Ed Miliband’s recent Conference Speech was met with great acclaim for its ambitious and surprising declaration of a “One Nation” Labour Party. It was undoubtedly a brave and rousing message, but the proposal of “One Nation” is nothing new.The concept originated with a Conservative Prime Minister speaking 140 years earlier, yards from where Miliband himself Continue Reading
What the Dickens?
On the 7th February 2012, Britain celebrated the bicentenary of the birth of one of the greatest literary figures; Charles John Huffam Dickens. Dickens’ work resonates throughout British popular culture; with Oliver Twist’s famous words of “Please Sir, can I have some more?” and the iconic character of Ebenezer Scrooge symbolising those who lack the Continue Reading
Red Ellen and the Jarrow Crusade
The Jarrow Crusade remains one of the most evocative emblems of the interwar period. It captures something of the resilience of the interwar British population in the face of unemployment, hunger and depression. In October 1936, 207 hungry and bedraggled marchers travelled to London from Jarrow in the North East to protest against the terrible Continue Reading