Earlier this year YFA had the privilege of hosting work placements for two 2nd year History students studying at York St John.  The Leah Goddard and Maisy Lawton were invited to catalogue and research the Yorkshire Television series Calendar Commentary – the long running weekly politics programme reflecting the news from Westminster and the views and reflections of Yorkshire's MPs and political experts.  As we approach the anniversary of the end of The Miners' Strike, the focus of the project was on episodes of the series which cover the period of the Miners' Strike from March 1984 to March 1985.  

Leah and Maisy have written about their experiences at the Archive.

Leah Goddard:

My work placement with the Yorkshire Film Archive has provided a unique opportunity to learn about film as a visual source, explore 1980s British politics, and gain a deeper understanding of the 1984-85 Miners' Strikes.

Our project was to watch and catalogue episodes of Calendar Commentary, a political news programme that aired on ITV throughout the 1980s. We created work and item records for each episode, including summaries of its contents and key points, and then uploaded them to the YFA catalogue in order to be processed. Episodes ranged from dedicated coverage of the strikes, as well as discussions of larger economic and political issues of the decade. It was very interesting to follow how Calendar Commentary evolved over time to include more extravagant animations techniques for their opening credits, and the incorporation of regular themed segments and reports.

There were lots of technical elements that we needed to learn in order to complete the categorization process. We had to pay close attention to uploading these records correctly, listing the kind of film roll used, production companies, acquisition sources, and even the credits at the end of an episode. Such elements were difficult for me to grasp at first, but as I have learned throughout this experience, these seemingly ‘small’ components are incredibly important to process a work efficiently and create the most detailed manuscript possible.

Having grown up in a town directly linked to the mining industry, and with family experiences of the strikes, learning more about this period felt very important to me going into this project. Calendar Commentary’s status as a general politics programme of the decade has been very useful in further contextualising the foundations and events of the Miners' Strike. The programme covered the Strike from its early days to its bitter end, providing reports on collieries and picket lines across the country, impacts on local communities, and the relationships between industries such as coal and steel. Media archival resources like Calendar Commentary are incredibly important to preserve for these reasons of furthering education and understanding. The programme is a great source for anyone who wishes to explore the political complexities of modern Britain and the 1984-85 Miners' Strike, or trace back particular governmental policies and party debates from their earlier days. One of the key lessons I have learned from my work at the archives is the importance of these sources to further our knowledge of what came before us, and the duty-of-care to represent this footage as accurately as possible. The amazing work done at the Yorkshire Film Archive, as I have witnessed throughout my placement, is vital to this cause.

My experience working within the Yorkshire Film Archive has been incredibly valuable. This project has expanded my skills within research, strengthened my efficiency in engaging with oral history, and taught me many new technological skills I can carry with me into the future. More than anything though, the experience has been very fulfilling, in working alongside a supportive team, and getting to learn more about Yorkshire’s industrial history. I am very grateful to the Yorkshire Film Archive for this placement opportunity and their support throughout.

 Maisy Lawton: 

During my first semester of my second year studying history at York St John University, I took part in placement as part of my module History, Community, and Culture for 75 hours at an institution that I am interested in. I completed this at the Yorkshire Film Archive (YFA), a registered charity located on the YSJ campus which finds, preserves, and makes accessible the moving image content of the region. It provides an active regional resource, with a growing collection, from the early pioneering film makers of the late nineteenth century through to more recent footage of the changing landscapes and cityscapes of the region. Throughout the process as a whole, but especially the first few days, I learnt about the operations that take place in the archive. I also got to interact with vintage filming equipment, large variety of film, and see in person the collection of over 70,000 items of original film inside the archive. 

My role during my placement at the archive was to research and catalogue Yorkshire Television's political programme Calendar Commentary into YFA's content management system called Imagen. Working with this primary source material has been a new experience for me which I have thoroughly enjoyed. Calendar Commentary was a long running weekly politics show which reflected news from Westminster Abbey and the views/reflections of Yorkshires MPs and political experts. I personally enjoyed some of the earlier episodes I catalogued which focused on the Miners' Strike during the 1980s. These episodes showed the differing opinions of the political parties which is a topic I find interesting. 

Throughout the thirteen episodes I catalogued there was hundreds of interviews and panels which in turn gave me insight into people’s personal opinions and views on the events taking place in the political sphere at the time. This show is incredibly important as it gives a voice to those who typically would be ignored. It allows for a new perspective more specifically for the individuals who experience issues regarding taxes, interest, and strikes in their day-to-day life. 

When cataloguing this work, I found difficulty with getting through certain episodes as I wasn’t sure how to format the data but with the help of my colleagues, furthermore I was able to improve on this throughout my placement and eventually got into a flow with cataloguing. I also found difficulty with deciding what information is necessary to be catalogued and what is unnecessary but by looking through example records I could better see a concise way to complete them. 

Working within the Yorkshire Film Archive has given me a newfound appreciation for the work of archives, the importance of preserving, as well as the independence and freedom to explore my person writing approach/interpretations. The outcome of this project with the YFA was incredibly positive, I gained increased transferable skills in time management and confidence in my ability to work in a professional setting, I was proud to play a part in digitalising this series and making it preserved and accessible to the general public.