Arthur Scargill
(1938-), Trade unionistSitter in 5 portraits
Born in Leeds, Scargill was a lifelong member of the Yorkshire mining community, becoming President of the National Union of Mineworkers in 1982, and a member of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress. He is remembered for his strong defence of British coal mines in an era of decline and closure. This brought him into conflict with Margaret Thatcher's government, and led to the Miners' Strike of 1984-85. Further conflict ensued when British Coal announced the closure of deep-mine collieries in 1992. He appeared ten times on the cover of Private Eye between 1982-1990. Scargill resigned from the Labour Party in 1996 to found the Socialist Labour Party, and retired from public life in 2002.
Watch a film clip on the sitter from the BBC Archive in the Media section below
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