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Featuring live introduction by Bill Whitehead, author of ‘The Derby Lock-Out 1833-34 and the Origins of the Labour Movement’.

Locked Out is a filmsQUAD short film project made possible with the support of Unite the Union that tells the story of events leading up to and covering a period of strike action that took place in and around Derby from late 1833 to early 1834. The film brings to life the story of a group of people, some of whom went on to sow the seeds for the first ever trades union, who in the face of awful working conditions were determined to fight for their basic human rights.

The 20-minute film is a dramatised documentary focusing on mill worker Thomas Redfern and his family. The film not only depicts how strike action affected employees, but also the employers (the ‘Masters’), and also how the press reported the events at the time. The film examines local and national social history, industrial history and also the history and the very beginnings of the trade union movement. It also references the modern day Union movement and includes footage from the 2014 annual Silk Mill march that commemorates the events of 1833-34.

The Silk Mill in Derby was one of many mills affected by the 1833-34 strike action, and has played a crucial part in Trade Union history. Many scholars consider it amongst the first factories in the world. Locked Out features expert testimony from Bill Whitehead, author of ‘The Derby Lock-Out 1833-34 and the Origins of the Labour Movement’;  Jonathan Wallis formerly of Derby Museums Trust, and also The Rt. Hon. Dame  Margaret Beckett MP. The cast and crew were drawn from in and around Derby and Derbyshire, with filming taking place at the Silk Mill, Pickford’s House, The Old Bell Hotel, and Sir Richard Arkwright’s Masson Mills.