Big Flame was a revolutionary socialist group with a feminist, anti-racist, internationalist vision that emphasized mass class engagement and prioritized non-sectarian, non-authoritarian community organizing and political methods. It started in Liverpool in 1970 and had groups in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Nottingham and London before dissolving around 1984. The group got their name from the title of a play written by Jim Allen in 1969, which was set during a fictional strike on Liverpool docks and aired on the BBC.
The Working Class Movement Library is home to a Big Flame archive and holds copies of their newspaper, Big Flame and journal Revolutionary Socialism.
The grant provides us with the opportunity to deliver a project focused on engaging young individuals and local working-class activists in exploring, researching, and enhancing accessibility to our Big Flame archive. Together, participants will explore what Big Flame was and what it can tell us about organising today. With the support of the grant, we will recruit two dedicated staff members to deliver the project and we will work in partnership with RECLAIM, a charity dedicated to empowering working-class young people.
The grant will also help us to make links with other archives and activists who might hold material about Big Flame and work with them to bring their work to a wider audience. Additionally, a portion of the grant will be allocated towards refurbishing our temporary exhibition space, enhancing its capacity to showcase our archive collection in a more impactful and accessible manner. Through these efforts, we will create an inclusive platform that celebrates the legacy of Big Flame while inspiring contemporary activism.
The project will culminate in an exhibition at the Working Class Movement Library in 2025, newly digitized archive material, oral histories, and a public events programme.
Sam Ingleson, Chair of Trustees at the Working Class Movement Library said:
“We would like to thank the National Lottery Heritage Fund for investing in the Working Class Movement Library and helping us to build new audiences for our fantastic collection. This project will make a big difference to the library and our ability to deliver creative experiences for people from our community”.
Belinda Scarlett, Library Manager at the Working Class Movement Library said,
“We are hugely grateful to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for supporting our project and our vision to make the Working Class Movement Library open and relevant to all working class people. We are also very excited to be working in partnership with RECLAIM and to co-create an exhibition with young people”.
Everyone at the Working Class Movement Library would like to say thank you to National Lottery players.
