IT was a landmark in British political history – and the story of the 1984 to 1985 miners strike is still disputed.

Now a new edition of a book first produced in the aftermath of the industrial conflict that defined Margaret Thatcher’s premiership is being launched – and reporter Mike Simons, who reported on the strike, recalls how the narrative over the miners’ defeat was formed by the government and its  poodles in the British press.

Mike was a reporter for the Socialist Worker newspaper when the strike, over pit closures, broke out.

Living in Camden, he traversed the country each week to meet with miners and the members of communities who Thatcher called “the enemy within”.

He worked side by side with photographers who were determined to capture the industrial strife – and make sure the narrative peddled by the government was countered with facts.

“We were trying to report what was really going on, which did not get coverage in the national media,” he recalls.

“Photography became an important part of that. Without photographs, people simply did not believe you about the behaviour of the police, about the level of support for the strike.

“The photographs meant miners and their communities could prove what was happening to them and that the police and the media were lying.”

The book looks back 40 years to consider the strike and its aftermath. The original saw 4,000 copies sold, with money going to miners. They have become collectors’ items.

“It divided people down the middle,” he says. “There was a massive press campaign against the miners but as the strike went on, people saw what Thatcher was really about – destroying the industry, destroying mining communities, and destroying the trade union movement.

“After Orgreave, it was obvious she was not interested in a settlement – she wanted the abject and total defeat of the miners.”

Drawing on footage, Mike produced a film 10 years ago telling the story of the miners, and with the 40th anniversary of the strike coming up, Mike decided it was time for a new edition of the book.

“The book was made up of the best photos taken by photographers who were on the side of the miners,” he says.

“There was a very clear divide – you could either stand behind the police lines to report on what they wanted you to say was happening, or you could stand with the miners and pickets and report on what you saw.”

Looking back 40 years to such a  seminal moment is tough for those involved.

“It is emotional,” adds Mike. “Some images make me laugh – the pictures bring back good memories.

“But some of them – well, you just feel like crying. It really was such a difficult time for everybody.”

The new edition includes previously unseen images as well as many that have not been viewed since the time.

“The strike has become something told through a historical narrative. There is almost a hidden history of what happened,” he adds.

“There has been new interest in the strike – people are looking at the period but there still is little in the way of explanation.

“We wanted people to think about the images and contrast it to what they had been told. There is a contested legacy. When people see the photographs they will question the official versions. People were beaten to a pulp by police.”

This state-sponsored violence has never been properly accounted for.

“The images that really stand out were those who show the enthusiasm people had to fight back,” adds Mike.

“The support that Arthur Scargill had from miners and the mining community goes against the impressions created of him by the media. He was really loved by the people he represented.

“There are some fantastic images of women who were on the picket lines. That is a plus side. The negative side is the cost of the defeat.”

• Blood, Sweat and Tears: Photographs from the Great Miners’ Strike. Words by Mike Simons, Artworker Books , £30. minersstrike.com/
• Mike Simons is talking about the book at Bookmarks, 1 Bloomsbury Street, WC1B 3QE on March 14 at 6.30pm.

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