Pit Pony Reunion

From the collection of

MACE is the strategic lead organisation for screen heritage for the East and West Midlands regions. An independent charity based at University of Lincoln, MACE preserves and makes accessible a collection of more than 100,000 historic moving images representative of the diverse cultures and histories of communities throughout the heart of England from the Lincolnshire coast to the Welsh border.

Pit Pony Reunion (Central News)

Media Archive for Central England
Tettenhall
17 Sep 1982
Sound

A heart-warming reunion for two old mining comrades in the autumn of their lives.

Baggeridge Colliery at Sedgley had been the final working mine in the old Black Country coal field when it closed back in 1968. The blackness of the coal had given the region the informal name, which has stuck ever since.

In 1982 there was an emotional reunion between Baggeridge head horseman Harold Walton, and a surviving pit pony called Blaze who, by then an incredible 40 years old, was enjoying a well-earned retirement in a horse sanctuary at Tettenhall. Harold looks back nostalgically to those hard days spent underground hewing the black gold with his four-legged pal.

Tags

From the collection

Pick of the Litter: Fluffy Tales from the Midlands

Some things never change - we were suckers for cute animal stories decades before the internet came along.

In the 1980s, before smart phones made it easy to scroll through video after video of distilled animal cuteness, regional television news was one of the few (and unexpected) sources of fluffy diversion. Their closing stories (also known as 'And finally...' reports) were generally lighthearted tales, designed to leave the viewer with a warm fuzzy feeling, having sat through the doom and gloom that may well have featured earlier in the programme. The quirky animal story was a sub-genre of the 'And finally...' and a precursor to the snappy posts we see on our phone screens today. The films in this collection showcase the unique animals that brightened up the living rooms of the Midlands, just when they needed them most. So put your phone away and settle down for a little while - we have some delightful distractions for you!

10 videos in this collection

Watch in libraries only

Pit Pony Reunion

Tettenhall
1982

Watch in libraries only

Boots for Horses

Tong
1982

Watch in libraries only

Dog Joins Musical Theatre

Tonge
1986

Watch in libraries only

Mathematical Dog

Derby
1987

Watch in libraries only

Siamese Cat

Derby
1986

Watch in libraries only

Pet Python

Chelmsley Wood
1983

Watch in libraries only

Cat Fosters Chick

Newark-on-Trent
1989

Watch in libraries only

Rottweiler Police Dog

Brierley Hill
1982

Watch in libraries only

Animals introduced to Shelton Hospital

Shelton
1983

Watch in libraries only

Dog Adopts Ducklings

Collingham
1988

View full collection