Exhibition of cotton mills in 1970s Lancashire returns home
Fifty years on, the great documentary photographer Daniel Meadows returns to Lancashire. This facsimile exhibition recreates an original touring show from the 1970s, when these extraordinary photographs were taken, documenting working life in Queen Street Mill, Burnley; Bancroft Shed in Barnoldswick and even atop a 150 foot chimney stack! Shuttles, Steam and Soot premieres at Queen Street Mill Textile Museum from 8 July 2026 before touring to other Lancashire locations.
Daniel Meadows is now widely recognised as a pioneer of twentieth century documentary photography. His archive is now held in the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Back in 1975, the young Daniel Meadows began two years as photographer-in residence to Pendle Borough Council, with support from Mid Pennine Arts. Here, he found himself drawn to Queen Street Mill, and especially to Bancroft Shed, the last surviving steam powered cotton weaving mill in Pendle. Daniel began documenting the life of the mills and getting to know the people who worked in them. From Bancroft Shed engineer Stanley Graham, flue cleaner Charlie Sutton and steeplejack Peter Tatham, he created a uniquely vivid portrait of Lancashire’s workers and their disappearing trades.
Shuttles, Steam and Soot was first exhibited in 1978, as part of the Half Moon Photography Workshop’s radical programme of affordable, portable, touring shows. Touring widely from galleries to community centres, from the Shetland Islands to Germany, the exhibition reached a huge audience before it was eventually lost.
Fifty years on, Daniel worked with Four Corners in London’s East End to recreate faithfully the original touring exhibition. A rarely seen body of work by a towering figure in British photography, we are thrilled to bring it, and Daniel, back to Lancashire. Shuttles, Steam and Soot will continue its journey by returning to the very locations where these unforgettable images were captured.
Exhibition Details:
Queen Street Mill in Burnley. The exhibition was on display from Wednesday 8 July to Saturday 29 August 2026.
Bancroft Mill Engine Museum in Barnoldswick. The exhibition is on display from Saturday 5 September to Saturday 31 October 2026, (open Wed-Sat 11am-4pm – admission to the exhibition is free*).
*The museum is also open on Steaming Sundays when both the engines will be running at various times. Entry fees for those days are £8 for adults with concessions available (you can find full details on their website). Steaming Days during the exhibition are: 6 & 27 September and 18 October.
Further dates and venues to follow soon.
Encounters:
Daniel Meadows returned to Queen Street Mill on Saturday 18 July for an ‘in conversation’ with Laurie Peake MBE, Director of British Textile Biennial. Courtesy of Mike Smith from Burnley Film Makers you can watch a video of that event on YouTube.
On Sunday 19 July, Daniel Meadows visited the last Clarion House near Roughlee. In 1976, Daniel documented the socialist rural retreat in a magazine spread for Lancashire Life, and recorded a series of extended conversations with the Clarion stalwart Stan Iveson. He revisited those historic chats in an informal conversation with Sue Nike, Chair of Nelson ILP Land Trust which maintains Clarion House.
We had the most wonderful day at Bancroft Mill Engine Museum on Saturday 5 September for the opening of Shuttles, Steam and Soot. The day included an ‘in conversation‘ with Daniel and Stanley Graham (ex engineer at Bancroft Mill who features in many of the photos). The encounter was greatly enjoyed by themselves and the visitors. They also got to start one of the magnificent engines. The encounter was filmed, and we will share that in due course.
Publication:
While we are showing this exhibition we have a small number of the beautiful limited edition newspapers created for the exhibition by Blue Coat Press. There are only 100 copies overall and we have just 10 of them. The set consists of three tabloid-sized newspapers created to accompany the UK tour, featuring the photographs and narrative text. 60 pages; 290 x 370 mm; 92 b&w images. £30, which includes 2nd class postage within the UK. Visit our Shop to buy.
Shuttles, Steam and Soot in Lancashire is a Pendle Radicals tour presented by Mid Pennine Arts with support from British Textile Biennial, Queen Street Mill Textile Museum, Lancashire County Council and Nelson ILP Land Trust.
You can see lots more of Daniel’s images in this Guardian article – Loom With A View
