Stroud Park Walking Football Tournament and Stroud Food Bank May 4th
The General Strike May 4th 1926
On May 4th 1926, twenty per cent of the workforce went on strike in a first wave of action called by the TUC in support of almost one million miners who were facing wage cuts and an increase in hours. The miners’ leader, Arthur Cook coined the phrase, “Not a penny off the pay, not an hour on the day.” The government viewed the strike as a strike against parliamentary government. The TUC viewed the strike as an industrial struggle. The TUC called off the strike after nine days. The miners were locked-out until November 1926 when they accepted the mine-owners’ terms.
The miners and their families were supported by food donations from the general public for the six months in which they remained locked-out. Today we support the Stroud Foodbank.
Football
A unique event happened towards the end of the strike. A football match was held in Plymouth between the police and a team of strikers. The match was kicked off by the wife of the chief constable and thousands were in attendance. The strikers won by two goals to one.
We have commemorated the General Strike in a variety of ways in Stroud this year: so far, exhibitions, talks, walks and performance. The exhibition is now on two walls up The Prince Albert (many thanks to Lotte and Miles), reflecting our practice of creating museums in pubs. I also thank Stroud town council and the GWR for supporting me in commemorating the centenary in the round.
We are also grateful to Stroud Park Walking Football Club for their generosity in hosting a football tournament to echo that match in 1926 and to echo how football matches in 1926 often acted as fund-raisers for the destitute. We shall be raising funds for the Stroud Foodbank exactly 100 years to the day since the start of the General Strike.
Six teams will also echo the names of key participants and newspapers in the General Strike: Stanley Baldwin FC (the prime minister) Arthur Cook FC (miners’ leader) Winston Churchill FC (editor of the government newspaper, the British Gazette) Jimmy Thomas FC (TUC leader who wanted to avert the strike) British Gazette FC British Worker FC (Trade Union newspaper).