Dave Morris: Tottenham community activist and anarchist - a 70th anniversary retrospective

A celebration, and a look back at some activities, groups and campaigns over the decades

Footage from event on Saturday 30th March 2024 @ Lordship Hub N17 6NU

Films, Desert Island Discs, photo-display, speeches / music, info table - Hosted by the Friends of Lordship Rec

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2-8pm   Photo display [See photos at the end of this post]     

3-4pm   Dave's Desert Island Discs - https://vimeo.com/934535511?share=copy

4-5pm   Open Mic for speeches/contributions -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBXEADFu8BA&t=12s   

5-6pm   Sing song - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_ahnuel3mM   

6-8pm   Film Show - extracts from documentaries reflecting some activities/movements involved with eg. Glastonbury 1971, Torness protests, Stop ‘The City’, Poll Tax, McLibel, Sound Bites, Kingsnorth Climate Camp, Haringey Civic Centre occupation, HFRA/Community Action/housing, Lordship Rec, National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces, Spycops - -https://vimeo.com/934531278?share=copy

[See recording below, and full links for each film at the end]

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Desert Island Discs interview session: 

On Vimeo* - https://vimeo.com/934535511?share=copy

Contributions, thoughts and anecdotes from friends and comrades:

Piano / sax / singalong:

Film show session with Dave's thoughts:

On Vimeo* - https://vimeo.com/934531278?share=copy

*You might be asked to sign up for a Vimeo paid-for account, but do not need to do that to watch the films. You may need to input your email address though.

[See below for links to the full films]

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Dave's Film Show List

The extracts used at Dave's film show session - reflecting some activities/movements involved with. Feel free to watch any of the documentary films in full.

--------  Glastonbury 1971: 

Play all to the very end (4.10s)

--------  Torness anti-nuclear power protests:

https://movingimage.nls.uk/film/8500   Play from 13.50secs to 15.40s    and 17.50 - 20.06secs...  

--------  Stop ‘The City’:

Play from start to 1.42s..  then 2.30-3.30s.  Then 4.30-5.50s. Then 7.20-8.45s...

--------  Poll Tax, especially Trafalgar Square Defendants Campaign:

Haringey overview (Tony Wood interview)  Play all (7.06s)

--------  McLibel Trial / Campaign:

The McLibel documentary, 2005  

Film is set so it can only be watched on the YouTube site and not here, so click on this link: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V58kK4r26yk

Play from start to 4.41secs..   then 1hr to 1.05.55secs     Then 1.17.20secs to end

--------  Sound Bites vegan cookery video:

Play 9m-14m  - including my son Charlie and Tottenham kids with Benjamin Zephaniah.

--------  Kingsnorth climate camp:

[Note: the first link was missed out in the film showing session at Dave's 70th]

Great overview  (total 3.40 secs)  SHOW ALL

Show - I help protestors to defy the policing operation..  Start at 1.20s and play to 3.30s

--------  HFRA/Community Action:

Community Action part 1 .. Play from start to 7.24secs....

--------  Haringey Civic Centre occupation:...

In the chamber (use this)..  Play from Start to 2mins. Then 4min to 5.30m.

--------  Give Our Kids a Future demonstration:

0-1.35s    Then 6.00-10.26 (end)

--------  Our Tottenham - the launch

The launch. Play from start up to 3.23secs...  

--------  Friends of Lordship Rec:

[Note: the first link was missed out in the film showing session at Dave's 70th]

Our film!  Play from start to 1.38s. Then 2.25 - 6.15secs.. then 13.20secs to 15.10secs...  

BBC Countryfile piece.  Play from start to 6.10sec

--------  Michelle's resilient orchards on ITV

Play all - 2.36secs..

--------  Spycops Inquiry:

https://www.itv.com/news/london/2023-06-29/police-units-spying-not-justified-and-squad-should-have-been-closed-down   News report. 

Play all..  3.51secs.  Dave briefly interviewed.

Photographs of photo displays at the event:

London Greenpeace, McLibel, Poll Tax and local Community Action - Dave Morris reflects on nearly 50 years of activism (March 2023)

Dave Morris was invited by the Co-Directors of Greenpeace UK to do a talk/discussion on 30th March 2023 at their HQ. It was attended by 30 Greenpeace office staff and at least another 25 online.  He was asked to speak about his experiences and thoughts about the McLibel case and campaign, about London Greenpeace (which had been set up in 1971, 6 years before Greenpeace UK), and about his nearly 50 years as a community activist - mainly in Haringey.  

He was invited as Greenpeace UK are reviewing their priorities as an organisation and as part of that considering the importance of community organising and action, including by their local support groups. They also want to be more involved in and supportive of current wider movements.

Dave speaks for about 15 mins, followed by 45 minutes of questions and discussion. He was able to distribute paper copies of the original, inspirational Greenpeace Broadsheet produced by Peace News in 1971, a 4pp History of London Greenpeace, and information about the Friends of Parks movement across the UK (as he is currently the Chair of the National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces). A free youtube link to the McLibel 2005 documentary was circulated beforehand: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V58kK4r26yk