Originally commissioned for The South Bank Show, Which Side Are You On? was initially suppressed on the grounds that it was not politically impartial. Setting out to document the songs and poems striking miners were singing and writing, the ban enraged Loach, who noted how partisan reporting of the strike had been in the right wing British press and on the television news.

Marking 30 years on from the strike that scarred Britain, Which Side Are You On? stands as a tribute to the trade unionism and working class solidarity.

This film is screening as part of Ken Loach (Part One), May 3rd – 28th. Loach’s latest film, Jimmy’s Hall, opens at the IFI on May 30th.