by Martin Reynolds, Waltham Forest Socialist Party
Firstly, I only realised this was a musical the day before I went to see it, and everyone who knows me, knows I hate musicals! Made in Dagenham, performed by the Loughton Operatic Society, is a musical based on the true story of the 1968 Ford sewing machinists’ strike in Dagenham, and the 2010 film about it. The musical highlights the challenges faced by women in the workplace and their determination to achieve equality.
Photo: Martin Reynolds
This strike was instrumental in the fight for equal pay for women, leading to the Equal Pay Act introduced in 1970. The Loughton Operatic Society put on a great performance that took me back to the days when I worked in factories as a young man from the age of 16 to 28, with the cutting, sarcastic humour punctuated with the colourful language.
Made in Dagenham tells the story of Rita O’Grady, a sewing machinist and a working-class mum who becomes an unexpected leader in the fight for equal pay. The musical captures perfectly the attitudes and divisions encouraged by the capitalists and bosses among working-class people, in order to maximise profits and, in this case, to try and prevent a united struggle between male and female workers.
Made in Dagenham is a beautiful example of collective action and a fight for equality by these female machinists. The humour, music, and historical significance makes it a must-watch piece of theatre that will inspire and give confidence to anybody who is engaged in the struggle for a better world, a world where workers are given the pay and respect they deserve.
57 years on from this important struggle for equal pay, women still earn 87% of the pay that their male workmates get for doing the same, or similar, jobs. And no doubt many women today can still relate to this important strike. Sadly, it only ran for four days, but its obvious popularity, with packed-out shows, will hopefully mean it is rerun, and performed in a theatre near you. Keep a lookout for it.
After having a great time, I’ve decided that I may actually like musicals now.
- See Linda Taaffe’s review of the 2010 film in Socialism Today.