The Pitmen Painters

Synopsis/Company

In 1934, a group of Ashington miners hired a professor to teach an art appreciation evening class. Rapidly abandoning theory in favour of practice, the pitmen began to paint. Within a few years the most avant-garde artists became their friends and their work was acquired by prestigious collections; but every day they worked, as before, down the mine. Examining the lives of a group of ordinary men that do extraordinary things, The Pitmen Painters is a humorous, deeply moving and timely look at art, class and politics.


Author Lee Hall. Book by William Feaver. Producer Bill Kenwright. Director Max Roberts. Design Gary McCann. Lighting Douglas Kuhrt. Costume Gary McCann. Sound Martin Hodgson.