Germinal (BBC 2, 1970)

Germinal (1970), a five-part BBC serial of Zola's novel of a coalfield strike in northern France, with Mark Jones and Rosemary Leach, was filmed in 1969 at the derelict Waldridge Colliery near Chester-le-Street, whose pithead was blown up for the climax.

The mining history in this record

Waldridge Colliery, on the fell south-west of Chester-le-Street, had been closed for more than forty years and its buildings and winding gear were due for demolition when the BBC came looking for a setting for Germinal, its serial of Emile Zola's 1885 novel of a miners' strike in the coalfield of northern France in the 1860s. The National Coal Board had prepared the pit buildings for demolition, then put the work on hold when the BBC chose Waldridge for its location shots.

The filming took place in 1969. The director, John Davies, used local people as extras, and the former colliery manager, John Robson, came back to help with the demolition. The climax of the story, the wrecking of the pit, was staged for real: dozens watched as the pithead was blown up, and it took two attempts to bring the winding gear down. The serial was shown on BBC 2 in 1970.

People

John Davies, director. Mark Jones and Rosemary Leach, leading players. John Robson, former manager of Waldridge Colliery.

Legacy today

In 2024 the Sunderland Echo republished its photographs of the day, of the film crews, actors, pit officials and extras, and asked those who had been extras or had worked at Waldridge for their memories.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each tagged with how solidly it's grounded and attached to the source(s) that support it. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• The derelict Waldridge Colliery was used as a set for the BBC 2 serial Germinal, shown in 1970. (documented fact) ^1,2
• The BBC's Germinal of 1970 was a five-part serial with Mark Jones and Rosemary Leach. (documented fact) ³
• The National Coal Board had prepared the pit buildings for demolition and put it on hold when the BBC chose Waldridge for location shots. (contemporary account) ²
• The blowing up of the pithead was the climax of the story, filmed in 1969 with local people as extras under the director John Davies. (contemporary account) ²
• It took two attempts to destroy the winding gear. (documented fact, uncertain) ¹

Mines

• Waldridge Colliery — County Durham
  The serial was filmed at the derelict Waldridge Colliery in 1969, and its pithead and winding gear were blown up for the climax.

Real-world mining concepts used here

Colliery, Miners' Strike, National Coal Board, Pithead

Sources

1. (secondary) Waldridge, County Durham — Wikipedia
2. (secondary) The County Durham pit which was blown up for explosion scenes in TV series — Sunderland Echo (Chris Cordner, 5 April 2024)
3. (secondary) Germinal (novel) — Wikipedia

Record created: 5 October 2026 · Last researched: 6 October 2026