in the early 2000s and it looked a lot cleaner because the scabbing bastards had been shat on in the 90s (hooray). I lived there for 21 years, breathing coal dust yet I never went down t'pit.
I'll never forget or forgive the pits for the simmering violence in that place, caused by people going down the pit because it was the only way to earn a living. A lot of pitmen coped by tanking up on the way home. The misery and fear of women and children was mostly hidden from view and luckier children were shielded from it but it was always there.
One woman on my street left her husband because of the violence but couldn't afford to stay away. I couldn't understand it but I do now, courtesy of Thatchler.