A MINER turned author has launched his latest book at the National Coal Mining Museum.
David John Douglass, from Doncaster, spent 40 years working at the coal face, but he also found time to get a degree and research the social history of mining.
His book, The Strike - Not The End Of The Story, complements the exhibition of the same name at the museum, at Overton, between Huddersfield and Wakefield.
Mr Douglass, who worked as an advisor on the BBC drama Faith, shown on Monday, said it was important people could still learn about mining and the strikes.
He said: "There are people who were not born during the 84-85 strike - which ended 20 years ago today - and even people who lived elsewhere that do not understand the impact.
"Communities were ripped apart and the bitterness towards the Conservative government of the time lives on in the areas destroyed by the closures."
The book, available from the museum, documents not just the 1984 strike but others from as far back as the 1800s.
Mr Douglass was the picket co-ordinator for Doncaster during the 1984 strike.
He said: "It was hard to get all the facts together and present them in just one volume.
"People need to know the history of all the strikes, not just the famous ones. It takes us right up to the present day.
"I hope people pick up the book and learn something. Because I was actually there I can put right some of the popular myths that have arisen from the strike."
