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Explore every episode of the podcast Working Class History
Dive into the complete episode list for Working Class History. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.
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| E126: [TEASER] Fireside Chat - How we won the weekend | 30 Sep 2026 | 00:10:11 | |
New Fireside Chat available exclusively for our Patreon supporters about the true history of the weekend, struggles over time off from work, and what is missing from mainstream accounts. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
Time, like wage labour, and many other facets of modern life, seems like a natural phenomenon. But the way we experience time has been shaped almost entirely by human societies. From ancient Mesopotamia, and major world religions including Judaism, Christianity and Islam, we trace the history weekend to mediaeval Europe, Iran, China, revolutionary France up to the present day in the US, UK and elsewhere. From drunkards in Austria, to oil workers in Azerbaijan, anarchists in Chicago, and women in Detroit, in this episode we look at the people who, together, created the weekend. The majority of workers in the West today don’t realise that the modern two-day weekend that most of us enjoy only really became widespread in the last 80 years. And while today we take it for granted, employers and governments everywhere are making moves to erode it. At the same time, as automation continues, and large language models promise ever-higher productivity, a new generation of workers is calling for its extension – to a three-day weekend without loss in pay. Who will ultimately prevail, depends on us.
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| WCL15: Literature of the 1926 General Strike | 16 Sep 2026 | 01:15:17 | |
As part of our work to mark the centenary of the UK's 1926 general strike, we sat down with with Charles Ferrall and Dougal McNeill, authors of the excellent Writing the 1926 General Strike: Literature, Culture, Politics to talk about some of the literature texts produced in response to the strike, both from established authors and emerging working-class writers. Our podcast is brought to you by patreon supporters of both Working Class Literature and Working Class History. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory In our discussion, Charles Ferrall and Dougal McNeill explain why they wrote their book and what they mean when they say the strike was “a literary event.” We also discuss the works of a number of different working-class authors responding to the strike, not to mention those of more famous authors that were also affected by the strike, in particular Lady Chatterley’s Lover (1928) by DH Lawrence and To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf. Further reading and a transcript available on the webpage for this episode: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl15-literature-of-the-1926-general-strike/ Acknowledgements
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| E125.1: [TEASER] Riot Dogs - Greece bonus episode | 12 Aug 2026 | 00:05:25 | |
Free preview extract ofIn various countries around the world, as movements against exploitation and inequality exploded, protesters found some unlikely allies – street dogs. In these episodes, we look at movements and riot dogs in two countries: Chile and Greece, and Negro Matapacos and Loukanikos, respectively. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory In this bonus episode, we look at a street dog named Loukanikos, and protests against police violence in 2009, and against austerity in 2011. Listen to the whole thing exclusively by joining us on Patreon. More info
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| E125: Riot dogs - Negro Matapacos | 05 Aug 2026 | 00:34:35 | |
In various countries around the world, as movements against exploitation and inequality exploded, protesters found some unlikely allies – street dogs. In these episodes, we look at movements and riot dogs in two countries: Chile and Greece, and Negro Matapacos and Loukanikos, respectively.Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory You can listen to our podcast on the links below, or on any major podcast app. Links to a few below.Episodes
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| E124: [TEASER] Fireside Chat - World Cup of Chaos | 20 Jul 2026 | 00:25:09 | |
Fireside Chat podcast available exclusively for our Patreon supporters we invited back Tomas Rothaus (from our Argentina 2001 episodes) to discuss football, politics, and the chaotic mess of the World Cup in Donald Trump's USA. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Recorded before the competition started,we discussed the many contradictions of being a radical football fan, the excitement of attending previous World Cups, the way various authoritarian regimes have utilised football for their own ends, and the many players and managers (past and present) who have believed in fairer society for all. Listen to the full 92-minute episode here: More information
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| E123.1 [TEASER]: IWW Starbucks Workers Union, bonus episode | 15 Jul 2026 | 00:10:10 | |
Free preview of the bonus episode to our three-part podcast series about the organising campaign by the Industrial Workers of the World union at Starbucks in the 2000s, in conversation with Daniel Gross, one of the key organisers. This episode covers more about Daniel’s work and organising history, the political and economic context of the early 2000s, and retaliation by Starbucks against him, and what happened in the subsequent legal case. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory More
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| E123: IWW Starbucks Workers Union, part 3 | 08 Jul 2026 | 00:39:40 | |
Final part of our three-part podcast series about the organising campaign by the Industrial Workers of the World union at Starbucks in the 2000s, in conversation with Daniel Gross, one of the key organisers. This part covers international solidarity, Starbucks union-busting strategies, the decline of the union, and lessons for today. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory More
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| E122: IWW Starbucks Workers Union, part 2 | 01 Jul 2026 | 00:31:33 | |
Part 2 of our three-part podcast series about the organising campaign by the Industrial Workers of the World union at Starbucks in the 2000s, in conversation with Daniel Gross, one of the key organisers. This part covers solidarity unionism and direct action on the job, tactics, and gains won by the workers. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory More
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| E121: IWW Starbucks Workers Union, part 1 | 25 Jun 2026 | 00:47:46 | |
Before the current wave of organising at Starbucks, another group of workers in the early 2000s got together and formed a union at one of the most anti-union corporations on earth. They won better pay and conditions, and laid the groundwork for the unionisation campaign today. Learn their story in this three-part podcast series in conversation with Daniel Gross, one of the key organisers. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Fireside Chats and Radical Reads. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory More
Acknowledgements
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| E120.1: [TEASER] 1926 general strike, bonus episode | 13 May 2026 | 00:09:44 | |
Bonus episode for our three-part miniseries about the UK’s 1926 general strike, in collaboration with the General Strike 100 project and told using interviews with striking workers themselves. In this episode, East London dock worker, Harry Watson, talks about life and work on the docks around the time of the general strike as well as the split of skilled dock workers away from the Trades Union Congress (TUC). Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E120: 1926 general strike, part 3 | 06 May 2026 | 00:43:37 | |
The final of our three-part miniseries about the UK’s 1926 general strike, which saw one and three-quarter million workers walk out in the biggest single work stoppage in British history. In collaboration with the General Strike 100 project and told using interviews with striking workers themselves. In this episode, we look at state repression against the strike, the capitulation of union leaders, and the victimisation of strikers and months-long lockout of the miners after the end of the general strike. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E119: 1926 general strike, part 2 | 29 Apr 2026 | 00:35:53 | |
Part 2 of our three-part miniseries about the UK’s 1926 general strike, which saw one and three-quarter million workers walk out in the biggest single work stoppage in British history. In collaboration with the General Strike 100 project and told using interviews with striking workers themselves. In this episode, we go into the action of the strike itself, the self-activity of the 'Councils of Action', and first-hand accounts of clashes between workers, scabs, and police. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E118: 1926 general strike, part 1 | 22 Apr 2026 | 00:41:33 | |
First of our three-part miniseries about the UK’s 1926 general strike, which saw one and three-quarter million workers walk out in the biggest single work stoppage in British history. In collaboration with the General Strike 100 project and told using interviews with striking workers themselves. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
More info
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| E116.1: [TEASER] Argentina uprising 2001, bonus – the state and political violence | 18 Mar 2026 | 00:07:22 | |
Preview extract of our bonus episode about state and political violence in Argentina (and beyond). Part of our miniseries on the 2001 Argentina uprising, which toppled the government, and saw the spread of neighbourhood assemblies and factories taken over by workers. In conversation with Tomas Rothaus, a participant in the uprising and author of Argentina, a Tale of Two Utopias. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E117: [TEASER] Fireside Chat – Trump’s Letter to Norway | 16 Mar 2026 | 00:15:47 | |
Fireside Chat podcast available exclusively for our Patreon supporters where we make fun of Trump’s absurd text to the Norwegian Prime Minister, and what it means for the rest of the world that the US President is a half-witted narcissist. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory When Trump’s letter to the Norwegian PM came out, we all thought it was extremely funny. And, at WCH, we thought we’d try to produce some newsy/current affairs style content for a change. As you can see, we failed. The news cycle proved too fast for us, and we’ve basically just made another history episode (albeit about more recent history than usual!).Regardless, we’ve decided to release it anyway. So tune in to listen as Matt and John make fun of everything from Trump’s punctuation and grammar, to his anti-colonial Marxist reasoning for the US takeover of Greenland. Plus, what it means to have a fascist leader in such an obvious state of cognitive decline. Listen to the full episode here:
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| E116: Argentina uprising 2001, part 2 | 12 Mar 2026 | 00:49:49 | |
Part 2 of a double episode about the 2001 uprising in Argentina, which toppled the government, and saw the spread of neighbourhood assemblies and factories taken over by workers. In conversation with Tomas Rothaus, a participant in the uprising and author of Argentina, a Tale of Two Utopias: Anarchism, Soccer, Neoliberalism. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E115.1: [TEASER] Argentina uprising 2001, bonus – football and politics | 04 Mar 2026 | 00:10:22 | |
Preview extract of our bonus episode about the history and politics of football culture in Argentina. Part of our miniseries on the 2001 Argentina uprising, which toppled the government, and saw the spread of neighbourhood assemblies and factories taken over by workers. In conversation with Tomas Rothaus, a participant in the uprising and author of Argentina, a Tale of Two Utopias. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E115: Argentina uprising 2001, part 1 | 25 Feb 2026 | 00:58:26 | |
Part 1 of a double episode about the 2001 uprising in Argentina, which toppled the government, and saw the spread of neighbourhood assemblies and factories taken over by workers. In conversation with Tomas Rothaus, a participant in the uprising and author of Argentina, a Tale of Two Utopias: Anarchism, Soccer, Neoliberalism. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E114: [TEASER] Fireside Chat – 2025 in review | 07 Jan 2026 | 00:11:52 | |
Teaser extract of our latest Fireside Chat podcast available exclusively for our Patreon supporters in which we sit down for a bit of a chat about the year past, for WCH and the world, and plans we have for the year ahead. We discuss a year of the podcast, sick leave, full kit wankers, the rise of the far right and social democratic responses to it in the US, UK and elsewhere, and more. We also let listeners know about projects in the works for 2026. Listen to the complete episode here by joining our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/146576665 Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Acknowledgements
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| E113: [TEASER] Radical Reads – Forces of Labour | 26 Nov 2025 | 00:18:21 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Radical Reads episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 67-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e113-radical-of-143322722 In this episode, we discuss Beverly Silver's pioneering work, Forces of Labour: Workers' Movements and Globalisation Since 1870, a book which was hugely influential on many of us at Working Class History. The book is epic in its breadth (looking at labour unrest around the world and across a long period of time), but also firmly committed to viewing class struggle from the bottom up. But most important about the book is how deeply materialist and methodical it is in how it outlines the concrete conditions that gave space for working-class struggle, and how those struggles forced capital to think of new strategies in order to deal with it. Moreover, in doing so, her book also helps us to think and to strategise about working-class organising today. Listen to the full episode here: More information
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| WCH Podcast and Patreon Update | 30 Oct 2025 | 00:04:30 | |
An update for you on the Working Class History podcast and its future. In short, we began releasing much more frequent podcast episodes 18 months ago, in an effort to get more supporters on Patreon. While we were able to grow our support, it has not been sufficient to cover our increased costs, and we have now run out of episodes. So we will be taking an end of season break, to work on new episodes to release in the New Year. Patreon is how listeners like you make our work possible, and enables us to cover the cost of making the podcast. Some series we work on take several years, hundreds of hours of work, and cost thousands of dollars, not to mention all of our other costs. Learn more and join us at https://patreon.com/workingclasshistory The price of our exclusive content on Patreon hasn't gone up since 2020, whereas inflation has gone up by 25% and costs have gone up even more. So in the New Year we are going to have to increase the cost of our Patreon benefits to new members. However, if you join us on Patreon before then, you will be able to permanently lock in the 2020 price of $5 per month (or even cheaper if you subscribe annually). So please join us today to access great benefits like early access to all episodes without ads, and access to our exclusive bonus episodes every month. In 2026, the cost of a subscription to new members will increase to $6 per month, so don't delay, join us today to support the dissemination of people's history, at this time of attacks on the genuine teaching of factual history around the world. Learn more and sign up at https://patreon.com/workingclasshistory | |||
| E112: [FREE EPISODE] Radical Reads - Be Gay Do Crime | 18 Oct 2025 | 01:52:35 | |
As part of our Radical Reads series, we speak about our latest book, Be Gay, Do Crime: Everyday Acts of Queer Resistance and Rebellion, with editors Zane McNeill, Blu Buchanan and Riley Clare Valentine. Radical Reads is one of our Patreon-only exclusive series, where we discuss texts – both old and new – that have either influenced the WCH project, or texts that we generally think that people involved in radical and working-class movements should be engaging with, discussing, and using to inform their activism. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Supporters also get access to two exclusive podcast series: Radical Reads and Fireside Chats. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory As attacks on queer and trans people around the globe escalate, we felt it was more important than ever to highlight stories of LGBT+ resistance throughout history. Be Gay, Do Crime: Everyday Acts of Queer Resistance and Rebellion is your ultimate guide to LGBTQ+ resilience and revolt. Packed with hundreds of snapshots of radical queer history for every day of the year, this book celebrates the bold, the brave, and the beautifully defiant moments that have shaped the fight for justice. In this episode, we discuss the book, our current moment, the connections between LGBT+ movements and other aspects like race, class, gender and disability. We look at historical repression of queer identities, colonialism, and talk about what stories from the past can point to away towards a better future.Hope you enjoy this episode, and make sure to get hold of a copy of the book, available in our online store with global shipping.
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| E111.1: [TEASER] Poll tax revolt, bonus episode | 01 Oct 2025 | 00:06:30 | |
Preview extract of a bonus episode of our double podcast on the successful mass direct action campaign against the UK poll tax in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In conversation with Dave Morris from the Tottenham Anti-Poll Tax campaign and Haringey Solidarity Group. This part covers more information about Dave’s life and activism, different left strategies within the campaign, undercover police infiltration of the campaign, and community organising today. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E111: Poll tax revolt, part 2 | 24 Sep 2025 | 00:44:42 | |
Second of a double podcast episode about the successful mass direct action campaign against the UK poll tax in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In conversation with Dave Morris from the Tottenham Anti-Poll Tax campaign and Haringey Solidarity Group. This part covers repercussions from the poll tax riot, the non-payment campaign, legal defence, repression, how the struggle was won, and lessons for today Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| E110: Poll tax revolt, part 1 | 17 Sep 2025 | 00:43:06 | |
First of a double podcast episode about the successful mass direct action campaign against the UK poll tax in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In conversation with Dave Morris from the Tottenham Anti-Poll Tax campaign and Haringey Solidarity Group.This part covers the background, Thatcherism, introduction of the tax in Scotland, the beginnings of resistance, and the poll tax riot. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory
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| WCL14: Live from the Working Class Literature Festival | 20 Aug 2025 | 00:59:57 | |
Following our double-episode on the Florence Working-Class Literature Festival back in February, our co-host Matt was invited to this year’s festival, recording this episode on-site at the ex-GKN factory in Florence. Featuring the various writers, researchers, organisers, and activists in attendance, this episode captures the atmosphere of the festival at this critical time for the GKN struggle. Our podcast is brought to you by patreon supporters of both Working Class Literature and Working Class History. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Taking place on 4-6 April 2025, the opending day of the festival marked the 1367th day since the 400+ workforce at the GKN car parts factory in Florence was first made redundant. They subsequently seized the factory and remain in control of it to this day, despite receiving their third – and now final – redundancy notice in the days leading up to this year’s festival.Recorded on-site at the occupied GKN factory on the outskirts of Florence, this episode features the voices of various writers, researchers, organisers, and activists that we spoke to while at the festival. These conversations took place against a frenzy of activity, both for the festival but also the GKN struggle itself. Acknowledgements
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| E109: Women in the miners' strike, part 2 | 14 Aug 2025 | 00:25:17 | |
Concluding part of our double episode about the crucial role played by women in the great miners’ strike in Britain, 1984-5, in conversation with Heather Wood, chair of the Easington women’s strike support group. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Part 2 is about the formation of a national organisation and national protest, the media, the end of the strike, the effect on the women, and possibilities for the future.https://www.patreon.com/posts/e109-women-in-2-134227615 These are re-edited and improved versions of our original episode 13. More information, sources, and eventually a transcript on the webpage for this episode: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e108-women-in-the-miners-strike/ Acknowledgements
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| E108: Women in the miners' strike, part 1 | 07 Aug 2025 | 00:26:46 | |
Double episode about the crucial role played by women in the great miners’ strike in Britain, 1984-5, in conversation with Heather Wood, chair of the Easington women’s strike support group. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes without ads, bonus episodes, two exclusive podcast series – Fireside Chats and Radical Reads – as well as free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Part 1 is about the background, how women’s organising began, and what forms it took.
Acknowledgements
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| E107: [TEASER] Fireside Chat – Hope Dies Last | 24 Jul 2025 | 00:12:09 | |
Teaser of our latest Fireside Chat, available in full exclusively for our supporters on Patreon. A couple of years ago, John from WCH and Ade from our Farsi-language sister project, Daily Worker History Farsi, were interviewed for the Hope Dies Last podcast by musician and journalist Ryan Harvey. Ryan didn't end up having the time to finish the episode, so we thought we would turn it into a Fireside Chat, for people to learn a bit more about WCH and Daily Worker History Farsi. John and Ade talk about their respective projects in Iran, and in English, what inspires them, how they organise, and more. More information
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| E106: [TEASER] Radical Reads – China in Global Capitalism | 02 Jul 2025 | 00:28:13 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Radical Reads episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 122-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e106-radical-in-129688227 In this episode, we speak to Eli Friedman and Kevin Lin about their new book, China in Global Capitalism: Building International Solidarity Against Imperial Rivalry. The book (co-written with Rosa Liu and Ashley Smith) does an excellent job of looking at the actions of the Chinese state from the perspective of workers and marginalised groups to produce a picture of a capitalist nation that is not simply 'the same' as other nations, but not all that different either. The full episode is out longest Radical Read yet, and covers a range of topics from the conditions and struggles of China's working class both inside the workplace and out, to women's and LGBT+ rights. We also talk about China's relationship to its "internal peripheries" of Tibet and Xinjiang, as well as its international relationships in Africa, Israel and, of course, with the US. We also discuss what building international solidarity from below might look like in the current context. Listen to the full episode here: More information
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| WCL13: Jack Hilton, Rochdale Caliban, part 2 | 18 Jun 2025 | 00:39:43 | |
Part 2 of our double episode on working-class author Jack Hilton, with Jack Chadwick whose literary detective work rescued Hilton from almost total obscurity. This part covers his novel Caliban Shrieks in more detail and how it compares to other working-class novels from the same period; his later writing and life, and how his writing career would come to an end (despite George Orwell’s efforts); and, finally, the amazing series of events that led to the rediscovery and republication of Caliban Shrieks. Our podcast is brought to you by patreon supporters of both Working Class Literature and Working Class History. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory More information
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| WCL12: Jack Hilton, Rochdale Caliban, part 1 | 11 Jun 2025 | 00:56:25 | |
Part 1 of our double episode about Jack Hilton, a working-class author, World War I veteran, unemployed movement organiser, and trade union activist from Rochdale, north-west England. For this episode, we spoke to Jack Chadwick whose literary detective work rescued Hilton from almost total obscurity. We discussed Hilton's life growing up in Rochdale's slums, starting work at nine years old, and his activism in the National Unemployed Workers' Movement. We also talked about how he began writing, how Caliban Shrieks was celebrated within the London literary scene, and his long-term (and complex) relationship to George Orwell. More information
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| E105: [TEASER] Fireside Chat – Organising in the public sector | 05 Jun 2025 | 00:22:33 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Fireside Chat episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on Patreon. You can listen to the full 104-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e105-fireside-in-127749416 https://www.patreon.com/posts/e105-fireside-in-127749416In this episode, we spoke to one of our hosts, John, about his experiences organising at work in the public sector, first as an agency worker, then a permanent employee, and as a member and representative of Unison, the UK’s largest public sector union. In the full episode, we go into detail about some small local disputes and victories, and how these connected with the dynamics of large, national disputes – in particular, the public sector pensions dispute of 2011. We also talk about the relationship between union officialdom and struggles on the shopfloor. While these experiences are specific to John, we do think many of the dynamics are pretty common, with similarities with many workplaces – especially office-based ones. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Acknowledgements
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| E104: Pirates, part 2 | 23 Apr 2025 | 00:30:07 | |
Second of a double podcast about the Golden Age of Piracy, with historian Marcus Rediker. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Part 2 covers the extent of piracy, how pirates organise themselves, how colonial powers fought them, the decline of pirates, and their legacy today. More information, and eventually a transcript on the webpage for this episode here: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e103-pirates/ Get Marcus's Books:
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| E103: Pirates, part 1 | 16 Apr 2025 | 00:36:02 | |
First in a double podcast about the Golden Age of Piracy, with historian Marcus Rediker. The legendary pirates of this era weren’t just thieves—they were daring rebels challenging the very systems of power and authority of their time. Fighting every colonial empire, and creating their own ways of living free from authority, pirates became symbols of liberty and resistance to working-class and poor people everywhere. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Part 1 covers the historical and economic background, the different eras of piracy in the golden age, about life at sea, how people became pirates. Our patreon supporters can listen to part 2 now early, covering the extent of piracy, how pirates organise themselves, how colonial powers fought them, the decline of pirates, and their legacy today: available here for early listening for our patreon supporters. More information, and eventually a transcript on the webpage for this episode here: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e103-pirates/ Get Marcus's Books:
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| E102: [TEASER] Fireside Chat – Luigi Mangione | 09 Apr 2025 | 00:13:21 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Fireside Chat episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on Patreon. You can listen to the full 65-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e102-fireside-124623473 The date this episode aired, March 19, Luigi Mangione was scheduled to have his first court hearing on federal death penalty charges, accused of assassinating healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. So we sat down for a Fireside Chat about the case, about the US healthcare system, about Mangione and his past, about media and public reactions to the killing, and about historical parallels and differences with past assassinations. Our podcast is brought to you by our Patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Acknowledgements
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| WCL11: Florence Working-Class Literature Festival, part 2 | 12 Mar 2025 | 00:49:46 | |
Part 2 of our double-episode about the Working-Class Literature Festival held every year in Florence, at the former GKN car parts factory, which was taken over by the workers after they were made redundant in 2021. We're joined again by working-class author and one of the main organisers of the festival, Alberto Prunetti, and former GKN worker, Dario Salvetti. We also talk to another two working-class writers who have participated in the festival: Claudia Durastanti, who helps organise the festivals, and Anthony Cartwright, who has attended the last two. In this episode, we discuss what went on at the last two festivals and what made them different from conventional literary events: from the attendees and various events and presentations to the participation of GKN workers not just in logistics but in readings and performances. We also discuss the possibilities for the future of the festival - and for the GKN struggle itself. Full show notes including further reading, photos, a documentary about the GKN struggle, and a full transcript are available on our website: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl10-11-florence-working-class-literature-festival/ Acknowledgements
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| WCL10: Florence Working-Class Literature Festival, part 1 | 05 Mar 2025 | 00:51:27 | |
First of a double-episode podcast about the Working-Class Literature Festival held every year in Florence, at the former GKN car parts factory, which was taken over by the workers after they were made redundant in 2021. In this episode, we talk to working-class author and one of the main organisers of the festival, Alberto Prunetti, as well as former GKN workers Dario Salvetti and Tiziana De Biasio. We discuss the history of the struggle at GKN from the redundancies to the workers' takeover and 'permanent union assembly' at the factory. We also dive into how the idea for the Working-Class Literature Festival at the factory began, and how the first two events were organised (despite repeated attempts at sabotage). Full show notes including further reading, photos, a documentary about the GKN struggle, and a full transcript are available on our website: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl10-11-florence-working-class-literature-festival/ Acknowledgements
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| E101: [TEASER] Radical Reads – ‘Fractured: Race, Class, Gender and the Hatred of Identity Politics’ | 12 Feb 2025 | 00:27:23 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Radical Reads episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 87-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e101-radical-and-120598405 In this episode, we speak to Alex Charnley and Michael Richmond about their excellent book, Fractured: Race, Class, Gender and the Hatred of Identity Politics. The book pushes back against the idea of 'identity politics' as a vaguely defined and universal bogeyman for both left and right-wing politics. Instead, they show how 'identity' is not just a ‘subjective’ idea in people’s heads, but the result of real, material ways the working class is structured according to race, gender, nationality etc by the various divisions of labour, immigration laws, etc. And, as we discuss in the episode, what often gets called ‘identity politics’ is actually an attempt to think through how class functions, and is acted upon, in the reality through which it’s lived. Listen to the full episode here: More information:
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| E100: Vietnam War strike wave, part 2 | 05 Feb 2025 | 00:38:38 | |
With the background of the Vietnam war, rising prices and stagnant wages, workers in the US began to ignore calls to support the war effort and keep working, and instead launch a wave of wildcat strikes in key industries, while women homeworkers fought for lower prices. We tell the story of these struggles in this double podcast episode. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory This is an improved, re-edited version of our original episode 8. In conversation with Jeremy Brecher, author of the excellent book, Strike!, we learn about the support for the war from union officials, the responses from the rank-and-file, and lessons we can learn from them today. In part 2, we look at strikes by postal workers, Teamsters, hospital workers and auto workers, and protests by women homeworkers More information, sources, and eventually a transcript on the webpage for this episode: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e99-vietnam-war-strike-wave/ Acknowledgements
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| E99: Vietnam War strike wave, part 1 | 29 Jan 2025 | 00:39:16 | |
With the background of the Vietnam war, rising prices and stagnant wages, workers in the US began to ignore calls to support the war effort and keep working, and instead launch a wave of wildcat strikes in key industries, while women homeworkers fought for lower prices. We tell the story of these struggles in this double podcast episode. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory This is an improved, re-edited version of our original episode 8. In conversation with Jeremy Brecher, author of the excellent book, Strike!, we learn about the support for the war from union officials, the responses from the rank-and-file, and lessons we can learn from them today. In part 1, we look at the historical background, the positions of the official labour organisations, the growth of the 1960s counterculture, and strikes by mostly Black sanitation workers and bus drivers, and a national wildcat strike of coal miners. More information, sources, and eventually a transcript on the webpage for this episode: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e99-vietnam-war-strike-wave/ Acknowledgements
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| E98: [TEASER] Radical Reads – ‘Jews Don’t Count’ by David Baddiel | 01 Jan 2025 | 00:20:53 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Radical Reads episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 85-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e97-radical-10-116392240 In this episode, we talk to Michael Richmond, a Jewish communist author and anti-racist activist, about David Baddiel's ridiculous book, Jews Don't Count. In this book, Baddiel claims that the key thing about contemporary antisemitism is the left's confusion over it, and how this confusion means that Jews are uniquely excluded from left-wing political discourse and activism. We discuss (and make fun of) Baddiel's book for about an hour and a half covering every aspect of his shallow understanding of racism, whiteness, Jewishness and antisemitism, and why Baddiel should probably get new friends. Listen to the full episode here: More information:
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| E97: [TEASER] Radical Reads – ‘Hezbollah: 10 Things You Need To Know’ | 11 Dec 2024 | 00:19:10 | |
This is a teaser preview of one of our Radical Reads episodes, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 91-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e97-radical-10-116392240 In this episode, we talk to Elia Ayoub, a Lebanese activist and scholar of Palestinian heritage, about his recent article, 'Hezbollah: 10 Things You Need To Know'. In this article, Elia gives a fantastic insight into Hezbollah's origins and its position within the various conflicts and connections that make up politics in the Middle East. We discuss how Hezbollah came out of the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon, the social and class composition of the organisation, and its relationship to other regimes in the Middle East as well as the Lebanese left and social movements. Listen to the full episode here: More info:
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| E96: Bootleg miners, part 2 | 04 Dec 2024 | 00:46:52 | |
During the Great Depression in the US, facing mass job losses and abject poverty, thousands of coal miners in Pennsylvania took direct action and began digging their own mines on company property. We tell their story in this two-part podcast. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory With Mitch Troutman, author of the excellent book, The Bootleg Coal Rebellion: The Pennsylvania Miners Who Seized an Industry, 1925–1942, we learn how these workers and their families fought against company guards, police, coal bosses and the legal system, formed a union, and organised an entire industry – not for profit, but for meeting human needs. We also hear from the miners themselves, in audio recorded by Michael Kozura, and shared with Mitch by Michael’s widow. Part 2 covers attempts to repress the movement, the development of bootleg mining as a major industry, the involvement of women and children in the movement, and miners’ collaboration with truck drivers. More information
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| E95: Bootleg miners, part 1 | 27 Nov 2024 | 00:43:27 | |
During the Great Depression in the US, facing mass job losses and abject poverty, thousands of coal miners in Pennsylvania took direct action and began digging their own mines on company property. We tell their story in this two-part podcast. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory With Mitch Troutman, author of the excellent book, The Bootleg Coal Rebellion: The Pennsylvania Miners Who Seized an Industry, 1925–1942, we learn how these workers and their families fought against company guards, police, coal bosses and the legal system, formed a union, and organised an entire industry – not for profit, but for meeting human needs. We also hear from the miners themselves, in audio recorded by Michael Kozura, and shared with Mitch by Michael’s widow. Part 1 covers the historical background, the Depression, the process of mining, mine workers and struggles, and the beginnings of the bootleg coalmining movement. Get an exclusive early listen to part 2, without ads, by supporting us on patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/115463700 More information
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| E94: [TEASER] E94: Radical Reads w/ Jasper Bernes – ‘If We Burn’ | 13 Nov 2024 | 00:16:37 | |
This is a teaser preview of our first Radical Read, made exclusively for our supporters on patreon. You can listen to the full 68-minute episode without ads and support our work at https://www.patreon.com/posts/e94-radical-w-if-113750155 First of our new series, Radical Reads, in which we team up with Jasper Bernes to discuss Vincent Bevins’ 2023 book, If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution. Welcome to ‘Radical Reads’, the second of our two new series of Patreon-only content.In Radical Reads, we hope to discuss political texts – both old and new – that have either influenced us here at WCH, or texts that we generally think that people involved in radical and working-class movements should be engaging with, discussing, and using to inform their activism. Our Radical Read for this episode is Vincent Bevins’ If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution, which we discuss with Jasper Bernes, author of an excellent article in the Brooklyn Rail, ‘What Was To Be Done? Protest and Revolution in the 2010s’. It’s a review and critique book and when we read Jasper’s article we felt that it really put into words some of the thoughts we had about Bevins’ work.In our conversation with Jasper, we covered not only what we see as some of the main issues with Bevins’ book, but also broader questions around social movements, revolution, the threat of cooptation, and what it means to win. And as Jasper says, understanding what we can learn from the movements of the 2010s is one of the most important questions we can be thinking about right now. In that sense, then, If We Burn is a valuable contribution in starting that conversation, even if we have some disagreements with its conclusions. Listen to the full episode here: More information
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| WCL9: Chinese migrant worker poetry, part 3 | 24 Oct 2024 | 00:36:00 | |
The final episode of our three-part series about migrant worker poetry in China. We speak to Maghiel van Crevel, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature at Leiden University. Maghiel has travelled extensively in China, meeting with and writing about the work of Chinese migrant worker poets. In this episode, we look at questions of censorship in China and the importance of unofficial publications for the spread of migrant worker poetry (not to mention the wider Chinese poetry scene as well). We also discuss how some working-class writers come to be left out of what is considered 'working-class writing' with a specific look at the work of gay migrant worker poet, Mu Cao. Full show notes including sources, further reading, photos, films and eventually a transcript are here on our website: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl-7-9-chinese-migrant-worker-poetry/ Acknowledgements
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| WCL8: Chinese migrant worker poetry, part 2 | 17 Oct 2024 | 00:35:08 | |
Part 2 of our three-part series about migrant worker poetry in China. We speak to Maghiel van Crevel, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature at Leiden University. Maghiel has travelled extensively in China, meeting with and writing about the work of Chinese migrant worker poets. In this episode, we look at the work of the Migrant Worker Home, a self-organised space run by and for migrant workers on the outskirts of Beijing, which taught migrant workers about their rights, hosted a museum, and ran literary and cultural groups, until they were evicted last year. We also look at two more migrant worker poets, including Xu Lizhi, whose suicide in 2014 propelled him to global fame. Full show notes including sources, further reading, photos, films and eventually a transcript are here on our website: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl-7-9-chinese-migrant-worker-poetry/ Acknowledgements
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| WCL7: Chinese migrant worker poetry, part 1 | 10 Oct 2024 | 00:45:33 | |
First of the three-part series on migrant worker poetry in China. In these episodes, we speak to Maghiel van Crevel, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature at Leiden University. Maghiel has travelled extensively in China meeting with and writing about the work of Chinese migrant worker poets. In this episode, we discuss the concept of the 'migrant worker' in China, and how it relates to the internal hukou system and China's relationship to global capitalism. We also discuss what we mean by 'migrant worker/migrant worker poetry' in relation to the Chinese words dagong and dagong shige. We also look at two migrant worker poets, Wu Xia and Zheng Xiaoqiong. Full show notes including sources, further reading, photos, films and eventually a transcript are here on our website: https://workingclasshistory.com/podcast/wcl-7-9-chinese-migrant-worker-poetry/ Acknowledgements
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| E92: South Korea 1987, part 2 | 24 Sep 2024 | 00:44:20 | |
Second of a double podcast episode about the South Korean movements of 1987 which overthrew the US-backed military dictatorship and won big improvements for workers. In these episodes we speak with Kim Jin-sook and Hong Seung Ha about their experiences of the June Democratic Struggle, and the Great Workers’ Struggle which immediately followed it. Our podcast is brought to you by our patreon supporters. Our supporters fund our work, and in return get exclusive early access to podcast episodes, ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, free and discounted merchandise and other content. Join us or find out more at patreon.com/workingclasshistory Part 2 covers the Great Workers’ Struggle, the massive strike wave, the first elections after the fall of the dictatorship, and its legacy today. More information
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