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Tony Benn awarded first ‘Ged Winstanley Spade’

GedWinstanleysSpadeFollowing our second Festival, the Wigan Diggers’ Festival Committee agreed to establish our own version of the Oscars and the Grammies, in the shape of an annual award bearing the name of Gerrard Winstanley.

We agreed to present it, ideally at our festival each year, to an individual or a group, in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the cause of making the Earth a common treasury for all, in the spirit of the Great Wiganer.

After discussing a number of possibilities including a ‘Star of Winstanley’ medal, we finally agreed on the obvious, and something wholly in keeping with Gerrard Winstanley’s digging activities in Surrey and elsewhere, in the shape of small brass spade, mounted along with an engraved plaque in a framed display case (see above left).

Tony Benn awarded first Ged Winstanley Spade

TonyBennHaving decided on what the award would look like and given it a name, our next task was to decide on who we might present our first one to.

It didn’t take us long to make that decision. We unanimously agreed to present the award to veteran left-winger and former Labour MP Tony Benn, someone who has himself described the 17th Century Diggers as the first ‘true Socialists’ – a view we ourselves concur with.

We have written to him already to inform him of the news and look forward to presenting it to him in person at our forthcoming festival on the 7th September.

Failing that, we look forward to presenting it to him at a time and place convenient him. Watch this space for details.

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3rd Diggers’ Fest confirmed for 7th September in The Wiend area.

cropped-wiendmontage1.jpgConfirmed yesterday, with Wigan’s Town Centre Manager, the gardens adjacent to The Wiend, containing the ‘Face of Wigan’ statue, and the forecourt of the new Wigan Life Centre (shown on left), unofficially renamed by us “Gerrard Winstanley Place”, will again be the site of this year’s 3rd WIGAN DIGGERS’ FESTIVAL which will take place on Saturday 7th September.

The planning of this year’s event is still in its early stages but PLEASE PUT THIS DATE IN YOUR DIARY NOW! See map below for exact location in Wigan town centre.

DiggersFestSite

The FREE Annual Open Air Festival celebrates, via the medium of poetry, music and song, film and a range of other activities, the life and ideas of Wigan born and bred Gerrard Winstanley (1609-1676) and the 17th Century ‘Diggers’ movement he became the inspirational theorist and spokesperson of.

Also known as the ‘True Levellers’, the Diggers were one of the first truly egalitarian political movements of the poor and propertyless anywhere in the World, and the first to argue for full equality of men and women. Winstanley and they famously asserted: “The World was made a common treasury for all!”

Wigan Diggers Digging

Last year’s festival was a resounding success, with some of the best weather of the year helping to swell the crowd to around 2000 over the course of the day.

Attila The Stockbroker was top of a bill of 24 separate acts including two Socialist choirs, three top radical poets, three local bands, two duos and two professional actors.

We are hopeful Attila and actor John Graham Davies, who played the part of Gerrard Winstanley, in a symbolic re-enactment of the digging and sowing (which gave the Digger’s their nickname) at St, George’s Hill near Weybridge in Surrey in 1649 (seen above), will perform once again at this year’s festival, along with some of the most popular acts from last year’s event, and some new and more well known ones as well.

Last year’s Festival also included a film showing, exhibition, audio visual presentation, and a beer tent for which we commissioned our own Wigan brewed ‘Gerrard Winstanley’ and ‘Diggers 1649′ ales, both of which proved very popular and we are  hopeful will be available again this year.

MORE DETAILS TO FOLLOW.

In the meantime why not check out some of the many photos from last year’s event on our Festival Photos page: http://wigandiggersfestival.org/festival-photos-other-media/ and on our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/WiganDiggersFestival

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Drawings of Gerrard Winstanley

Drawings of Gerrard Winstanley by Clifford Harper.  Clifford also claims credit for the portrait of the great Wiganer we used on the original Wigan Diggers’ T-Shirt design.

Gerrard Winstanley Writing

Gerrard Winstanley Writing

Winstanley Portrait

Winstanley Portrait

Diggers in a Hostelry

Gerrard Winstanley and Digger colleagues at a hostelry. If you substitute the clay pipes for electronic cigarettes, and the tankards for pint glasses, then this picture would have a canny resemblance to a scene from a present day Diggers’ Festival meeting in the backroom of The Anvil pub in Wigan

 

Thanks Clifford for letting us use them!

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Gerrard Winstanley Speaks

Actor John Graham Davies plays the role of Gerrard Winstanley at a symbolic re-enactment of the digging at St. George’s Hill in Surrey in 1649, by the famous Wiganer and a group of people, who attracted the nickname, and became known historically as ‘The Diggers’, at this year’s Wigan Diggers’ Festival.

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2nd Wigan Diggers’ Fest – A Resounding Success

Wigan Diggers digging! Photo of the symbolic digging re-enactment which took place at this year’s Diggers’ Festival, close to The Face of Wigan statue.

Organisers are pleased to report that Saturday’s 2nd Diggers’ Fest in Wigan, celebrating locally born Gerrard Winstanley and Britain’s first Socialists, known as ‘The Diggers’, was a resounding success, with some of the best weather of the year helping to swell the crowd to around 2000 over the course of the day.

Attila The Stockbroker was top of a bill of 24 separate acts including two Socialist choirs, three top radical poets, three local bands, two duos and two professional actors. The Festival also included a film showing, exhibition, audio visual presentation, and a beer tent for which we commissioned our own Wigan brewed ‘Gerrard Winstanley’ and ‘Diggers 1649′ ales.

Actors James Quinn, John Graham Davies and Maxine Peake serving two locally brewed Gerrard Winstanley & Diggers’ 1649 traditional ales from behind the Bar of the Festival’s ‘OccuPie Wigan’ Beer tent.

John Graham Davies played the part of Gerrard Winstanley at a symbolic re-enactment of the digging at St. George’s Hill in Surrey in 1649 by Winstanley and his ‘True Leveller’ supporters, which gained them their nickname ‘The Diggers’, and where the name of the Festival comes from.

John Graham Davies playing the part of Winstanley. Explaining the work ‘The Diggers’ are going about, his monologue concludes with the famous quotation “Words and writing are all nothing and must die, for action is the life of all and if thous dost not act thou dost nothing”.

They famously proclaimed: “The Earth was made to be a common treasury for all, irrespective of person”.

They also called for universal suffrage, annual election and replacement of all officials, the abolition of private ownership and the “thieving art of buying and selling”, plus the establishment of a what in modern terms might be described as a vision of a truly democratic, ‘communistic’ ‘Commonwealth’ (as opposed to the sham Commonwealth of Cromwell).
In the one Winstanley advocated, everyone would be regarded as being equal and as members of the same family, and the principle of ‘each according to their ability, each according to their need’ would apply.

The Festival had a friendly concert in the park atmosphere assisted by the glorious afternoon sunshine.

The feedback the organisers have received both during and after the festival is tremendous, and ranges from “brilliant”, “great”, and “fantastic” to “the best day ever”.
Here are a just a few examples from our Facebook event page, there are many, many more:

 Abby Harrison

Yeah gr8 day. Gr8 weather. Great atmosphere. Can’t wait for the next one

 Bessie Smith

Well – what an absolutely BELTIN’ day! Fanbloodytastic from start to finish. Thanks so much to the committee and everyone who contributed to make it a proper day to remember. It really couldn’t have gone any better. Rarrr!!

It was wonderful – educational, informative, funny, loud and blessed with some of the nicest weather we’ve had this summer. Seriously well done to all the people who must’ve worked damn hard to make it happen :-D

What an absolutly brilliant day :) ) beautiful weather topped off with great artists and friendly faces… fantastic :) ) i look forward to next year

This was the best day ever,enjoyed every second and met up with some lovely people. Thank you to all involved x

What a fantastic day – loved every minute of this – stayed for the whole event

Had a fantastic day at the Wigan Diggers heres to many more like it :-)

 Vinny Spencer

Fabulous day. Big well done and thank you to all the organisers that made it possible. Such an important event to commemorate, and what a great way to do it.

Here are some photographs from the day:

LINKS TO LOTS OF PHOTOS ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE at: https://www.facebook.com/WiganDiggersFestival