Workers at Dickens & Heywood, Middleton (1900)

A rare snapshot of the daily routine of the workers of a Lancashire textile mill.

Judging by the range of expressions, being filmed leaving work was either a welcome diversion or an unwanted intrusion for these work-weary Lancastrians. The film was shot in advance of a Middleton 'wakes' holiday, when the film would have been exhibited at a travelling cinematograph stand. The Middleton-based Dickens & Heywood mill specialised in the manufacture of polished yarns.