INTRODUCTION TO ON-LINE VERSION FOREWORD This Bibliography is the outcome of about 16 years work
researching in collections and libraries (often before on-line catalogues
existed); corresponding with individuals and, more recently, using the
internet. I have rooted around attics, basements and garages (Bert Pearce’s
garage had the biggest collection!) for many happy hours, rarely without
finding anything. If more private collections turn up, I will be happy
to continue searching for missed items to improve this bibliography. So
please let me know of any errors and omissions. I can be contacted at:
davecope@phonecoop.coop. There are some technical factors to do with the switch from print format to on-line version which have slightly altered the details that can be listed. Cross-references between entries have been lost - the “Comments” field sometimes contain an entry number that might be otherwise inexplicable. But there are the clear advantages of speed of access and the ability to search for keywords. Pseudonyms were originally listed in an index showing real names; these can be found in the larger list of Political Pseudonyms on my web site (www.leftontheshelfbooks.co.uk). There was a much longer Introduction originally, but we have kept some key chapters such as the lovingly researched ones by Andy Croft on “The Communist Party in Literature” and Bert Hogenkamp on “Communist Party And Film” plus mine on “The CP on the Stage” and “Artists and the CP”. There may be a printed version in the future, depending on the response to this on-line one. A key point I did discuss in the original Introduction
was the danger that such a bibliography contains in its inevitable isolation
of CP members from the rest of the labour movement and society in general
and a concomitant danger of inflating the importance of the CP. I have
included references to individuals who were in the CP for even the shortest
period – thus just in the realm of literature there are references
to Graham Green who may have been in the CP for one month but was hardly
a key figure in the British communist movement. On the other hand, Sean
O’Casey was on the board of the Daily Worker, but not a member;
Rex Warner sold the Daily Worker but never actually joined so these two
do not have entries. Famous figures will be found, but so will many minor
or unknown ones; this “rescue” of lesser activists or members
was a conscious feature of this project and the reader/user can decide
for themselves how significant or otherwise any individual was to British
communism or communism to that individual. Thanks are due to many people for help in big and small
ways – forgive me if I’ve missed you out. I’m only sorry
that the time spent on it means that some are not alive to see the result
they contributed to. INTRODUCTION - TECHNICAL CP Publications. Congress documents. A word of warning about the date of some Congress material. If the congress was held at the end of a year, then the report may actually have been published at the very beginning of the following year, but to avoid confusion I have occasionally listed them in the year of the Congress itself. For instance, the Report for the 8th Congress of 1926 came out in 1927, but would have got confused with the Report of the 9th Congress held in 1927 which also was published in 1927.
CP Local Publications For clarity, I have only used the District names that
were in existence from the later period of the CP's existence. As in local
government, there were organisational changes at various times: for instance,
the Lancashire and Cheshire District became the North West District and
in the late 1980s Merseyside finally achieved its long-sought after District
status. For the purposes of this bibliography, I have only used the North
West District. These Districts do correspond to the period when most pamphlets
were produced and to boundaries that will be widely understood by any
reader. Where I have "reclassified" a pamphlet by a smaller
District into a larger one I have always given the original District as
publisher followed by the branch if applicable. All are published by the District Committee unless stated; when published by Areas or Branches, I have listed the name that appears on the pamphlet. In some early cases, up to 1936, the organisation is called "local" or "group" rather than branch. Undoubtedly there remains more District material to uncover, especially relating to congresses; the most important are Reports of Work of the retiring DC and of course the Congress Report itself. These could appear in a variety of forms, not always for sale. National Magazines A surprising feature is the lack of national industrial journals - this is compensated for by the numerous rank and file papers which lie outside the scope of this bibliography (e.g. those produced by the NMM, and later papers like Flashlight, Building Workers' Charter, Seamen's Charter, etc. in all of which individual CP members and organisations would have played important roles from writing to printing and selling). The journals published by Advisory Committees (of which
there was an There was a group of duplicated journals in the late 1940s
and early 1950s which reflected the CPGB's activity in anti-colonial issues;
some were directly published by the Party - the West Indies Newsletter
and the Africa Newsletter - but others were produced by national groups
of foreign Communists often in close collaboration with King Street -
the Malayan Monitor and the Ceylon Newsletter. The Greek Cypriot Communist
community published its own Greek Language weekly, Vema, for many years. First and last known issues are given or the dates of the only ones traced. With each entry I have indicated which journal preceded and followed it, where applicable; but by listing journals alphabetically the relationship between them is not clear, so below is a list of the main national publications showing continuity. Newspapers/official organs: Communist, The [1] 1920-23 (weekly) Reviews (primarily internal): International Press Correspondence 1921-37 (at least weekly)
Theoretical Journals: Women's Journals: A couple of these were not strictly CP publications - see entry for each item. Between August 1942 and August 1944 there was a set of
14 pamphlets that constituted a run of journals dealing with internal
and organisational matters, but presumably paper restrictions meant they
had to be published as “one-offs”. These are listed in National
Publications (but to identify them, the world "Journal" plus
month of issue appears in the entry for each of them):
There are many occasions when the numbering and dating of papers was erratic. Sometimes the phrase "New Series" is used after a gap of years, sometimes after weeks and sometimes after a title change! This is particularly the case with the early factory papers
which are a law unto themselves. It is possible that some of them listed
here are one-offs and should be listed in the "Local Publications"
Chapter, but other issues may turn up in the future. Several aspects of
these factory papers can be difficult to identify: the District is often
not evident (I have had to resort to guessing with a couple of them) and
the same applies to the year. The industry may not be clear; this is partly
because they were sometimes produced in response to national calls for
campaigns (e.g. on the perceived threat of war in 1929, or on unemployment):
in these cases the content may be national and not refer to a specific
industry. It is also worth pointing out that occasionally factory papers
from different branches could be almost identical in content - there were
some attempts to co-ordinate them. In some extreme cases, Communist papers
were produced by non-members – John Mahon in his Report of Factory
Groups Conference in November 1926 said one paper was produced by contacts
who were not yet in the Party. There is a list of factory papers near the end of this Introduction that I have found references to but have been unable to trace. YCL Publications / Magazines The YCL was always a very small organisation, but it mirrored its parent body in publishing a wide range of material, and also in its structure, which meant there had to be District Congresses with the usual formal publications. The leading body changed its name several times, so it
may appear as the National Committee, the Executive Committee, or the
General Council. Each issue of Cogito, the YCL’s theoretical/discussion
journal, was usually devoted to a particular topic and is, exceptionally,
listed separately - it is more like a series of separate pamphlets. Students National and local publications are listed together and magazines are also included. These could have had a separate section in the Magazine chapter, but the CP student branches had more in common with each other than with local CP branches in the same District. In some cases, both pamphlets and magazines were published by more than one student branch. As with the YCL, an element of disorganisation is common with dating of publications. I have not listed the internal Reports of Annual Conference of Communist Students, apart from 1951 which is substantial and was priced for sale. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of entries date from
1968 and the following decade. Daily Worker / Morning Star This section consists, in chronological order, of all publications by the Daily Worker and then the Morning Star, plus associated organisations – the Daily Worker League, the People’s Press Printing Society etc. The entry for the Daily Worker itself appears under National CP Magazines. From 22 January 1941 to 26 August 1942, the Daily Worker was banned. I have listed the 11 “alternative” issues that appeared during this time: the titles are followed by an asterisk. According to an article by Bert Baker in the Morning Star on 4 January 1993, there was supposed to be one of these issued each month in the latter half of 1941. They were printed by Dorchester and City Newspapers which had been bought by the CP in 1940 in case of production problems in London. I have listed all programmes from Daily Worker rallies and anniversary celebrations that I could trace – national and local. There was always an annual event, almost certainly with a programme, in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, so a lot remain to be located. They are very interesting for what they say about the cultural life of the CP (e.g. see DW Gala Programme of 1946), which is why they are listed separately, rather than giving them a collective entry, which is what I have done with the DW Diary, DW Children’s Annual and DW Football Annual. One source of interesting information, excluded because not published for sale, is the Annual Report of the PPPS – especially in the later years during the struggle for control over the Morning Star. Modern Books Modern Books was the small company set up by the CPGB
in 1929 to publish material by the Communist International in the UK.
Most were published between 1929 and 1936, but the imprint was resurrected
in 1939 and 1940 mainly for Comintern views on the war before the German
invasion of the USSR. About the CPGB Books and Pamphlets This was the hardest section of the bibliography in terms of having to decide on inclusion or not. The criteria for inclusion had to be flexible. Several autobiographies and biographies of people who were CP members have been omitted if there are not enough references to the Party to justify inclusion (e.g. Tom Wintringham’s English Captain and Bob Clark’s No Boots to my Feet, both important books about CP members in the Spanish Civil War). Another example is Power in a Trade Union by L James: this has a long analysis about a strike involving Benny Rothman's victimisation - but no mention of his being in the CP (and this was not the reason for his victimisation). But other biographies are included even if the subject was not in the CP but if there are sufficient references to the CP, e.g. Zilliacus: A Life for Peace and Socialism. I have listed all entries from the Dictionary of Labour Biography of members of the CPGB up to and including Volume 11, but as this reference work is so accessible, I have not annotated the entries. Articles I have excluded articles from newspapers and, with the very occasional exception, weekly magazines - basically because of the huge amount of extra work but also because these articles tend to be short and topical (e.g. at time of national Congresses, during industrial disputes). I have tended to exclude articles that deal with theoretical issues and debates that may include references to the CP – I have concentrated on those about the CP’s activity and organisation. Inprecorr articles reporting interventions by CP members at C.I. conferences and plenums are only included if there is substantial reference to CP activity in Britain. Interestingly, both Inprecorr and Communist International have a high proportion of articles on the CPGB compared to other countries with larger CPs: in 1935, Reg Bishop had more articles in Inprecorr than any other individual. The Communist International is another magazine from which many articles have been listed. Initially the "Official Organ of the ECCI", it was later published from King Street and then by Modern Books. Its numbering is chaotic; not only was the numbering different from the Russian edition but there were special C.I. Congress issues, many were not dated and there were several series; it comes as no surprise when an editorial note in December 1931 states: "We ask our readers not to be misled by the nominal printed date of publication"! No copies of Communist International appear to exist for the last quarter of 1928: I can found no explanation - perhaps there were legal problems with importing them. The Communist International quoted is the English edition – for a period there was a separate American edition. The Communist International was not the only journal
with numbering problems. The SWP’s Socialist Review is a major culprit
– to the extent that they produced an index cum explanatory pamphlet!
I have been selective when it comes to obituaries and book reviews; included are important ones from, for example, The Society for the Study of Labour History Bulletin even when short. Obituaries can be useful, even if short, as they may contain important biographical information and bibliographies (see those in Labour Monthly and SSLH). Some obituaries of members of the CP contain no reference to the Party – these have been omitted. Occasionally with short reviews and obituaries I have omitted the title of the piece and just given the title of the book plus author, and stated "Review" or given the name of the individual and stated "Obituary", but I have never done this with major review articles. I have been strict about not including material prior to 1920, and this does mean some of the discussion leading up to the formation of the CP is excluded; one series of articles in Sylvia Pankhurst’s Workers’ Dreadnought from 1919-20, entitled “Towards the Communist Party” is worthy of mention. This chapter does include entries for a few newspapers
which are considered to have enough articles in most issues to justify
inclusion generically rather than having to list every one; these include:
The Reasoner, Vanguard, The Leninist, RPC Bulletin. Sometimes a sequence of articles is given only one entry – i.e. for the first in a series. Reference is usually made in the notes to any subsequent articles. Finally, it is worth noting that I have been unable to
trace particular issues of some journals, so either the information given
is incomplete (usually the number of pages) or I have not listed the article
in question (e.g. Gertrude Goddden’s article on “Progress
on the Communist Front” in Catholic World No. clxix, 1939) as it
may not be about the CPGB. Some copies of journals are simply missing
from all the national libraries in the UK and from other likely libraries
(English Review, October 1950). Sometimes (as in a few of the bound volumes
of journals in the MML), articles have been cut out: whether this was
for legal reasons and applied to all imported copies, or is simply vandalism
by a user is not always clear. Theses This is the one area where I have not examined the texts.
Most of titles of the theses are self-explanatory, but some may not have
substantial references to the CP and perhaps should not be included. And
there are certainly others not listed that do. OTHER BIBLIOGRAPHIES Some of the following studies have entries in this bibliography, but for the sake of clarity, I am listing the most important ones here. ---- Labour Party Bibliography Labour Party 1967 (?) 96pp THE COMMUNIST PARTY IN LITERATURE by Andy Croft No political organisation in Britain ever attracted so many distinguished writers as the Communist Party. Kingsley Amis, Robert Bolt, Elizabeth Bowen, Graham Greene, Doris Lessing, Iris Murdoch, John Prebble, Arnold Wesker, Raymond Williams and - for two weeks - Stephen Spender, were all Party members in their youth. Others who wrote their best work while they were Communists include Patrick Hamilton, Hamish Henderson, Cecil Day Lewis, Joan Littlewood, Ewan McColl, Hugh MacDiarmid, Edgell Rickword, Randall Swingler and Sylvia Townsend Warner. Moreover, a number of writers - notably Fred Ball, Len Doherty, Harry Heslop, Lewis Jones, Dave Wallis, Ted Willis and Roger Woddis - may be said to have learned to write while they were in the Party. Among Party leaders, Wal Hannington once wrote an unpublished novel, Willie Gallacher published a book of poetry and Palme Dutt a play about Dimitrov. Unsurprisingly then, the Communist Party and individual Communists make a number of notable appearances in twentieth-century fiction. Arthur Seaton votes Communist in Alan Silittoe’s Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1958) ; the Party’s principal publishing house, Lawrence and Wishart, turns up as ‘Boggis and Stone’ in Anthony Powell’s The Acceptance World (1955) ; the gamekeeper in the first draft of DH Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover is secretary of a Party cell in Sheffield. The distinguished Cambridge crystallographer - and life-long Communist - JD Bernal appears in CP Snow’s The Search (1934). The character of Guy Pringle in Olivia Manning’s Balkan Trilogy is based on her husband, the legendary ‘Red’ BBC radio producer Reggie Smith. The ‘finely featured’ NUWM leader assaulted by the police in Walter Greenwood’s best-selling Love on the Dole (1934) was the young Communist Eddie Frow, later AEU Manchester District Secretary, bibliophile and historian. Arthur Seaton in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1958) attends a factory-gate meeting addressed by John Peck - later a Communist councillor in Nottingham. CP National Organiser Dave Cook is one of the main characters in Alison Fell’s Tricks of the Light (2003). There is a comic portrait of Palme Dutt in Nigel Williams’s Star Turn (1985). And in Goodbye to Berlin (1939) Christopher Isherwood based Sally Bowles, the most famous character in 1930’s English fiction, on the Daily Worker film-critic Jean Ross. For many novelists membership of the Communist Party was once a short-hand for Bohemianism, as in Howard Spring’s Shabby Tiger (1934) or William McIlvanney’s The Kiln (1996) ; the rock-star narrator of Ian Banks Espedair Street (1987) gives away large sums of money to the Party and the ANC. Elsewhere, Communists were frequently represented in British fiction as humourless and uncompanionable zealots, as in George Orwell’s Coming Up for Air (1939), Cecil Day Lewis’s Child of Misfortune (1939), JB Priestley’s Daylight on Saturday (1943) and Evelyn Waugh’s Unconditional Surrender (1961). The figure of the sad and solitary British Communist working for Soviet intelligence is a variation on this - Sawbridge in CP Snow’s The New Men (1954), Halliday in Graham Greene’s The Human Factor (1978), and George Blake himself in Ian McEwan’s The Innocent (1990). But on the whole, whether they are knaves like Illidge in Aldous Huxley’s Point Counter Point (1929), fools like Lord Erridge in Anthony Powell’s Casanova’s Chinese Restaurant (1960) or sympathetic characters like those in Storm Jameson’s None Turn Back (1936), William Golding’s Free Fall (1959), and William McIlvanney’s Doherty (1975) British Communists were usually represented in fiction as lonely representatives of an idea rather than members of a real political organisation. The following list is not therefore a comprehensive record of every reference in fiction to the British Communist Party, but a selection of those in which membership of the Party or the actions of Party shape the narrative, characters or argument of the novel in important ways. Jim Allen, Days of Hope (Futura, 1975) Brian Almond, Gild the Brass Farthing (Lawrence and Wishart,
1963) James Barke, Major Operation (Collins, 1936) James Barke, The Land of the Leal (Collins, 1939) Alexander Baron, Seeing Life (Collins, 1958) Ralph Bates, Lean Men (Peter Davies, 1934) Anthony Bertram, Men Adrift (Chapman and Hall, 1935) Simon Blumenfeld, Jew Boy (Jonathan Cape, 1935) Robert Bonnar, Stewartie (Lawrence and Wishart, 1964) Alec Brown, Daughters of Albion (Boriswood, 1935) Alec Brown, Breakfast in Bed (Boriswood, 1937) Arthur Calder-Marshall, Pie in the Sky (Jonathan Cape,
1937) Cecil Day Lewis, Starting Point (Jonathan Cape, 1937) Len Doherty, A Miner’s Sons (Lawrence and Wishart,
1955) Len Doherty, The Man Beneath (Lawrence and Wishart, 1957) Peter Elstob, The Armed Rehearsal (Secker and Warburg,
1964) Lewis Grassic Gibbon [Leslie Mitchell], Grey Granite (Jarrolds,
1934) Willie Goldman, Light in the Dust (Grey Walls Press, 1944) Graham Greene, It’s a Battlefield (Heinemann, 1934) Frank Griffin, October Day (Secker and Warburg, 1939) Bruce Hamilton The Brighton Murder Trial : Rex v Rhodes
(Boriswood, 1937) Bruce Hamilton, Traitor’s Way (Cresset, 1938) Margot Heinemann, The Adventurers (Lawrence and Wishart,
1960) Harold Heslop, Last Cage Down (Wishart, 1935) Jack Hilton, Laugh at Polonius (Jonathan Cape, 1942) Barry Hines, The Heart of It (Michael Joseph, 1994) William Holt, Backwaters (Nicholson and Watson, 1934) Gwyn Jones, Times Like These (Gollancz, 1936) Jack Jones, Rhondda Roundabout (Hamish Hamilton, 1934) Lewis Jones, We Live (Lawrence and Wishart, 1939) Mervyn Jones, Today the Struggle (Quartet, 1978) Dave Lambert, He Must So Live (Lawrence and Wishart, 1956) Dave Lambert, No Time for Sleeping (1958) John le Carre, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (Gollancz,
1963) Doris Lessing, The Golden Notebook (Michael Joseph, 1962) Jack Lindsay, We Shall Return (Dakers, 1942) Jack Lindsay, Hullo Stranger (Dakers, 1945) Jack Lindsay, Betrayed Spring (Bodley Head, 1953) Jack Lindsay, Rising Tide (Bodley Head, 1953) Jack Lindsay, Moment of Choice (Bodley Head, 1955) Ian McEwan, Black Dogs (Jonathan Cape, 1992) Ethel Mannin, Comrade O Comrade (Jarrolds, 1947) Naomi Mitchison, We Have Been Warned (Constable, 1935) Iris Morley, Nothing But Propaganda (Peter Davies, 1946) Leslie Paul, Men in May (Gollancz, 1936) Jim Phelan, Ten-a-Penny People (Gollancz, 1938) AP Roley [George Chandler] Revolt (Arthur Barker, 1933) Herbert Smith, A Field of Folk (Lawrence and Wishart,
1957) Herbert Smith, A Morning to Remember (Lawrence and Wishart,
1962) John Sommerfield, May Day (Lawrence and Wishart, 1936) John Sommerfield, Trouble in Porter Street (Key Books/Fore
Publications, 1938) John Sommerfield, The Imprinted (London Magazine Editions,
1977) Philip Toynbee, The Savage Days (Hamish Hamilton, 1937) Geoffrey Trease, Missing from Home (Lawrence and Wishart,
1937) Edward Upward, Journey to the Border (Hogarth, 1938) Edward Upward, In the Thirties (Heinemann, 1962) Edward Upward, The Rotten Elements (Heinemann, 1969) Gordon Wardman, Crispin’s Spur (Secker and Warburg,
1985) Raymond Williams, Loyalties (Hogarth Press, 1989) TC Worsley, Fellow Travellers (London Magazine Editions,
1971)
Unsurprisingly there are few plays that deal with the
CP or CP members. There is nothing as focused or as significant as Trevor
Griffiths' The Party which is based on Gerry Healy and the Workers' Revolutionary
Party. There is room - though limited - for some research here, but most
plays must surely be covered by two key comprehensive books on left theatre:
Colin Chambers The Story of Unity Theatre and Steve Nicholson British
Theatre and the Red Peril - The Portrayal of Communism, 1917-1945 though
the former only deals with one theatre company and the latter is not limited
to portrayal of Communists in Britain. Chambers is useful for actors who
were in the CP.
The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) as such only
commissioned a handful of films, including two election broadcasts that
it was allowed to transmit on television during the 1966 and 1970 campaigns.
But from the catalogue of films listed below it can be gathered that the
Party was instrumental in the production of a much greater number. The
majority of these were produced by organisations that were established
at the instigation of the CPGB or at least endorsed by it. Without fail
their first aim was to secure the distribution and exhibition of films
from the Socialist part of the world. British-made films were generally
seen as an extra. Thus Atlas Film produced its own newsreel WORKERS' TOPICAL
NEWS as a supplement to the Soviet feature films that it was distributing.
This film company was established in 1929 to cater to the needs of the
workers' film societies, affiliated to the Federation of Workers' Film
Societies, which were emerging in London and a number of other industrial
centres. Only three issues of WORKERS' TOPICAL NEWS were produced in 1930-31,
as the movement petered out when the supply from the Soviet Union temporarily
dried up and societies were faced with increasing interference by local
authorities. The answer was the use of non-inflammable sub-standard (16mm)
film, as the 1909 Cinematograph Act only applied to inflammable film.
The flourishing of the left film movement in the second half of the thirties
was largely due to this anomaly. A crucial role was played by Kino, a
film group set up in the autumn of 1933 by some members of the Workers'
Theatre Movement. After waging numerous battles with the authorities Kino
(the Russian word for cinema) won the right to screen a 16mm print of
BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN, Eisenstein's famous film that had been banned by
the British Board of Film Censors for its revolutionary content. Like
its predecessor Kino produced a number of WORKERS' NEWSREELS (1934-35),
but it also had a try at fiction resulting in the 'featurette' BREAD.
In the course of 1934 Kino's production department merged with the Workers'
Camera Club to form the Workers' Film and Photo League. Adapting the Comintern's
Popular Front policy the League dropped the epithet Workers' by the end
of 1935. In the second half of the thirties a rift would develop between
Kino which adhered strictly to the Party line and believed in professionalism
and the Film and Photo League which advocated the political unity of the
Left and cherished amateurism. By that time another organisation made
its presence felt: the Progressive Film Institute (PFI). Set up by the
well-known Communist zoologist/journalist/film maker Ivor Montagu as an
outfit that would pick up the crumbs left by Kino and the commercial distributors,
the PFI not only distributed 35mm prints of Soviet films but it also started
producing films. DEFENCE OF MADRID (1936), a film record of Republican
Madrid under siege, turned out to be the campaign film the Left had been
waiting for. It was screened all over Britain, raising some £ 6,000
for Spanish relief. Montagu would return to Spain in 1938, resulting in
another batch of films on the war. In 1939 Montagu made an election film
for the CPGB, entitled PEACE AND PLENTY after Harry Pollitt's main report
at the XVth Party Congress. The film was a brilliant indictment of the
policies of the Chamberlain Government, but first the Molotov-Ribbentrop
Pact and then the outbreak of the Second World War made it redundant. The following list contains films that have some link with the British Communist movement: because they were made for or by the CPGB or produced by an organisation that was established or endorsed by the Party. This is therefore not a list of any documentary or feature film, in the making of which Communist film technicians were involved. Apart from the films at the BFI National Archive, including the ETV collection, films have been included from the collections of the Scottish ScreenArchive and some smaller depositories. A brief summary is provided on each of the ninety odd titles listed below. Unless indicated the films are black and white. The running times are approximate. Literature: Addresses:
AGAINST IMPERIALIST WAR - MAY DAY 1932 [WORKERS' TOPICAL
NEWS NO.4] (1932) - a 15 minute newsreel of the 1932 May Day demonstration,
showing the marchers from various parts of London, the speakers in Hyde
Park (among them Harry Pollitt) and the march towards the Japanese Embassy,
near the Portman Hotel. ANTI-FASCIST DEMONSTRATIONS 1937 - a silent film (2 mins.)
composed of footage of various anti-fascist demonstrations in Paris, Great
Britain and the Soviet Union. BEHIND THE SPANISH LINES (1938) - a 20 minute film, produced
by Ivor Montagu's Progressive Film Institute, showing how democracy works
in Spain and how Italy and Germany are making a farce of Non-Intervention. BREAD (1934) - a short fiction film (12 mins.) about an
unemployed man who in despair steals a loaf of bread, is caught and sentenced
to jail, while students arrested for spilling fruit off a cart are let
off with a warning; the film, produced by Kino, ends with documentary
footage of the 1934 Hunger March. BRITAIN 1935 - JUBILEE YEAR [JUBILEE] (1935) - a silent
film (10 mins.) made by the brothers H.A. and R. Green, contrasting the
East End Jubilee tour of King and Queen, covered by batteries of newsreel
cameras, with the day-to-day East End with its slums, poverty and dole
queues that the newsreel cameras never showed. BUSMEN'S HOLIDAY (1937) - silent colour footage of the
London busmen's contingent in the May Day parade (the London busmen were
on strike against the wishes of the TGWU leadership); Bert Papworth is
shown; followed by a black and white reportage of an outing by the busmen
to a seaside resort where they are entertained by Tom Mann; total running
time is 7 mins. CINE HOLIDAY (1955) - a film shot by Hugh Dunlop showing
members of the Glasgow-based Dawn Cine Group discussing scenes of their
unrealised film LOST TREASURES and acting them out. CLAUDE BERRIDGE FUNERAL (13 JULY 1966) - silent footage
shot by Manny Yospa for ETV Ltd., showing the crowd assembling in Golders
Green, the cortege on the move, people entering the crematorium; among
the palbearers are Wolf Wayne, Bill Jones, Dennis Goodwin, Bill Alexander,
John Mahon and Pat Devine; other well-known Communists are present. COLLET'S ADVERT FOR SOVIET UNION MAGAZINE (early 1960s)
- a short colour advert (5 mins.) for the magazine Soviet Union, sponsored
by its distributor Collet's and shot at Stanley Forman's North London
home by Peter Robinson and Peter Weingreen. CONSTRUCTION (1935) - a short film (10 mins.), directed
by building worker Alf Garrard, about the various activities on the Exeter
House building site in Putney, including the re-enactment of a strike
over the sacking of a labourer's steward which had taken place earlier
on the site. CP CONGRESS 1963 - silent footage (10 mins.) of the Congress
held at St. Pancras Town Hall shot by Manny Yospa for ETV Ltd., showing
such well-known Communists as Willie Gallacher and Bob Stewart, with Frank
Stanley in the chair and John Gollan delivering the main report. CP ELECTION FILM 1963 - this film (10 mins.) also known
as OUR LIFE IN OUR HANDS was made by ETV Ltd. as a party political broadcast
for the 1964 elections but never transmitted as the CPGB was unable to
field the required 50 candidates; it features John Gollan, who discusses
party policies and introduces the candidates Gladys Easton, Frank Stanley,
Julian Tudor-Hart and Jimmy Reid. CP ELECTION FILM 1970 - John Gollan addresses the nation
in a party political broadcast (5 mins.) made by ETV Ltd. for the 1970
elections; it ends with the slogan 'Go one better - Vote Socialist'. CP 15TH CONGRESS 1938 [XVTH CONGRESS FILM] - a silent
film (10 mins.) made by Ivor Montagu's Progressive Film Institute of the
CPGB Congress in Birmingham that was overshadowed by the Münich crisis;
well-known Communists such as Pollitt, Hannington, Gallacher, Mann and
Gollan are shown on the stage of the town hall that had been especially
decorated for the occasion; A PLANT IN THE SUN is performed by Unity Theatre
and Tom Mann leads the community singing. CP HOME POLICY [THE HOUSING PROBLEM] (1955) - a silent
film (8 mins.) exposing Tory and Labour housing policies, to be screened
by the Communist Party cinema van during the 1955 local and Parliamentary
election campaigns. [CPGB DEMONSTRATION CA. 1953] - colour footage (10 mins.)
shot by Lewis McLeod showing the London District contingent leaving Hyde
Park; Peter Kerrigan is seen among the marchers; Harry Pollitt addresses
the crowd on Trafalgar Square. CPGB DEMONSTRATION, LONDON 13 JUNE 1971 - silent colour
footage (10 mins.) of a CPGB demonstration against the policies of the
Heath Government; the film ends with John Gollan addressing the demonstrators
on Trafalgar Square. CRIME AGAINST MADRID (1937) - a CNT film (30 mins.) re-edited
with other material. DAILY WORKER EDITORIAL BOARD (1948) - footage (5 mins.)
shot by Pathé News in 1948 but never included in its newsreel;
Daily Worker staff and offices in their new building. DAILY WORKER TRAILER (1938) - a short silent advertising
film (3 mins.) for the Daily Worker. DECISION - this film on the Inner Party Democracy congress
held in September 1977 was made by Roger Graef for Granada Television. DEFENCE OF MADRID (1936) - silent film (50 mins.) made
in Madrid in November 1936 by Ivor Montagu and Norman McLaren as the Progressive
Film Institute's contribution to raise money for Spanish Aid; in the first
Part the history of the war is explained, with its consequences: Italian
airplanes bombing Madrid, the destruction of human lives and historic
buildings, the rescue work; in Part II the formation of the Republican
army is shown, the front line near the University City, the food queues
and the evacuation of women and children; the last Part shows the arrival
of a Soviet food ship and the activities of the International Brigade,
with footage of Ludwig Renn and Hanns Beimler; Eleanor Rathbone and Christopher
Addison add their comments (in captions). DINNER FOR AMBATIELOS - silent footage (10 mins.) of a
dinner held to celebrate the release from jail and arrival in the UK of
Greek Communist Tony Ambatielos. ELECTION 1966 - John Gollan addresses the nation in a
party political broadcast (5 mins.) made by ETV Ltd. for the 1966 elections. ELECTION 1966 - John Gollan introduces three CPGB candidates:
Irene Swann, Frank Stanley and Tony Chater; this party political broadcast
(10 mins.) was not transmitted. FASCISTS DEFEATED AT CABLE STREET (1936) - silent footage
(5 mins.) of anti-fascist campaigns in 1936 (poor quality). [XVTH CONGRESS FILM] see CP 15TH CONGRESS 1938 FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF LABOUR MONTHLY - silent footage
(10 mins.) of the party to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Labour Monthly
in 1971; with shots of Rajani Palme Dutt and Robin Page Arnott. FIFTY FIGHTING YEARS (1972) - a sound film (45 mins.)
on the history of Labour Monthly and the history of the British Labour
movement in this century; the film was written by Stanley Forman, Ivor
Montagu and Roger Woddis, co-directed by Forman and Roland Bischoff and
made possible by East German financial support; it features Rajani Palme
Dutt and Robin Page Arnott. FREE THAELMANN (1935) - silent film (18 mins.) edited
from a longer American film by Ivor Montagu's Progressive Film Institute
in support of the campaign of the Relief Committee for the Victims of
German Fascism; the career of Thälmann is traced, with footage of
the Weimar period, and the Nazi terror, the underground press and the
international campaign for the release of the German CP leader are shown. GALLACHER'S FUNERAL (1965) - silent footage (10 mins.)
filmed by Manny Yospa in Paisley; among those paying their last respect
are Bob Stewart, Rajani Palme Dutt, D.N. Pritt, Hugh McDiarmid, Frank
Stanley, John Platts-Mills, Johnnie and Elsie Gollan; among the palbearers
are Frank Stanley, Gordon McLennan and Peter Kerrigan; the cortege moves
through Paisley; shots of the crowd at the funeral; the nameplate on the
door of Gallacher's house. GLIMPSES OF MODERN RUSSIA (1931) - a compilation film
(10 mins.) edited by Ralph Bond from footage on the Soviet Union, showing
the progress in industry and agriculture as a result of Lenin's leadership
and, after his death, of the carrying out of his principles. HARRY POLLITT'S FUNERAL (1960) - silent footage (7 mins.)
shot by Manny Yospa for ETV Ltd., showing well-known Communists assembling;
among the crowd are Hewlett Johnson (the 'Red' Dean of Canterbury), Paul
Robeson, a Chinese delegation and Soviet ambassador Ponomariov; Marjorie
Pollitt in the car, which is followed by Gollan, Gallacher, Kerrigan,
Annie Powell and Brian Pollitt; the cortege arrives at Golders Green crematorium. HARRY POLLITT IN AUSTRALIA (1960) - silent footage (20
seconds) of Harry Pollitt talking to reporters on his arrival in Australia;
the film was sent as a fraternal gift by Australian comrades. HARRY POLLITT IN CHINA (1955) - a sound reportage (9 mins.)
of the visit of Harry Pollitt and Bob Stewart to China in April/May 1955;
they visit Peking, Shanghai, meet Mao Zedong and join the May Day celebrations
on Tienamin Square; the commentary is spoken by Daily Worker correspondent
Alan Winnington. HARRY POLLITT IN MANCHESTER (1959) - silent footage (3
mins.) of the arrival of Harry Pollitt in the (Free Trade?) hall in Manchester
on Sunday 22 February 1959 where a meeting against the Tory policies is
held, followed by footage of the meeting itself; shot by Lewis McLeod
for the Soviet newsreel. [HARRY POLLITT IN THE 1950S] - silent colour footage of
a demonstration in Hyde Park with Julius Jacobs, Solly Kaye and George
Bridges; silent colour footage of a May Day demonstration starting on
the Embankment and ending in Hyde Park, with Harry Pollitt speaking from
the platform; black and white footage of a CP delegation delivering a
petition to 10 Downing Street; total length of this material shot by Lewis
McLeod approx. 10 mins. [HARRY POLLITT 1955 ELECTION] - a sound film (3½
mins.) shot by Ralph Bond in the United Motion Pictures studios in London;
Bond (off screen) introduces the General Secretary of the Communist Party
who exhorts the audience to vote Communist; this film which was made to
be shown by the Communist cinema vans may possibly already have been shot
in 1951. [THE HOUSING PROBLEM] see CP HOME POLICY HUNGER MARCH (1934) - film record (15 mins.) of the 1934
Hunger March, starting with an explanation by National Unemployed Workers
Movement leader Wal Hannington of the purpose of the March, showing the
preparations in Glasgow and Cambridge where students and clergy demonstrate
their solidarity and ending with the arrival of the marchers in London. ILFORD (1957) - this 50 minute 16mm sound film, produced
over a period of three years by the Ilford New Era Film Society, offers
an ambitious 'people's history' of the borough of Ilford; a number of
characters of humble origin are shown in different historical periods:
in the 14th century they are exploited by the church, in the eighteenth
by aristocracy and in the present day by big business and small profiteers;
the film ends with a sequence in colour showing the future when Socialism
will prevail (although the word is never mentioned) and all will lead
a secure and happy life. INTERNATIONAL BRIGADE (1937) - silent film (12 mins.)
made by Vera Elkan with support of Ivor Montagu's Progressive Film Institute;
unique material on the day-to-day activities of the International Brigade;
including shots of Pravda correspondent Michail Koltsov, Daily Worker
correspondent Frank Pitcairn, Professor Haldane, Jock Cunningham, George
Nathan, Hans Kahle, Giuseppe di Vittorio and Ludwig Renn. INTERNATIONAL BRIGADE - EMPRESS HALL RALLY (1939) - silent
footage (10 mins.) shot by ACT members of the meeting in the Empress Hall
to celebrate to return to Britain of the British International Brigaders
who fought in Spain. [JUBILEE] see BRITAIN 1935 - JUBILEE YEAR JUNE 29TH DEMONSTRATION - a film (10 mins.) of the CPGB
National Demonstration in 1954, shot by Manny Yospa. KING STREET, 1948 - silent footage (5 mins.) shot by Pathé
News but never included in the newsreel; Communist MPs Phil Piratin and
Willie Gallacher in discussion with General Secretary Harry Pollitt; John
Gollan working in his office; members of the staff at 16 King Street. LAWRENCE BRADSHAW INTERVIEW - the artist is interviewed
(5 mins.) by GDR cameraman Dieter Kratz on his Karl Marx sculpture. LDCP GARDEN PARTY AND COACH OUTING (1935) - a silent film
(5 mins.) of a garden party and coach outing of the London District of
the CP. LET GLASGOW FLOURISH (1956) - produced by the Dawn Cine
Group, this 15 minute silent film presents the problems of slum housing
as seen through the eyes of ordinary Glaswegians; it ends with a demonstration
against a Tory attempt to sell council houses at the Merrylee estate. LONDON WORKERS' OUTING, EASTER 1935 - a silent film (4½
mins.) of sports and other amusements at High Beech, organised by the
London District of the CPGB. MAY DAY 1937 - a silent film (9 mins.) of the Communist
demonstrations at May Day 1937. MAY DAY 1950 - a silent film (10 mins.) made by the New
Era Film Society, with support from the London Trades Council; a record
of the 1950 May Day demonstration, banned by the Labour Government, which
ends in a violent confrontation between police and marchers; only extracts
of the original film have survived. [MCQUILKEN FILM ONE] (1973-75) - 8mm footage of strikes
and demonstrations against the stationing of Polaris submarines in Scotland
shot by Scottish Communist and amateur film maker William McQuilken. [MCQUILKEN FILM TWO] (ca.1960) - 8mm footage of strikes
shot by Scottish Communist and amateur film maker William McQuilken. A MESSAGE FROM VIETNAM (1966) - a appeal on behalf of
the people of Vietnam for money to buy medical supplies to treat the wounded;
this 12 minute film was produced by Stanley Forman (ETV). MR ATTLEE IN SPAIN (1937) - a newsreel (5 mins.) of the
visit of Labour leader Clement Attlee to Republican Spain. NEVER AGAIN (1955) - a silent film (8 mins.) about the
horrors of Nazism and the campaign against nuclear armament; this film
was made to be screened by the Communist Party cinema van during the 1955
local and Parliamentary election campaigns. NEWS MAGAZINE; DAILY WORKER OUTING (1951-56) - a compilation
of protest marches in Glasgow including the Gorbals Tenants Rents Protest
and mass deputation to Edinburgh, and marches by various political groups
including the Labour Party and the Communist Party; 10 minutes of silent
footage (black and white and colour) shot by Charlie Bukelis. 1953 (1953) - a 15 minute colour newsreel of a Communist
demonstration starting near the Angel Underground Station and ending in
Harlesden, featuring well-known Communists like Solly Kaye and George
Matthews. ONE GREAT VISION (1953) - a lengthy (50 mins.) report,
produced by the New Era Film Club, of the World Youth Festival in Bucharest,
presented with a love angle between a Scottish instrument mechanic and
a London bookshop assistant. OUR LIFE IN THEIR HANDS see CP ELECTION FILM 1963 PALME DUTT INTERVIEW 28 JUNE 1966 - Rajani Palme Dutt
is interviewed by GDR Television (20 mins.). PEACE AND PLENTY (1939) - Communist Party election film
(sound; 23 mins.) made by Ivor Montagu's Progressive Film Institute; an
audiovisual adaptation of Harry Pollitt report at the Party's XVth Congress,
indicting the Chamberlain Government and calling for the election of a
democratic government; the puppet of Chamberlain was made by the mother
of actress Elsa Lanchester; the music was written by well-known bandleader
Van Phillips; embodying the Popular Front policy the film became obsolete
in September 1939, while the Parliamentary elections in view of which
it was made did not take place until 1945 due to the outbreak of World
War II. [PEACE DEMONSTRATION, CLYDEBANK] (1952) - a report (16
mins.) of the Youth Festival in Clydebank on 28 September 1952, showing
crowds gathering for a demonstration and groups carrying banners for 'World
Youth Friendship and Peace'. PEOPLE'S JUBILEE (1977) - colour footage (10 mins.) shot
by Jeff Perks of the alternative jubilee festivities in Alexandra Palace. PEOPLE'S SCRAPBOOK 1938 (1938) - a newsreel (6 mins.),
filmed with 9.5mm equipment by local CPGB members and sympathisers, of
various events in Sussex such as the Sussex People's History March and
unemployed demonstrations. [PEOPLE'S SCRAPBOOK 1939] see SUSSEX 1939 PRIMROSE ALLEY GETS ITS WAY (ca. 1958) - a film (16 mins.)
about the pollution by cement of the hop gardens of Kent, shot by amateur
film maker Beverley Robinson. PRISONERS PROVE INTERVENTION IN SPAIN (1938) - interviews
with Italians and Germans taken prisoner by the Republicans in Spain,
filmed with a hidden camera by Ivor Montagu, proving conclusively that
the Non-Intervention agreement was violated by Germany and Italy; this
is an abridged version (lasting 5 mins.) of TESTIMONY OF NON-INTERVENTION. PROCESSION IN COMMEMORATION OF CALTON WEAVERS 1787 (1957)
- a report (6 mins.), produced by the Dawn Cine Group, of the commemoration
of the Calton Weavers by the Glasgow Trades Council. RHONDDA DEPRESSION YEARS (1935) - incomplete print (11
mins.) of a silent film shot in 1935 by Donald Alexander and Judy Birdwood
in the Rhondda Fach, where the former stayed in CP councillor Jim Morton's
home; shots of housing conditions; miners on their way to a protest meeting. ROBERT SMILLIE CENTENARY DEMONSTRATION (1957) - a report
(6 mins.), produced by the Dawn Cine Group, of the Robert Smillie Centenary
Demonstration on Saturday 8 June 1957 and the naming of a park for him. RUSSIAN DANCERS IN LONDON/FOLK FESTIVAL 1935 - silent
film of Russian folk dancers appearing in London; originally this was
an item in WORKERS NEWSREEL NO.4, produced by the Workers' Film &
Photo League. [SCOTTISH CND PROTEST] (early 1960s) - colour footage
(2 mins.) shot by Hugh Dunlop of Scottish CND marchers during a protest
against Polaris. [ST. PANCRAS TENANTS DEMONSTRATIONS] (1950s) - footage
(10 mins.) of tenants demonstrations and meetings at St. Pancras Town
Hall. SMITH, OUR FRIEND (1948) - a silent film made by Walter
Lassally and Derek York, telling the story of a demobilised soldier who,
after returning to his bombed-out slum house in the East End and getting
nowhere with the housing authorities, joins the squatters of the Ivanhoe
Hotel in Bloomsbury. SPANISH ABC (1938) - sound film (18 mins.) made by Ivor
Montagu's Progressive Film Institute for the Spanish Republican Government
(directed by Sidney Cole). STOP FASCISM 1937 - silent footage (3 mins.) of anti-fascist
demonstrations. SUSSEX 1939 [PEOPLE'S SCRAPBOOK 1939] (1939) - a newsreel
(10 mins.), filmed with 9.5mm equipment by local CPGB members and sympathisers,
of various events in Sussex such as May Day 1939 and the second Sussex
People's History March. TESTIMONY OF NON-INTERVENTION (1938) - interviews (33
mins.) with Italians and Germans taken prisoner by the Republicans in
Spain, filmed with a hidden camera by Ivor Montagu, proving conclusively
that the Non-Intervention agreement was violated by Germany and Italy;
an abridged version was released as PRISONERS PROVE INTERVENTION IN SPAIN. TOM MANN'S 80TH BIRTHDAY 1936 - a silent film shot by
J.E. Richardson of the birthday party in honour of Tom Mann. [THE UAB FILM] see WORKERS' NEWSREEL NO.3 UNVEILING OF THE KARL MARX MEMORIAL (1956) - sound film
(10 mins.) produced by Plato Films but never released in Great Britain;
it was financed by the Socialist countries through the services of Andrew
Rothstein, who appears alongside Harry Pollitt, Arthur Horner and J.D.
Bernal to speak at the occasion of the unveiling of the memorial in Highgate
Cemetery. [VISIT TO SOVIET UNION] (1959-60) - report (5 mins.),
possibly made by Charlie Bukelis, of a visit to the Soviet Union by a
group of British delegates, including a display of a national dance and
the laying of flowers on a memorial. WE ARE THE ENGLISH (1936) - a film record (8 mins.) of
the History Pageant organised by the London District of the CPGB on Sunday
20 September 1936, showing the procession and its banners covering events
from the Magna Carta to the Spanish Civil War. WE SPEAK FOR OUR CHILDREN (1952) - a film made by Beverley
Robinson in support of a campaign against the closure of day nurseries
in Kent. WE WHO ARE YOUNG (1952) - a report (32 mins.) in black
and white and colour, produced by the New Era Film Club, of the Youth
Peace Festival during the Whitsun weekend of 1952 in Sheffield. [WILLIE GALLACHER AND FUNERAL] (1961-65) - 8mm footage
shot by Scottish Communist and amateur film maker William McQuilken of
the eightieth birthday celebrations of Willie Gallacher in St. Andrew's
Halls, Glasgow, followed by shots of the funeral procession for Gallacher
in Paisley. WORKERS' NEWSREEL NO.1 (1934) - silent newsreel (10 mins.)
produced by Kino, showing the Daily Worker Gala in Plumstead, the building
of a new store for the London Co-operative Society, the Hendon Air-Display,
the Youth Anti-War Congress in Sheffield and the anti-war demonstration
in Hyde Park in August. WORKERS' NEWSREEL NO.2 (1934) - silent newsreel (15 mins.)
produced by Kino, showing the anti-fascist demonstrations in Hyde Park
on 9 September, the removal by the police of a 'Free Thaelmann' banner
on the Strand, the Gresford Colliery Disaster and the anti-fascist sports
rally in Paris. WORKERS' NEWSREEL NO.3 [THE UAB FILM] (1935) - silent
newsreel (15 mins.), produced by the Workers' Film and Photo League, of
a demonstration in Hyde Park against the Government's policy of providing
relief to the unemployed through Unemployed Assistance Boards (UAB's). WORKERS' NEWSREEL NO.4 (1935) - silent newsreel (15 mins.),
produced by the Workers' Film and Photo League, with items on the ILP
Summer School in Letchworth, the 1935 May Day March, Soviet Folk Dancers
in London and Tom Mann's visit to a Pioneer's camp. WORKERS TOPICAL NEWS NO.1 (1930) - silent newsreel (5
mins.), produced for the Federation of Workers' Film Societies, showing
a demonstration on Tower Hill organised by the National Unemployed Workers'
Movement on the occasion of Unemployment Day 1930. WORKERS TOPICAL NEWS NO.2 (1930) - silent newsreel (12
mins.), produced for the Federation of Workers' Film Societies, showing
the Hunger Marchers on their way to London and the 1930 May Day demonstration
including close shots of Irish freedom fighter Mrs. Charlotte Despard
and former Communist MP Shapurji Saklatvala. [WORKERS' TOPICAL NEWS NO.4] see AGAINST IMPERIALIST WAR - MAY DAY 1932 YOU ARE THE LION (1957) - a film protesting at the rearmament
of the Federal Republic of Germany, made by Beverley Robinson. YOUTH PEACE PILGRIMAGE 1939 - silent film (9 mins.) of
a peace march by members of the Labour Party League, the Co-operative
Societies and various youth groups, culminating in a meeting in Trafalgar
Square; among those shown are Charles Gibson, John Gollan, Bill Carritt,
Denis Healey and Ted Willis.
Some notable artists and graphic designers were involved
in producing material for the CPGB. A comprehensive study of the relationship
between the Party and its artists, and those close to it, remains to be
written (but see the chapters by Radford and Wallis in A Weapon in the
Struggle for fascinating studies of the “Three Jameses” and
political pageants respectively). This is not the place for such a work,
but I have taken advantage of the time spent studying the contents of
thousands of pamphlets and journals to try to identify some of the artists
who designed the covers. In this project I was helped immensely by Paul
Hogarth and others who will find my gratitude expressed in the acknowledgements.
These are tentative first steps, but it may encourage others who are better
qualified to follow this up. The best pamphlets in the 1920s are characterised by either
superb typography and small but high quality abstract detailing, or Soviet
inspired cartoons. Francis Meynell, an early editor of The Communist for
a short period in the early 1920s, was a key figure in the design world.
The Communist printing presses – Pelican Press and Dorritt Press
– continued a tradition of fine printing and design from an earlier
period. These pamphlets and journals have a traditional, serious even
slightly bourgeois look about them; even the quality of the paper is high
– one has the impression that no attention was given to cost ("Moscow
gold" may have helped here) and that they were produced in a rather
rarefied atmosphere. Later, the work of the Communist printer Allen Hutt
was to receive national recognition. The war dispersed many of these artists. A younger generation
came through after the war, including Paul Hogarth, Francis Minns (these
two artists worked together at Shell when Boswell was art director there),
Ray Watkinson, Ern Brooks, Barbara Niven, and Ken Sprague. All these artists
produced covers for pamphlets (and other work) for the Party; and most
were also active in the AIA (Niven, Brooks and Hogarth in Manchester before
moving to London). Hogarth went on to enjoy a very successful international
career as a book illustrator and became a member of the RA. Watkinson,
Brooks and Sprague produced material for the Party for decades, while
Barbara Niven gave up a promising artistic career to work for the CP,
for many years as fund raiser for the Daily Worker (another artist, Clive
Branson, had, briefly, made a similar move in the 1930s). The dilemma
that most left-wing artists faced of not being able to make a living from
their left-wing art and not wanting to produce luxury goods for rich collectors
did lead some to stop painting, or concentrate on agit-prop work.
1. William Gallacher “An Appeal for Unity (Souvenir
Record)” Celebrates his election in 1935. 2. London Labour Choral Union Conducted by Alan Bush 3. London Labour Choral Union Conducted by A Bush 4. Harry Pollitt “Extract of Speech” Mass
Rally, Empress Stadium, London 6 Nov 1938 FACTORY PAPERS – not traced Abertillery Searchlight Wales Mines
DW Daily Worker SOURCES Vast majority of the CP material is located in three libraries,
all easily accessible. These are: the People's History Museum, 103 Princess
Street, Manchester M1 6DD (formally the National Museum of Labour History);
Marx Memorial Library, 37a Clerkenwell Green, London, EC1R 0DU; the Working
Class Movement Library, Jubilee House, 51 Crescent, Salford, M5 4WX. These
libraries also contain much material about the CP. The People's History
Museum contains the CPGB Archives which has the most systematic collection.
The William Gallacher Collection, the Scottish CP’s library, in
Glasgow Caledonian University Library, is a major source of Scottish material.
All these libraries are in the process of putting their collections onto
computerised databases, but I did most of my research before this started
and I am deeply indebted to those librarians who gave me full access to
their stock, and this bibliography would not have been possible without
it.
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