Release Message:  Three families face the hardships of live in 1927, when coal ruled the world.

Description:  Filmed from early October 2007 and shown from late October 2007, three families (the Cartwright family from Penarth, the Griffiths family from Ceredigion; and the Phillips family from the Vale of Glamorgan), cope with daily life as the Welsh mining community lived it 80 years ago - a year after the last general strike and before the pits were nationalized. For the men and boys over 14 there was the harsh reality of long walks to work over mountains in all weather, to face a long day as coal miners at Blaentillery No.2 Mine - the last working mine of its kind in the UK. Meanwhile, the women had to run the home under 1927 conditions, keeping the children fed, watered and clean. Even making a cup of tea involved the hard work of collecting water from a pump and lighting a fire.