The dark days of 1970s Leeds. Leeds could be a pretty bleak place in the 1970s. Along with the rest of the country, we had countless strikes, power cuts, and the three day week. The strong unions of the era led a decade of unprecedented industrial unrest across Britain. I remember vividly the power going off and no T.V. We had to sit in the house that was lit only by candlelight. We also had the firemen on strike. The Green Goddess vehicles were to be seen on the streets of Leeds. These emergency cold war vehicles of the 1950s added to the feeling of war time and ration Britain. To add to these dark days we had the Yorkshire Ripper striking fear across the City. We also had the long hot summer of 1976 when standpipes were fixed in the street. I recall having to go outside to get your water in a bucket. The emergency drought minister Denis Howell invented the slogan Share a bath with someone The B.B.C sitcom The Rag Trade featured a belligerent shop steward called Paddy. She would take advantage of the slightest opportunity to call a strike. Her trademark was blowing a whistle and shouting Everybody out! The Strawbs were in the 1973 charts with the union power song Part of the Union And of course we had Citizen Smith, and John Lennon chanting the power to the people mantra! Whats your memories of 1970s Leeds?
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 12:49:49 +0000
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