Wednesday December 14th, 2011.

Because of all the crap going on here in the UK I feel moved to say something on this blog.

Here we are, almost 30 years on from the events described in my blog and what has changed? Absolutely nothing! Cameron is Thatcher’s bastard son, and Corporal Clegg and his pathetic cronies prop him up while he destroys our country! There are millions on the dole and not surprisingly, it’s young people and women who bear the brunt and still they keep cutting  and forcing us to pay while their rich friends get richer. That smarmy git Osbourne really makes me want to smash his smug face in!

What about ‘New Labour’? Well, Tony Bland and Gordon Clown had 13 years to make a real and lasting difference to the people of this country, especially the working class, and all they achieved was to ban fox hunting and fiddle their expenses. Oh yes, and they abolished Clause 4 and any pretence at being socialists. Now we have the laughable ‘Red Ed’ who has all the charisma of a slug, and a smarmy, slimy one at that. He refuses to stand up for those who feel forced to take strike action and even slags them off as good as Toff Cameron and chums. I really do despair because there seems no end to the terrible depression us poor people have to suffer. I know first hand because I’ve been signing on for a year and once a fortnight I get a grilling at the laughably named ‘Jobcentre’ and have to keep a written record of what I’ve done to find work! It makes my blood boil and I long for the day when the whole evil system of capitalism collapses. One thing I do know is that one day strikes will achieve nothing except those lucky enough to have a job losing a days pay. I say ‘lucky’ but I don’t really mean that. Working conditions these days seem to be worse than ever and everyone is scared they will lose their jobs. Of course I could be smug and say that if people had listened to us back in 1984 we might not be in the position we are in now. However, I won’t say that. What I will say is the working class people of this country need to realise that if they don’t take action the Tories will continue to crush them under their jackboots. The gap between rich and poor is greater than it has ever been and I don’t blame the people who chose to riot in August. I think there will be more riots next year because people are angry, and hungry. They can’t lock us all up.

To finish let me have a rant at football players getting more money per week than a lot of us can earn in a lifetime. It is WRONG, and I wish people would boycott matches and force the bastards to sort it out. I can’t take my 10 year old to matches because there is no way I can afford it. I can’t afford £50 and more to go and see a group or singer. What kind of society are we living in that allows all of this to go on. Why can’t people realise they have the POWER to change things? End of rant, for now!

Friday February 19th, 2010.

So there you go, finished and done with and part of history now. I just couldn’t keep to my schedule of writing the entries on the day they happened all those years ago. Too painful, and I’m relieved I’ve finally finished. I hope reading the diary helped in some small way to understand what we went through, and why we went through it. The sad thing is nothing seems to have changed. People are still losing their jobs and whole industries have become history. One solution, revolution. Seriously.

   As for me, well, I was one of the fortunate ones. I went to London and landed a plum job with the GLC, working at the South Bank Centre. Unfortunately it didn’t last long because Thatcher abolished it! I went to Portsmouth Poly and got a degree, did teacher training in Southampton Uni, and have spent the time up until the present as an English teacher. I remarried in 2000 and have a 9 year old son, Tim, and two lovely grandbairns, Chloe and Holly. Sasha is a Registered Mental Nurse, Jennifer is a Primary school teacher, and Kath is a social worker. My wife, Anne, is a Paralympian and the most wonderful person I have ever met. Inspirational is the word I’m looking for, and I love her more than life. I’m a very lucky man. Tomorrow is my 59th birthday and I’d just like to end by saying a huge thank you to all the men, women, and children who saw the strike out to its bitter end. Heroes, every one of them!

153. Thursday March 7th, 1985.

This morning I played out my final part in the 1984 – 1985 Miners Strike when I appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff’s Court to answer my ‘Breach of the Peace’ charge, outstanding since July. The two arresting officers gave opposing accounts of my arrest yet I was found guilty as charged and fined £80 with eight weeks to pay.

  So that’s it, all over and done with, the most exciting, frightening and eventful year of my life so far, and one I will never forget. If I was given my time over I would do it all over again.

   On Saturday I leave for a new start down in London and who knows what the future holds? I’ve given up my job, seen my marriage end, and been beaten black and blue and thrown in jail but I’d do it all again because the issues at stake were too important to do any other. One thing I am certain of is the Tories won’t stop here, so all those unions who stabbed us in the back better watch out because it’s their turn next!