Durham Miners' Gala 150th anniversary celebrated in park

Members of the Durham Miner's Association and guests gathered in Wharton Park where the first gala was held 150 years ago

The 150th anniversary of the Durham Miners' Gala has been celebrated.

The first gala, which has become a major day of celebration and remembrance of County Durham's mining industry, was held in Wharton Park in Durham on 12 August 1871.

Members of the Durham Miners' Association (DMA) returned to the park's amphitheatre for a celebration featuring banners, and a brass band.

The gala was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Alan Mardghum, secretary of the DMA, said: "On this day in 1871 families left their homes in pit villages across the coalfield to travel into Durham for the first gala.

"The coal industry came to an end, but the gala did not end with it. It lives because the people have remained determined that it must.

"The gala represents the best of us. It is about community, human spirit, and our desire to look out for each other and to build a better world."

The gala, pictured in 1970, has been held 135 times

The first gala began in the amphitheatre at noon when then-DMA president William Crawford made a speech starting with the words: "This is the first great gala day. I pray that it will not be the last."

Poetry was also read at the first gala and to mark the 150th anniversary, children from Durham Area Youth Project have worked with poet Rowan McCabe from Hebburn to produce new poems about the event.

The first gala was the only one to be held in Wharton Park.

The following year it paraded through the streets of Durham to the Old Racecourse ground, arrangements that have remained in place ever since.

Though it started 150 years ago, there have only actually been 135 galas with some years' events disrupted by world wars, general strikes and the coronavirus pandemic.

The 136th gala is due to be held on 9 July 2022.