks from Nigel Costley and others on the history of the strike locally and nationally, as well as speakers explaining how we can oppose current government attacks on trade unions. The event will finish by 3pm.

Please circulate this event around your trades council, group or union branch, and feel free to pass it on to anyone who may be interested. Also, feel free to print and share the attached poster.

For those of you planning to turn up in Edwardian dress, it doesn’t need to be difficult! An example of a costume for men could be as simple as plain trousers, plain shirt (preferably collarless), braces, a waistcoat and a flatcap. For women, an ankle length skirt, button up shirt and a pinnie/apron is fine. People who can’t or don’t want to dress up are welcome!

Please do what you can to support and attend the event, and if you have any questions, feel free to contact us at swindontuc@gmail.com

Kind regards,

Jon Timbrell,

Secretary, Swindon TUC