UK-Australian Labour History Conference, Manchester, 16-18 July 2003

Abstract

Held at the adjacent campuses of Manchester University and Manchester Metropolitan University in weather more like an Australian summer than is usual for Manchester (even in summer), this Conference brought together well known practitioners of 'labour history' in Australia and Britain, some 'early career researchers' and, most encouragingly, some graduate students. Ostensibly it might appear as if the Conference was a by-product of what is nowadays often referred to as 'the new British history', an interest in the trans-national history of the British world beyond the British Isles. The fact that the model here was actually the Australia-Canada Labour History Conference held in 1996 is indicative of the extent to which 'labour history', in Australia at least, has been at the forefront in terms of engaging with emerging forms of inquiry. The Conference was very successful (apparently more successful, at a comparable stage, than the Canada-Australia exchange) in opening up numerous comparative and trans-national issues, as well as identifying some important differences. One of the convenors, Greg Patmore, opened the proceedings with a thoughtful discussion of the pros and cons of comparative history, which was also useful in setting the agenda for subsequent sessions. Across three parallel 'strands' the papers ranged far and wide: from detailed discussions of the contents of various labour archives