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Strikers, Hobblers, Conchies & Reds: A Radical History of Bristol, 1880-1939

By Randell Brantley

Coming soon from Breviary Stuff Publications: In the 1970s and 80s a revival of interest emerged in researching Bristol’s vigorous radical past, reflected in the publications of the Bristol branch of the Historical Association and Bristol Broadsides. This revival has continued, echoed in the more recent historical studies that have advanced the work of filling in Bristol’s remarkable past — especially the involvement of the Bristol women’s movement in the nineteenth century in anti-slavery […]

Steve Hunt in Frome

By Randell Brantley

Steve Hunt, author of Street Farm and Anarchism in Bristol and the West Country, will be giving a talk in Frome on Sunday 16th November. Upstairs at the Swan, 16 King St. Free entry.

FoD Torchlit Procession

By Randell Brantley

Light up the forest with luminous clothes, armbands, banners and homemade lanterns… Mallards Pike, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire Wednesday November 5th 2014 5.30pm - 7.00pm Well behaved dogs welcome Wheelchair and pushchair-friendly No fireworks, bonfires or Chinese/Sky lanterns - we want to protect our forest! Wednesday November 5 - Clause 21 of the Infrastructure Bill (and HOOF’s amendment will be debated - and voted on) in the House of Lords. More at

Remembering Eastville Workhouse Public Meeting Report

By Randell Brantley

The public meeting on Eastville Workhouse and the Rosemary Green burial ground on Thursday 28th August was very successful. A lively crowd of 35 residents turned up to St Annes' Church Hall in Greenbank. BRHG laid out maps and other historical sources around the room. Steve and Roger gave a presentation (attached) on the Poor laws and the Eastville Workhouse, Rosemary Green burial ground and other similar projects, which stimulated lots of discussion. See the slides from the presentation. A […]

Young Rebels – The Story of the Southall Youth Movement

By Randell Brantley

In April we hosted Black Star: Britain’s Asian Youth Movement, a talk by Anandi Ramamurthy on her book of the same name. Recently a film has been released on the same subject: A documentary film made by local young people looking at the history of their community from the 1960s to the 1980s with particular interest in the murder of Gurdeep Chaggar in 1976, the 1979 anti-fascist demonstrations and the death of Blair Peach and the 1981 burning down of the Hambrough Tavern. The film uses the […]

Vice & Virtue

By Randell Brantley

Vice & Virtue

Vice & Virtue talks between July-Nov A series of free talks at Trinity. (Note, these events are not organised by BRHG) For more information about the talks or the project contact Edson on story@3ca.org.uk or Vice & Virtue is aproject funded by Heritage Lottery Fund, Quartet Community Foundation and the Old Market Community Association. Vice & Virtue: Discovering the History of Old Market 1900-2005 - invites you to a series of talks by local and national experts on the many aspects of […]

A statement on the Ukrainian famine 1931-2

By Randell Brantley

A statement on the Ukrainian famine 1931-2

At the Bristol Radical History meeting on May 29th, two contributors from the floor asserted that the Ukraine famine of 1931-2 was a creation of the American press of the time. As one of the speakers at the meeting, I thought it best to check my sources before responding. I have now done so and find that this assertion is the opposite of the truth. One reporter, Gareth Jones, visited the famine stricken areas in 1931 and 1933 and wrote honestly about the mass starvation that he had seen. The […]

The Quaker William Penn: An Alternative View of the Founder of Pennsylvania

By Randell Brantley

May 8, 2014 6:00 pm-May 8, 2014 7:30 pm William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania who lived in Bristol, is often viewed as a pacifist and promoter of religious freedom. Here historian Jim McNeil explores the darker side of the Penn family, including their involvement in the transatlantic slave trade and European expansionism in America. £7 (£5 Museum members) All participants must register to take part in courses, workshops, and lectures. To register call 01225 820866 or email […]

175th Anniversary of the Chartist Uprising in Newport

By Randell Brantley

175th Anniversary of the Chartist Uprising in Newport

2014 is the 175th Anniversary of the south Wales Rising 1839. Read the Chartist Newsletter: Chartist Newsletter 4 (March 2014) screen version

Bristol Anarchist Bookfair Press Release

By Randell Brantley

Saturday 26th April, Bristol Anarchist Bookfair @ Trinity Centre Bristol Anarchist Bookfair Collective invites all Bristolians and others living in the South West to the 2013 Bookfair. Find out everything you ever wanted to know about anarchism but didn’t know where or who to ask. The Bookfair sees most of the diverse strands of Bristol’s growing anarchist and radical movements gather together, along with many of the UK’s major anarchist publishers and distributors. Alongside an enormous range […]

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