The Spennymoor Banner Group is to host a special screening of a recently released documentary film about the mining communities of County Durham, presented by two of its makers, Mark Thorburn and Marie Gardiner of Lonely Tower Film and Media. Entitled ‘Hollowed Ground – The People of the Durham Coalfield‘, the film explores local identity across our region, how this was influenced by the coal industry that caused so many pit towns and villages to explode into being and the resilience and determination of those communities through the adversity of the decline of coal mining.
Lonely Tower, based in the North-East, was formed on the back of experience in broadcast media and came together as a company through a shared passion for story telling and historical documentary making. Since forming they have created several successful and engaging documentaries, including ‘Behind the Lines – a First World War Nurse and the fight for Survival‘, a story about Kate Maxey from Spennymoor who was one of the most decorated nurses in WWI and who has a blue plaque on her family home on Clyde Terrace.
Lynn Gibson, group secretary said ‘Spennymoor was built on its coal mining industry, we had 13 pits in the parish over the years. This documentary tells the story of the people of the coalfield, our ancestors, and we are holding this screening as a fundraiser for the group so we can continue to provide free buses for the annual Durham Miners Gala for members of the Spennymoor community.’
The screening will take place on Sunday 7 July 2024 at 3pm in the Spennymoor Settlement. Tickets are just £5 and can be ordered by completing the registration form at https://shorturl.at/mFLW0 or by emailing spennymoorbannergroup@gmail.com
Following the film there will be a Q & A session with some of the people interviewed for the documentary.
You can watch the BBC news article about the film here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqJ9cJf5E4c
Spennymoor's local community newspaper.
