You do not have permission to edit this page, for the following reasons:

This IP address has been blocked from editing Wikipedia.
This does not affect your ability to read Wikipedia pages.
Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong. Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.

The IP address or range 3.85.0.0/16 has been blocked (disabled) by ‪ST47‬ for the following reason(s):

The IP address that you are currently using has been blocked because it is believed to be a web host provider. To prevent abuse, web hosts may be blocked from editing Wikipedia.
You will not be able to edit Wikipedia using a web host provider because it hides your IP address, much like a proxy or VPN.
We recommend that you attempt to use another connection to edit. For example, if you use a proxy or VPN to connect to the internet, turn it off when editing Wikipedia. If you edit using a mobile connection, try using a Wi-Fi connection, and vice versa. If you are using a corporate internet connection, switch to a different Wi-Fi network. If you have a Wikipedia account, please log in.
If you do not have any other way to edit Wikipedia, you will need to request an IP block exemption.

How to appeal if you are confident that your connection does not use a web host's IP address:
If you are confident that you are not using a web host, you may appeal this block by adding the following text on your talk page: ((unblock|reason=Caught by a web host block but this host or IP is not a web host. My IP address is _______. Place any further information here. ~~~~)). You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated. Your IP address can be determined here. Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the unblock ticket request system. There are several reasons you might be editing using the IP address of a web host (such as if you are using VPN software or a business network); please use this method of appeal only if you think your IP address is in fact not a web host.

Administrators: The IP block exemption user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using web host in exceptional circumstances, and they should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a CheckUser needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at SPI Quick Checkuser Requests. Unblocking an IP or IP range with this template is highly discouraged without at least contacting the blocking administrator.

This block will expire on 21:48, 22 February 2026.

Even when blocked, you will usually still be able to edit your user talk page, as well as email administrators and other editors.

For information on how to proceed, please read the FAQ for blocked users and the guideline on block appeals. The guide to appealing blocks may also be helpful.

Other useful links: Blocking policy · Help:I have been blocked
Your IP address is in a range that has been blocked on all Wikimedia Foundation wikis. The block was made by ‪Jon Kolbert‬. The reason given is Open proxy/Webhost: See the help page if you are affected .
- Start of block: 05:35, 21 February 2024
- Expiry of block: 05:35, 21 February 2029
Your current IP address is 3.85.235.113. The blocked range is 3.85.0.0/16. Please include all above details in any queries you make. If you believe you were blocked by mistake, you can find additional information and instructions in the No open proxies global policy. Otherwise, to discuss the block please post a request for review on Meta-Wiki. You could also send an email to the stewards VRT queue at stewards@wikimedia.org including all above details.

You can view and copy the source of this page:

((Short description|British men conscripted to work as coal miners in WW2))
((Use British English|date=October 2011))
((for|the Indian technical workers sent to the UK in the 1940s|Bevin trainees))
((more citations needed|date=December 2012))
((Use dmy dates|date=June 2020))

[[File:Bevin Boy- Mining Training at Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, February 1945 D23736.jpg|thumb|Bevin Boys receiving training from an experienced miner at Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, February 1945]]
'''Bevin Boys''' were young British men [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|conscripted]] to work in  [[coal mine]]s between December 1943 and March 1948,<ref>[http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/sources/coal/bevin/page41441.html Bevin Boys – BERR<!-- Bot generated title -->] ((webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090714065513/http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/sources/coal/bevin/page41441.html |date=14 July 2009 ))</ref> to increase the rate of coal production, which had declined through the early years of [[World War II]].<ref name=gov_stats>((cite web |url= https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/historical-coal-data-coal-production-availability-and-consumption |title= Historical coal data: coal production, availability and consumption |date= 25 January 2019 |publisher= UK Government |access-date= 23 April 2020 |archive-date= 23 April 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180423193104/https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/historical-coal-data-coal-production-availability-and-consumption-1853-to-2011 |url-status= live ))</ref> The programme was named after [[Ernest Bevin]], the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] politician who was [[Minister of Labour and National Service]] in the wartime coalition government.<ref>((Cite ODNB|id=31872|title=Bevin, Ernest))</ref>

Chosen by lot as 10% of all male conscripts aged 18–25 (plus some volunteering as an alternative to military conscription) nearly 48,000&nbsp;Bevin Boys performed vital and dangerous [[civil conscription]] service in coal mines. Although the last ballot took place in May 1945 (shortly before [[Victory in Europe Day|VE Day]]), the final conscripts were not released from service until March 1948. Few chose to remain working in the [[Coal mining in the United Kingdom|mining industry]] after demobilisation; most left for further education or for employment in other sectors.<ref name=Museum_Wales>((cite web |url= https://museum.wales/articles/2008-01-03/Remembering-the-Bevin-Boys-in-the-Second-World-War/ |title= Remembering the Bevin Boys in the Second World War |author= <!--Not stated--> |date= 3 January 2008 |publisher= National Museum Wales |access-date= 24 April 2020 |archive-date= 21 September 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200921065412/https://museum.wales/articles/2008-01-03/Remembering-the-Bevin-Boys-in-the-Second-World-War/ |url-status= live ))</ref>

Bevin Boys were targets of abuse from the general public, who mistakenly believed them to be [[draft evasion|draft dodgers]] or cowards. They were frequently stopped by the police as possible [[desertion|deserters]].<ref name=Museum_Wales/> Unlike those who had served in the military, Bevin Boys were not awarded medals for their contribution to the war effort and official recognition by the British government was only conferred in 1995.<ref name=Museum_Wales/>

==Creation of programme==
===Shortfall in UK coal output===
[[File:UK_coal_output_1913-50.png|thumb|UK coal output for the years 1913 to 1950. The periods of the two World Wars are highlighted in grey.<ref name=gov_stats/>]]
At the start of WWII, the UK was highly dependent on coal to power ships and trains, and as the main source of energy for electricity generation.<ref>((cite book |first= Leslie |last= Hannah | author-link = Leslie Hannah |year= 1979 |title= Electricity before Nationalisation |chapter= War and Post-war Crisis |location= London |publisher= Macmillan |pages= 289–328 |isbn= 978-0-333-22086-3))</ref> Although output from mines had increased as the world economy recovered from the [[Great Depression]], it was in decline again by the time war broke out in September 1939.<ref name=gov_stats/>

At the beginning of the war the Government, underestimating the value of strong younger coal miners, conscripted them into the armed forces. By mid-1943, the coal mines had lost 36,000&nbsp;workers, and they were generally not replaced, because other likely young men were also being conscripted to the armed forces.((citation needed|date=April 2020))

Industrial relations were also poor: In the first half of 1942, there were several local strikes over wages across the country,<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Kent coal strike over |date= 29 January 1942 |page= 2 |issue= 49146))</ref><ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Colliery Taken Over By Mines Department |date= 1 June 1942 |page= 4 |issue= 49250))</ref> which also reduced output.<ref name=min_wage>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Miners Accept Wage Award |date= 24 June 1942 |page= 2 |issue= 49270))</ref> In response, the government increased the minimum weekly pay to 83 shillings (for those over the age of 21 working underground)<ref name=min_wage/> and established a new Ministry of Fuel, Light and Power, under the leadership of [[Gwilym Lloyd George]] to oversee the reorganisation of coal production for the war effort.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= The Coal Plan |date= 4 June 1942 |page= 5 |issue= 49253))</ref> In late summer, a bonus scheme was proposed to reward workers in mines that exceeded their output targets.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Bonus on coal output |date= 31 August 1942 |page= 2 |issue= 49328))</ref> These measures resulted in an increase in production in the second half of 1942,<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Increased output of coal |date= 16 October 1942 |page= 2 |issue= 49368))</ref><ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Coal output up slightly |date= 12 November 1942 |page= 2 |issue= 49417))</ref> although volumes were still short of the tonnage required.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Coal output still below standard |date= 13 January 1943 |page= 2 |issue= 49442))</ref>

Absenteeism (miners taking time off work as a result of e.g. sickness) also rose through the war from 9.65% in December 1941 to 10.79% and 14.40% in the Decembers of 1942 and 1943 respectively.<ref>((ukhansard | house=HC | date= 29 May 1945 | vol=411 | c=109))</ref>

By October 1943, Britain was becoming desperate for a continued supply of coal, both for the industrial war effort and for domestic heating throughout the winter.((citation needed|date=April 2020))

===Appeals for volunteers===
[[File:Ernest Bevin MP.jpg|thumb|upright|Ernest Bevin (photographed in 1942)]]
On 23 June 1941, Bevin made a broadcast appeal to former miners, asking them to volunteer to return to the pits, with an aim of increasing numbers of mineworkers by 50,000.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Urgent call to miners |date= 24 June 1941 |page= 2 |issue= 48960))</ref> He also issued a 'standstill' order, to prevent more miners being called up to serve in the armed forces.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= No more miners for the army |date= 25 June 1941 |page= 5 |issue= 48961))</ref>

On 12 November 1943, Bevin made a radio broadcast aimed at [[sixth form|sixth-form]] boys, to encourage them to volunteer to work in the mines when they registered for National Service. He promised the students that, like those serving in the armed forces, they would be eligible for the government’s further education scheme.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Coal output up |date= 13 November 1943 |page= 2 |issue= 49702))</ref><ref name=Bevin_speech>((cite book |last= Bevin |first= Ernest |author-link= Ernest Bevin |chapter= A call to youth for the coal mines|orig-year=1st broadcast 12 November 1943 |date= December 1943 |title= British Speeches of the Day |volume= 10 |location= London |publisher= British Information Services |pages= 22–24 ))</ref>

((quote|We need 720,000 men continuously employed in this industry&nbsp; This is where you boys come in. Each one of you, I am sure, is full of enthusiasm to win this war. You are looking forward to the day when you can play your part with your friends and brothers who are in the Navy, the Army, the Air Force&nbsp;... But believe me, our fighting men will not be able to achieve their purpose unless we get an adequate supply of coal&nbsp;... So when you go to register and the question is put to you "Will you go into the mines?" let your answer be, "Yes, I will go anywhere to help win this war".|Ernest Bevin, 12 November 1943<ref name=Bevin_speech/>))
The term 'Bevin Boys' is thought to originate from this broadcast.((citation needed|date=April 2020))

===Conscription===
On 12 October 1943, [[Gwilym Lloyd George]], [[Minister of Fuel and Power]], announced in the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] that some conscripts would be directed to the mines.<ref>((ukhansard | house=HC | date=12 October 1943 | vol=392 | cc=764-766))</ref> On 2 December, Ernest Bevin explained the scheme in more detail in parliament, announcing his intention to draft 30,000 men aged 18 to 25 by 30 April 1944.<ref name=Bevin-Dec-43>((ukhansard | house=HC | date=2 December 1943 | vol=395 | cc=521-529))</ref><ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Young men for the mines |date= 3 December 1943 |page= 4 |issue= 49719))</ref>

From 1943 to 1945, one out of every ten young men called up was sent to work in the mines. This caused a great deal of upset, as many young men wanted to join the fighting forces and felt that as miners, their contributions would not be valued.((citation needed|date=April 2020)) The first Bevin Boys began work, having completed their training, on 14 February 1944.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= First "Bevin Boys" start work |date= 14 February 1944 |page= 2 |issue= 49779))</ref>

==Programme==

===Selection of conscripts===
To make the process random, one of Bevin's secretaries each week, from 14 December 1943, pulled a digit from a hat containing all ten digits, 0–9, and all men liable for call-up that week whose National Service registration number ended in that digit were directed to work in the mines, with the exception of any selected for highly skilled war work such as flying planes and in submarines, and men found physically unfit for mining. Conscripted miners came from many different trades and professions, from desk work to heavy manual labour, and included some who might otherwise have become [[commissioned officer]]s.((citation needed|date=April 2020))

An appeals process was set up, to allow conscripts the opportunity to challenge the decision to send them to the pits, although decisions were rarely overturned.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Bevin Boy loses appeal |date= 3 April 1944 |page= 2 |issue= 49821))</ref> Those who refused to serve in the mines were imprisoned.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Bevin Boy changes his mind |date= 14 April 1944 |page= 2 |issue= 49830))</ref><ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Prison for Bevin Boy |date= 23 August 1944 |page= 2 |issue= 49942))</ref><ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Bevin Boy cases |date= 6 September 1944 |page= 8 |issue= 49953))</ref> By 31 May 1944, 285 conscripts had refused to serve as miners, of whom 135 had been prosecuted and 32 had been given a prison sentence.<ref>((ukhansard | house=HC | date= 15 June 1944 | vol=400 | c=2105))</ref> By the end of November 1944, out of a total of 16,000 conscripts, 143 had refused to serve in the mines and had been sent to prison, some with the imposition of hard labour.<ref>((ukhansard | house=HC | date= 14 December 1944 | vol=406 | c=1328))</ref>

===Training===
[[File:Bevin Boy- Mining Training at Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, February 1945 D23732.jpg|thumb|A classroom lecture where Bevin Boys are learning about the [[Davy lamp]] at Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, in February 1945]]
Boys when they were nearly 18 years old received an official [[postcard]] instructing them in five days time to report to a training centre such as at [[Cresswell, Derbyshire|Cresswell Colliery]], Derbyshire.<ref name="ReferenceA">Interview 29 August 2019 with ex-Bevin Boy Kenneth Jones born 1926.</ref>

Bevin Boys with no previous experience of mining, were given six weeks' training (four in a classroom-type setting and two at their assigned colliery).<ref name=Bevin-Dec-43/> For their first four weeks of underground work, they were supervised by an experienced miner.<ref name=Bevin-Dec-43/> With the exception of those working in the south Wales coalfields, the conscripts could not work at the coalface until they had accrued four months' experience underground.<ref name=Bevin-Dec-43/>

For the most part, the Bevin Boys were not directly involved in cutting coal from the [[face (mining)|mine face]], but acted instead as colliers assistants, responsible for filling tubs or [[wagon]]s and hauling them back to the shaft for transport to the surface.<ref name=Museum_Wales/> Conscripts were supplied with helmets and steel-capped safety boots.

===Pay and working conditions===

Almost as soon as the first Bevin Boys had reported for training, there were complaints that their remuneration (44 shillings per week for an 18-year-old) were barely sufficient to cover living costs.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Grievances of Bevin Boys |date= 20 January 1944 |page= 8 |issue= 49758))</ref> Some 140 went on strike in Doncaster for two days before their training had finished.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Pit recruits go back |date= 22 January 1944 |page= 4 |issue= 49760))</ref> There were also complaints from experienced miners, who resented the fact that a 21-year-old recruit received the same minimum wage as they did.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Coal strikes continued |date= 11 March 1944 |page= 4 |issue= 49802))</ref>

Bevin Boys did not wear uniforms or badges, but the oldest clothes they could find. Being of military age and without uniform caused many to be stopped by police and questioned about avoiding call-up.<ref>Called Up Sent Down : The Bevin Boys' War – Tom Hickman Pub. The History Press 2008 ((ISBN|0-7509-4547-8))</ref>

===Contemporary attitudes to Bevin Boys===

Many Bevin Boys suffered taunts as they wore no uniform, and there were accusations by some people that they were deliberately avoiding military conscription. Since a number of [[conscientious objectors]] were sent to work down the mines as an alternative to military service (under a system wholly separate from the Bevin Boy programme), there was sometimes an assumption that Bevin Boys were "Conchies". The right to conscientiously object to military service for philosophical or religious reasons was recognised in conscription legislation, as it had been in WWI. Old attitudes prevailed amongst some members of the general public, with resentment by association towards Bevin Boys. In 1943 Ernest Bevin said in Parliament:

((quote|There are thousands of cases in which conscientious objectors, although they have refused to take up arms, have shown as much courage as anyone else in Civil Defence and in other walks of life.|Ernest Bevin, 9 December 1943<ref>((ukhansard | house=HC | date=9 December 1943 | vol=395 | c=1108))</ref>))

==End of programme==
The final conscription ballot took place in May 1945 (shortly before [[Victory in Europe Day|VE Day]]); however, the final conscripts were not released from service until March 1948.

==Recognition of contribution to the war effort==
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Bevin Boy Veteran badge.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|Bevin Boy Veteran badge, awarded to former Bevin Boys by the British Government since 2008.<ref>((cite web |url=https://www.historyextra.com/period/second-world-war/5-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-the-bevin-boys/|title=5 things you (probably) didn’t know about the Bevin Boys |access-date=31 August 2019))</ref>((ffdc|Bevin Boy Veteran badge.jpg|log=2020 April 5))]] -->

Within a few months of the first Bevin Boys starting work, there were calls for a badge to be awarded in recognition of the importance of their national service.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Young mine workers |date= 31 May 1944 |page= 8 |issue= 49870))</ref>

After the war, Bevin Boys received neither [[medal]]s nor the right to return to the jobs they had previously held,<ref name=Museum_Wales/> although like forces veterans, they were entitled to participate in the government's Further Education and Training Scheme, which paid university fees and an annual means-tested grant of up to £426 to cover living expenses whilst studying.<ref>((cite book |last= Dent |first= Harold Collett |year= 2007 |title=  Growth in English education, 1946–1952  |location= London |publisher= Routledge |chapter=Chapter 1 |isbn= 9780415432160))</ref>

The role played by Bevin Boys in Britain's war effort was not fully recognised until 1995, 50 years after [[VE Day]], when [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]] mentioned them in a speech.<ref>((cite web |url=https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/bevins-boys-kept-in-the-dark-for-60-years.html |title=Bevin's Boys – British Conscripts Forced To Mine Coal – Kept in the Dark for Over 70 Years |date=29 January 2016 |access-date=31 August 2019 |archive-date=31 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831100941/https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/bevins-boys-kept-in-the-dark-for-60-years.html |url-status=live ))</ref>

On 20 June 2007, then prime minister [[Tony Blair]] informed the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] that thousands of conscripts who worked in mines during WWII would be awarded a veterans badge similar to the HM armed forces badge awarded by the [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]].<ref>((cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1555056/Bevin-Boys-war-effort-honoured-with-badge.html|title=Bevin Boys' war effort honoured with badge|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=31 August 2019|archive-date=31 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831095514/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1555056/Bevin-Boys-war-effort-honoured-with-badge.html|url-status=live))</ref> The first badges were awarded on 25 March 2008 by the then prime minister, [[Gordon Brown]], at a reception in 10 Downing Street, marking the 60th anniversary of discharge of the last Bevin Boys.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Bevin Boys honoured |date= 26 March 2008 |page= 4 |issue= 69281))</ref> In 2010, Tom Hickman's ''[["Called Up Sent Down": The Bevin Boys' War]]'' was published, containing accounts of around 70 of the boys sent to the coal mines.<ref name=Appell2008>((cite journal |last1=Appell |first1=James |title=Forgotten conscripts no longer |journal=The Oxonian Review of Books |date=2008 |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=8–9 |url=https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/25097340/of-books-the-oxonian-review |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220722082035/https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/25097340/of-books-the-oxonian-review|archive-date=22 July 2022|access-date=22 July 2022 |language=en|issn=1756-3909))</ref>

((multiple image
 | width = 
 | direction = vertical
 | header = Front and side views of the ''Memorial to the Bevin Boys''. [[National Memorial Arboretum]], Alrewas.
 | image1 = 
 | alt1 = 
 | caption1 = Inscription reads: "Bevin Boys - we also served 1943–1948".
 | image2 = Bevin Boys Memorial 2.jpg
 | alt2 = 
 | caption2 = Inscription reads: "The Bevin Boys were National Service conscripts, directed to work underground in British coal mines, providing unskilled labour to safeguard vital coal production to power the British war effort and produce coal for the nation."
 )) 
On Tuesday 7 May 2013, a memorial to the Bevin Boys, based on the Bevin Boys Badge, was unveiled by the [[Sophie, Countess of Wessex|Countess of Wessex]] at the [[National Memorial Arboretum]] at [[Alrewas]], Staffordshire.<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Court Circular |date= 8 May 2013 |page= 51 |issue= 70879))</ref><ref name=memorial>((cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newsvideo/royalfamilyvideo/10041949/Bevin-Boys-memorial-unveiled-by-Countess-of-Wessex.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131027231241/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newsvideo/royalfamilyvideo/10041949/Bevin-Boys-memorial-unveiled-by-Countess-of-Wessex.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 October 2013|title=Bevin Boys memorial unveiled by Countess of Wessex|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=12 May 2013))</ref> The memorial was designed by former Bevin Boy Harry Parkes; it is made of four stone plinths carved from grey [[Kilkenny Marble|Kilkenny stone]] from Ireland. The stone should turn black over time, to resemble the coal that the miners extracted.<ref name=memorial/>

The Bevin Boys Association is trying to trace all 48,000 Bevin Boy conscripts, optants or volunteers who served in Britain's coal mines during and after the war, from 1943 to 1948.<ref>((cite web |url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/am28467 |title=Bevin Boys Association entry on Culture24 |access-date=16 December 2009 |archive-date=20 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100720073850/http://www.culture24.org.uk/am28467 |url-status=live ))</ref>

==Notable Bevin Boys==
*[[Peter Archer, Baron Archer of Sandwell|Peter Archer]], lawyer and Labour Party politician<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Lord Archer of Sandwell |date= 21 June 2012 |page= 51 |issue= 70605))</ref>
*[[Stanley Bailey]], senior police officer<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Sir Stanley Bailey |date= 19 August 2008 |page= 53 |issue= 69406))</ref>
*[[Stanley Baxter]], actor and impressionist<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/14962652.glasgow-born-comedy-star-stanley-baxter-shows-no-sign-of-ending-his-love-with-radio/|title=Glasgow-born comedy star Stanley Baxter shows no sign of ending his love with radio|website=Glasgow Times|language=en|access-date=2020-01-23|archive-date=23 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123002923/https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/14962652.glasgow-born-comedy-star-stanley-baxter-shows-no-sign-of-ending-his-love-with-radio/|url-status=live))</ref>
*[[John Comer]], actor<ref>((Cite web |url=http://afternoontea.mpt.org/tea-time-tidbits/060914/ |title=Last of the Summer Wine's John Comer &#124; Tea Time Tidbits &#124; MPT Afternoon Tea |access-date=5 August 2016 |archive-date=17 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160917150443/http://afternoontea.mpt.org/tea-time-tidbits/060914/ |url-status=live ))</ref>
*[[Geoffrey Finsberg]], Conservative politician<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Lord Finsberg |date= 10 October 1996 |page= 23 |issue= 65705))</ref>
*[[Roy Grantham]], trade union leader<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Roy Grantham |date= 15 November 2013 |page= 70 |issue= 71043))</ref>
*[[Paul Hamlyn]], founder of the Hamlyn group of publishers and Music for Pleasure record label<ref name="MosseCarlebach">((cite book|last1=Mosse|first1=Werner Eugen|last2=Carlebach|first2=Julius|title=Second chance: two centuries of German-speaking Jews in the United Kingdom|year=1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a-6WlsDsuo8C&pg=PA376|access-date=10 May 2013|publisher=Mohr Siebeck|isbn=9783161457418|page=376))</ref>
*[[Wally Holmes (rugby union)|Wally Holmes]], rugby union player
*[[Nat Lofthouse]], footballer<ref>((cite web|url=http://www.bolton.gov.uk/website/news/pages/BoltonsBevinBoysremembered.aspx|title=Bolton Council-Bolton's Bevin Boys remembered|access-date=18 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927094601/http://www.bolton.gov.uk/website/news/pages/BoltonsBevinBoysremembered.aspx|archive-date=27 September 2011|url-status=dead))</ref>
*[[Dickson Mabon]], Labour politician<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Dr Dickson Mabon |date= 15 April 2008 |page= 54 |issue= 69298))</ref>
*[[David McClure (artist)|David McClure]], artist
*[[Tom McGuinness (artist)|Tom McGuinness]], artist<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Lives in brief |date= 2 March 2006 |page= 70 |issue= 68637))</ref>
*[[Eric Morecambe]], comedian<ref name="Cooke2007"/>
*[[Alun Owen]], screenwriter<ref>((Cite newspaper The Times |title= Alun Owen |date= 8 December 1994 |page= 23 |issue= 65132))</ref>
*[[Kenneth Partridge]], interior designer<ref>((cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/12062744/Kenneth-Partridge-interior-designer-obituary.html|title=Kenneth Partridge, interior designer – obituary|date=21 December 2015|work=The Telegraph|access-date=21 January 2016|archive-date=30 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151230073417/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/12062744/Kenneth-Partridge-interior-designer-obituary.html|url-status=live))</ref>
*[[Jock Purdon]], folk singer/poet <ref name="EDS">((cite book|title=English Dance & Song|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CFNLAAAAYAAJ|volume=41–44|year=1979|publisher=English Folk Dance and Song Society|page=18))</ref>
*[[Peter Alan Rayner]], numismatic author
*[[Brian Rix]], actor/manager, and President of [[Mencap]]<ref name="Cooke2007">((cite book|last=Cooke|first=Ken|title=History of the Percy Jackson Grammar School: Adwick-le-Street, Doncaster, Yorkshire, 1939–1968 : Recollections of Schooldays of the 1940s, 1950s & 1960s|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cjUfFlKGXGMC&pg=PA6|year=2007|publisher=Troubador Publishing Ltd|isbn=9781905886784|page=6))</ref> 
*[[Jimmy Savile]], disgraced radio/television personality<ref>((Cite news |last=Savile |first=Jimmy |date=23 December 1989 |title=I was forged in the crucible of want and I consider myself far more privileged |work=The Times |location=London))</ref>
*[[Peter Shaffer]], dramatist<ref name="Morton2011">((cite book|last=Morton|first=Ray|title=Amadeus: Music on Film Series|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E1uL6eryT1gC&pg=PT21|year=2011|publisher=Hal Leonard|isbn=9780879104177|page=21))</ref>
*[[Alf Sherwood]], footballer
*[[Gerald Smithson]], cricketer

==Bevin Boys Association==
The Bevin Boys Association was formed in 1989 with 32 members in the Midlands area. By 2009 the membership had grown to over 1,800 from all over the UK and overseas. The association continues to hold meetings and reunions as well as attending commemoration services.

==In popular culture==
Douglas Livingstone's radio play, ''Road to Durham'', is a fictional account of two former Bevin Boys, now in their eighties, as they visit the [[Durham Miners' Gala]].<ref>((cite news|last=Giddings|first=Robert|title=RADIO: Seamless drama goes underground to dig deep for victory|url=http://www.tribunemagazine.co.uk/2009/04/radio-seamless-drama-goes-underground-to-dig-deep-for-victory/|access-date=25 August 2011|newspaper=[[Tribune (magazine)|Tribune]]|date=30 April 2009|archive-date=30 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930142442/http://www.tribunemagazine.co.uk/2009/04/radio-seamless-drama-goes-underground-to-dig-deep-for-victory/|url-status=dead))</ref>

British musician [[Jez Lowe]] wrote the song "The Sea and the Deep Blue Devil" from the perspective of a Bevin Boy who loses his girlfriend to a Royal Navy recruit.<ref>((cite web |url= https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/1389677.jez-lowe-jack-commons-theme-tantobie-records/ |title= Jez Lowe, Jack Common's Theme (Tantobie Records) |last= Foster |first= Richard |date= 10 May 2007 |publisher= The Press |access-date= 4 May 2020 |archive-date= 23 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210123003020/https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/1389677.jez-lowe-jack-commons-theme-tantobie-records/ |url-status= live ))</ref>

English singer-songwriter [[Reg Meuross]] wrote a song called "The Bevin Boys (Bill Pettinger's Lament)". The song was commissioned by Martin Pettinger as a tribute to his Bevin Boy father, Bill.<ref>((cite web |url= https://www.theprsd.co.uk/2021/05/17/reg-meuross-the-bevin-boys-bill-pettingers-lament/ |title= Reg Meuross ((Pipe)) The Bevin Boys (Bill Pettinger's Lament) - the PRSD |date= 17 May 2007 |publisher= PRSD |access-date= 25 May 2020 |archive-date= 17 May 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210517090554/https://www.theprsd.co.uk/2021/05/17/reg-meuross-the-bevin-boys-bill-pettingers-lament/ |url-status= live ))</ref>

==See also==
*[[Unfree labour]] – a related, although different concept; labour in time of war or national emergency is specifically exempted from the category of 'unfree labour', as is work related to fulfilling a civic obligation.

==References==
((Reflist|30em))

==External links==
((Commons category|Bevin Boys))
*[http://www.theforgottenconscript.co.uk/ The Forgotten Conscript]
*[http://www.wartimememories.co.uk/bevinboys.html Wartime Memories – Bevin Boys and their recognition]
*[http://www.bures.me.uk/Bevin.htm The Bevin Boys in Bures. Suffolk]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivWMpNfilAA A short film about the Bevin Boys]
*[http://www.bevinboysassociation.co.uk The Bevin Boys Official Association]

[[Category:Bevin Boys| ]]
[[Category:Conscription in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:1940s in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Coal mining in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:United Kingdom home front during World War II]]

Pages transcluded onto the current version of this page (help):

Bevin Boys (edit)
Template:Ambox (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Blockquote (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Blockquote/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Both (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Catalog lookup link (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Category handler (view source) (protected)
Template:Citation needed (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite ODNB (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite book (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite encyclopedia (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite journal (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite news (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite newspaper The Times (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite web (view source) (protected)
Template:Comma separated entries (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Commons category (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:DMCA (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Dated maintenance category (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Dated maintenance category (articles) (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Delink (view source) (protected)
Template:FULLROOTPAGENAME (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Find sources mainspace (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Fix (view source) (protected)
Template:Fix/category (view source) (protected)
Template:For (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:ISBN (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:If empty (view source) (protected)
Template:Link note (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Main other (view source) (protected)
Template:More citations needed (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Multiple image (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Multiple image/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Ns has subpages (view source) (protected)
Template:ODNBsub (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Template:Pipe (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Plainlist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:Quote (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Reflist (view source) (protected)
Template:Reflist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:Replace (view source) (protected)
Template:SDcat (view source) (protected)
Template:Short description (view source) (protected)
Template:Short description/lowercasecheck (view source) (protected)
Template:Side box (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Sister project (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Ukhansard (edit)
Template:Use British English (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Use dmy dates (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Webarchive (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Yesno (view source) (protected)
Template:Yesno-no (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Yesno-yes (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Arguments (view source) (protected)
Module:Catalog lookup link (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Category handler (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/blacklist (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/shared (view source) (protected)
Module:Check for unknown parameters (view source) (protected)
Module:Check isxn (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Citation/CS1 (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/COinS (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Delink (view source) (protected)
Module:Disambiguation/templates (view source) (protected)
Module:Find sources (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/config (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/links (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Find sources/templates/Find sources mainspace (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:For (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Format link (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote list (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:If empty (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/ambox.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Multiple image (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Namespace detect/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Namespace detect/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Ns has subpages (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/disambiguation (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/setindex (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/softredirect (view source) (protected)
Module:SDcat (view source) (protected)
Module:Separated entries (view source) (protected)
Module:Side box (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Side box/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:String (view source) (protected)
Module:TableTools (view source) (protected)
Module:Template wrapper (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Unsubst (view source) (protected)
Module:Webarchive (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Webarchive/data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:WikidataIB (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:WikidataIB/nolinks (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:WikidataIB/titleformats (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Wikitext Parsing (view source) (protected)
Module:Yesno (view source) (protected)

Return to Bevin Boys.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bevin_Boys"