Lovely to spend time today with Weardale Together CIC, Sam Slatcher, Lizzie Lovejoy and more at the Root & Branch Community Café in Stanhope. A fabulous gathering of passionate people, talking about the challenges for community in Weardale. 🤩

Inspiring chat with the Rev Joanne Thorns this morning. Under the umbrella of 'Communities Together Durham' she works with churches, charities, food banks and more to help stem the tide of failings by our leaders (both local and national). In a fairer world Joanne would have nothing to do…

If lonely moors, abandoned buildings and Wuthering Heights is your thing, you'll love this! 🤩 www.mariegardiner.co.uk/zines-and-pr...

The sun is out today... Memories of last year's Big Meeting. Three months to go ✊ #Durham #Mining #Solidarity THE DURHAM MINERS' GALA

There are no words...

We recently visited the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi Concentration camp in Poland. The museum’s role is to enable visitors to look into the face of the most notorious murderous and dehumanising events of the Second World War. 1/3

A sombre day

The Orgreave inquiry has now begun. All credit and support to the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign who have campaigned tirelessly for this moment.

Nearly forgot to say, I have a multi-page article in this month's (May edition) of LandScape magazine. This time it's on Dunbar, or 'sunny Dunny' 😊.

Lovely creative time at at Byers Green Primary School today. All part of an exciting Spennymoor Town Council community art bus stop project 😃

'Where's the violence?' Photographer Keith Pattison talking about his time in Easington Colliery on the Durham coast during the 84/85 Miners' Strike. There was violence, but it didn't come from the community. ‘DEFIANT – County Durham, The Miners’ Strike and its Legacy’ film coming soon #Documentary

Lovely to chat with artist Yann Nguema & Arnaud Doucet from Anima-Lux at Preston Park Museum last week. Yann created 'Perfume' & Arnoud helped to bring it to life. In a world of stresses 'Perfume' is immersive & allows you to stop, rest & take a beat. It is soooo beautiful 🤩

I wrote a short, sad thing. open.substack.com/pub/mariegar...

Lovely write up from Tony Henderson about 'Lost & Found - The McLaren Diaries of Thorpe Thewles', a film we produced with Thorpe Thewles History Group. The response has been overwhelming. 🤩 www.culturednortheast.co.uk/p/rescued-du...

Ray and Moira are two of the loveliest people you could meet. They generously gave their time and shared their story with us in the hope that it might help them save their house. They're not against regeneration, but they are in a position where they face losing the home 1/4 #Documentary

Lovely to meet siblings Ray and Moira, and their friend Keith, yesterday. Horden's regeneration plan means their childhood home would be demolished and replaced with new housing they couldn't afford. They support regeneration, but not at the cost of the house they've lived in for 60 years.

Fascinating time with Niall Hammond and the team at the historic Heighington Station in County Durham, the world's first purpose built railway station. The Friends of Stockton & Darlington Railway own, and are now restoring the building. A long road ahead, but incredible progress made. #Railways

Stobs Camp in the Scottish Borders. An historic site that comprised an army training camp and a prisoner internement camp - an edit from our filming, more info here www.stobscamp.org

Filming recently 'The Hope Brigade' - portraits of inspirational women and non- binary people on display at Locomotion Shildon (and elsewhere), as part of S&DR200 and the Women of the World Festival. Thanks to Colette Bailey, Cat Foley and Ree Kirkbride for chatting on Camera 🤩

Inspiring time at Spennymoor Town Council Town Hall today for International Womens'Day. Brilliant speakers and exhibition. Thank you everyone.

Fab time catching up with Nocciola the drawer as the Spennymoor community bus stop project progresses

The House of Lords Digital & Communications Committee just published their report on AI, copyright & the creative industries, and their conclusions could not be clearer. 🧵 1/5

Reminded recently of a filming trip to Stobs Camp in the Scottish Borders. Andrew Jepson from Archaeology Scotland was our guide. Stobs has a history as both a military training camp, and prisoner of war camp. Film Link - www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_Hv...

This would be a complete and utter betrayal by @labouruk.bsky.social. Another to add to an increasingly long list. It can not stand.

💚 There is hope

Such a fun day filming at Locomotion in Shildon as the Guinness World Records 'Doing the Locomotion' record attempt took place! Fun, energy and so many laughs. Thank you to all who took part, stars one and all 🤩

Today has been about filming Bus Stops as part of a community art project in the Spennymoor area. The looks you get when you go 'bus stop spotting...' 😶‍🌫️

Plans are finally in motion to get this incredibly important film released. The Miners' Strike in County Durham and how the fallout echoes through our communities today. 'DEFIANT - County Durham, the Miners' Strike and its Legacy'... Coming Soon!

A lot of (national) attention on Horden at the moment, which is both good and bad. Going to have to do a lot of biting my tongue and grinding my teeth to nubs reading people's glib takes on it and the people who live there, that's for sure. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Cheeky coffee time!

Sadly it seems like the university is simply running down the clock on opposition to the intended closure and (I suspect, very quick) demolition of the National Glass Centre in July. But, that's not a reason to not care or stop trying. 1/4 [More: savethengc.art.blog/]

Lovely night with the team from Thorpe Thewles History Group in the village. A preview thank you screening of the film 'Lost & Found - The McLaren Diaries of Thorpe Thewles' for everyone who helped make it happen 😃

Workers... nothing is given without a fight! From 'DEFIANT - County Durham, The Miners' Strike and its Legacy' coming soon www.imdb.com/title/tt3936...

A project we worked on last year has now reached completion. 'LOST & FOUND - The McLaren Diaries of Thorpe Thewles, the story of three found diaries from Edwardian England. More information available here - thorpe-thewles.org.uk/lost-found-t...

What a wonderful night of community and revelry in St John's Chapel last night for the 'Weardale Together Winter Wassail' Huge congratulation to everyone who made it happen 😃

Time to SHEEPISHLY (see what I did there) promote my Changing Landscapes zines again. Most of you probably have one by now 😂. Chock full of ruined buildings, former industry sites, and rusting vehicles of the North Pennines. #Photography #Zine #ThePhotoHour www.mariegardiner.co.uk/zines-and-pr...

This is not new news to anyone who creates 'stuff'. What is equally appauling is the casual use of GenAI by those who claim to be principled and those who claim to champion workers rights.

'Going Back Brockens' visited this exhibition in three different places now, each adding to the work. Moving, beautiful, disturbing, defiant... 100% North East. Thank you Narbi Price, Mark Hudson and filmmaker Carl Joyce

*VOLUME UP* Revisiting this from the fabulous Frankie Archer Music at Hartlepool Folk Festival in 2024. The festival has moved, and become Durham Folk Festival 🎻 . Frankie's folk is like nothing you have ever heard before... Goosebumps. Johnny Handle's 'Guard Yer Man Well' #Mining #Folkmusic

I wrote a thing that isn't miserable 🥳 '[...] as soon as we arrive in the little town of Füssen down the road from where we’ve been staying, we’re looking for somewhere to hide from the elements. Unfortunately, so is everyone else.' mariegardiner.substack.com/p/memories-a...

Plans are finally in motion to get this incredibly important film released. The Miners' Strike in County Durham and how the fallout echoes through our communities today. 'DEFIANT - County Durham, the Miners' Strike and its Legacy'... Coming Soon!

It would be remiss of me not to promote Changing Landscapes again after such a lovely post about it 😊. www.mariegardiner.co.uk/zines-and-pr...

First zine of 2026 - a wonderfully curated experience - full of richness and depth - highly recommend @mariegardiner.bsky.social #photography

Fun time chatting with Pete Waterman today, the 'Hitman' and rail enthusiast!

Really fun time at Kirk Merrington Primary School yesterday, as Olga & pupils worked on the new bus stop mural project for Spennymoor Town Council - A stunning sunset too 👩‍🎨🌇

Not much in the way of social media from us so far this year. We are knee deep in editing a documentary film about Stockton chemist John Walker, the inventor of the 'Friction Light' or matches as we call them now. A simple thing that revolutionised society. 2026 marks 200 years since his invention 🔥

The Man is currently editing our documentary on John Walker, (the inventor of the friction match) and came across an article about a woman who died from eating 40 (FORTY!) matches.

And we are back! HAPPY NEW YEAR 🔥

Start 2026 off with a frivolous purchase of my zine, if not for photographic delight (which you'd surely find...) then to stop the box of zines cluttering up our office.

Happy new year you lot ❤️ all good things for 2026.