Wapping Strike

‘Fleet Street’ is still commonly used as a collective term for the national press. But in the 1980s, most newspapers relocated from Fleet Street to larger plants in East London. The move changed the newspaper industry forever, as proprietors wanted to introduce the latest technology to the printing process. This brought about the loss of many jobs in the industry and led to resistance from the printing trade union, SOGAT ’82.

The Sun, 6 February 1987
The British Library gratefully acknowledges the John Frost Newspaper Archive for permission to reproduce this front page.

Strike action began in January 1986 at News International in Wapping, East London. Violent clashes between union members and police soon ensued. The Sun, member of News International, shows its victorious relief at the end of a yearlong ‘War of Wapping’ in the simple headline, ‘It’s all over!’