Official Selection: Sheffield DocFest 2024
★★★★ “A tough, valuable, forthright film.” - Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
Daniel Gordon’s feature documentary STRIKE: AN UNCIVIL WAR tells the story of the Battle of Orgreave, the most violent confrontation between Miners and Police during the 1984/85 Miners’ Strike in Great Britain.
The year-long Strike was the most divisive and violent industrial dispute that Britain has ever witnessed, and using powerful personal testimony, previously hidden government documents and a treasure trove of never-before-seen archive material, STRIKE: AN UNCIVIL WAR follows the events at Orgreave, which took place on 18th June 1984.
The Miners’ Strike cut right to the heart of Britain’s social and political consciousness. It was about more than the economics of coal mines, and encompassed regionality, class, community, masculinity, the role of women, relationships, marriage and family. The conflict spread across the land – from south east England, the Midlands and the North, to the coalfields of Wales and Scotland.
We are now told that the outcome changed Britain for good. In reality, there were perhaps no winners; Britain was left even more divided, and deep questions remain unanswered.
Witness at first hand the stories and recollections of the people on the front lines of this incredible moment in time, which split communities and the nation in two.