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The New Elizabethans

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James Naughtie profiles 60 public figures nominated to mark the diamond jubilee

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The New Elizabethans: Jayaben Desai

Jayaben Desai

07/08/2012

BBC Radio 4 Extra - The New Elizabethans, Jayaben Desai

James Naughtie profiles the sewing machinist who led an infamous strike in the 1970s.

James Naughtie considers the life of Jayaben Desai, an immigrant sewing machinist who went on to lead one of the most infamous strikes of the 1970s.

Jayaben Desai, defied stereotyping all her life. "A person like me, I am never scared of anybody," she told managers at the Grunwick film processing plant in Willesden, London shortly before she led a walkout in August 1976. Desai and her co workers were dubbed "strikers in saris" by the media but she went on to lead a campaign which eventually led to a respect for immigrant workers and a recognition of the very long hours and low wages they were prepared to tolerate.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.
They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse."

Producer: Sarah Taylor.

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