Here we look back at archive photos from the Oxford Mail in 1984.
It was the year when famine struck in Ethiopia and miners in the UK went on strike.
Their presence was felt in Didcot when South Wales miners picketed the coal-fired power station.
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Despite the fact that Oxford has no mines, the city was one of the biggest supporters of the miners during the 364 days they were striking.
Thousands of miners in Wales, Yorkshire, Scotland and Kent went on strike after the Government announced 20 pits out of 131 would close with the loss of 20,000 jobs.
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said the mines needed to be closed because they were inefficient and losing the country money.
There were 131 mines producing 105m tons of coal each year, less than half than 30 years before when there were 850 mines producing 225m tons annually.
The Monopolies and Mergers Commission found that 75 percent of British pits were losing money and the industry was losing £1.2m a day.
President of the NUM Arthur Scargill said that the Government needed to invest in the pits despite the losses.
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In 1983 he said: “The policies of this Government are clear, to destroy the coal industry and the NUM.”
The Government stockpiled coal and most energy suppliers had switched to gas to generate electricity, meaning mass power cuts were avoided.
Miners from South Wales picket Didcot Power station in 1984 during the strike
The Oxford Miners Support Group was quickly set up and led by the Oxford and District Trade Union Council (TUC).
Many South Wales workers had already moved to Oxford in the 1930s for work at the Pressed Steel factory.
The TUC worked with the National Union of Miners delegation from South Wales, home to the last pit in the Rhondda valley.
The support group organised collections of food and money, as well as arranging talks and delivering about 25,000 leaflets across the county to garner political support.
Oxford raised more money for the mining communities than any area outside of London, £111,000, including donations from 92 trade union organisations, 45 Labour Party organisations and 29 colleges.
A Miners Support Group was even established in Bonn, Oxford’s twin city in Germany.
Remembering his support for the strike, former Labour MP for Oxford East Andrew Smith, then a member of Oxford City Council, said: “Our house in Blackbird Leys was one of the collection points, and I well remember the tins and packets of food and other essentials stacked up high in our hallway.
“The solidarity of the Maerdy miners, and the loyal support so many Oxford people gave them, contrasted with the bitter conflict on some of the picket lines.”
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The strike ended in 1985 when NUM voted 98 to 91 to return amid concerns that miners were living in poverty. By 1995 the coal industry had been privatised.
There were five mass pickets of Didcot Power Station because it was using coal.
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About the author
Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here.
He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.
His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning.
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