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Behind the Vote, is a documentary by Amber’s Current Affairs Unit, made in collaboration with Swingbridge Video, following the Chesterfield by-election that saw Tony Benn returned to Parliament. With a focus on campaign strategy and media relations, the film offers an inside view of how a left-wing Labour campaign challenged hostile press coverage to secure a win in a coalfield constituency during a period of deep political tension.
The film explores the key elements of the campaign, including doorstep canvassing, workplace outreach, and the Labour Party’s efforts to counter press narratives. Interviews with campaign organisers and Tony Benn himself are intercut with footage from a Liberal Alliance press conference, creating a broader picture of the political landscape at the time. The documentary reflects Amber’s wider interest in grassroots politics and the communication of political ideas, particularly in the context of working-class communities.
Produced just ahead of the 1984–85 Miners’ Strike, Behind the Vote sits alongside Amber’s broader engagement with labour struggles, anti-nuclear activism and the analysis of media bias. It was designed as a practical tool to prompt discussion around the electoral process, accompanied by User Notes to support its use in trade union and political education settings. The film remains a valuable record of both a key moment in Benn’s political career and of Labour’s campaigning on the ground in a coalfield community.
