Attending the Durham Miners’ Gala

A couple weeks back I headed to the city of Durham to attend a labour festival known as the miners’ gala. My partner was heading to London on the same day, so we both got up early to head to the train station together before making our separate departures. Someone had taken my seat on the train, but since my journey was short, I let them keep it.

It was only my second time in Durham and my first time attending the gala, which was first held back in 1871 and grew out of the miners’ unions. The highlight of the event is the banner parade that runs through the city centre and ends in a large field called the old racecourse.

I’d been invited by some friends to join them in the march. We met up outside a pub, where I became acquainted with some new faces before we joined in. As a participant, I didn’t get a full look at all the different banners - many of which are many decades old - but the ones I did see were stunning. Most of the newer home-made banners, including the ones carried by our group, tended to be more silly and cheeky, but they had their own charm.

I didn’t keep track of time, but I think we were in the parade for a couple of hours before we reached the racecourse, which was full of tents of union reps, food stalls and a large stage. Shortly after we found ourselves a spot, a folk singer started performing songs about wages, dignity, and disasters. The drinks were already pouring, and we sang along to the parts we knew.

Unfortunately, I’d had too many sleepless nights for the kind of all-day binge my friends wanted. I stuck around for a while to talk to people, had a look around the tents, and then said my goodbyes. Next year, I hope to stick around for a while longer.