Star date: 27th May 2018

SALFORD LOOMS LARGE IN MANCHESTER HISTORIES FESTIVAL

Manchester Histories Festival
Thursday 7th June – Monday 11th June
Various venues

Celebrating 150 years since the founding of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), this year's Manchester Histories Festival is packed with five days of events, including a walking tour of Radical Salford, a Power of Unity exhibition at the Working Class Movement Library and a Seditious Salford tour of politics and protest.

Full details here...

One hundred and fifty years on from the first meeting in Manchester to establish a Congress of Trade Unions, the TUC in the North West is marking the anniversary of their formation with a special week packed with talks, tours, films, exhibitions and happenings – and a theme of protest, democracy and freedom of speech.

Highlights include...

TUC Day – DJ Dave Haslam interviews Frances O'Grady, the first female, and current, General Secretary of the TUC on the current challenges of trade unionism and the role of trade unions in the zeitgeist of zero hours, job insecurity, Brexit, deregulation, low pay, and the gig economy: Friday 8th June 7:30pm Friends Meeting House, Manchester. Tickets £6.25/free for low waged – click here

Not The Factory; Manchester's Other Electronic Music Histories - with panel discussions, screenings and music exploring the hidden stories of Manchester's electronic music history, away from Madchester and all that: Saturday 9th June 12:30-4pm Manchester Central Library. Free*

Launch of The Lapsed Clubber Audio Music Map – the culmination of an 18 month project by the Manchester Digital Music Archive in which clubbers tell their own stories of rave and clubs between 1985 and 1995. There's panels of speakers and celebrations and stuff: Saturday 9th June 6pm-9m People's History Museum. Free*.

Speaking Out – the story of the ace Workers Film Association, which was there in the 80s and 90s filming everything protest before everyone had a smart phone. Bob Dickinson shows clips from the archive, including an interview with Eddie Frow on his memories of the Battle of Bexley Square, Viraj Mendis speaking from his refuge inside the Hulme church when the Government tried to deport him and the Buzzcocks' Pete Shelley on the importance of the local punk scene: Saturday 9th June 2pm-4pm Manchester Metropolitan Business School. Free*.

Manchester Histories Celebration Day – around sixty groups celebrate the day, including the Manchester Astronomical Society and Stockport Hat Museum, with stalls, exhibitions, plays, screenings and loads more. The Halle choir and the Manchester Community Choir will be performing protest songs, the M13 Youth Project and Nlamos will be premiering new films, and the suffragette play She Bangs The Drums will be staged, amongst many other activities: Sunday 10th June Manchester Central Library 12noon-4pm Free

Four Debates – Debate 1: Double-Down Devolution (noon-1:30pm) – one year on since Andy Burnham was elected GM Mayor has the region become more empowered? Debate 2: Capitalism and Its Discontents – in the city where capitalism sprouted, historians and experts discuss attempts to get rid of the system. Debate 3: Is Balanced and Inclusive Education Evident In The British STEM Curricula? (4:30pm-6pm) A discussion led by the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation UK. Debate 4: How Many Artists Does It Take To Change The World? (6:30-8pm). How can artists maintain their presence in a rapidly developing city region. Monday 11th June Manchester Central Library. Free

Salford also features prominently in the programme with Seditious Salford, a walking tour of politics and protest in old Salford (Friday 8th June 2pm-4pm, meet at People's History Museum £10); The Power of Unity – 150 Years of the TUC, a free exhibition at the Working Class Movement Library that launches on 8th June 9:30am-10:15am and continues until September; and Skyliner Presents: A Radical Salford Walking Tour on Friday 8th June 10:15am-11:30am which includes Bexley Square and the site of the Three Crowns pub where the idea for the TUC first began (meet at the Working Class Movement Library £5).

There's loads of other events happening too, from a Peterloo Massacre tour, to a talk on trade union badges, to the intriguingly titled Meaning of Happiness in Inter War Bolton...

"The TUC was born in Manchester so it's appropriate that Manchester is the focus for the activities around the 150th anniversary" says Lynn Collins, TUC North West Regional Secretary "Manchester, and the North West, runs right through our movement – whether it is major union offices based in the city or leaders from the region at the top of our unions. Something must have been in the air when those men met in the Mechanics Institute in 1868 and it is still in the air now.

"During the week we will be highlighting the role trades unions play in our society, often hidden from view, but always trying to change the world of work for the better" she explains "But this is not just about looking back at our past. Trades Unions are changing and we will be demonstrating throughout the planned events how we will make sure future generations have the protection that trades unions can give at work – wherever and whenever people are employed.
 
"The world of work is different from the one experienced by the 34 men who met in Manchester to form the TUC" she adds "but the role of trades unions, giving people a collective voice at work remains just as important in the Fourth industrial revolution as it was in the previous three."

Manchester Histories Festival
Thursday 7th June – Monday 11th June
Various venues

For the full line up of events see the PDF of the brochure via ISSUU – click here

For more details also see the Manchester Histories website – click here
*A lot of the free events require registration in advance to ensure entry – details on the website