Arthur Scargill held the post of the leader of the NUM for twenty years until 2002 before moving on to pursue a career in politics. He is still active politically; in addition to being leader of the Socialist Party (SLP) he holds the honorary position of leader of the NUM. In 2001 he and his wife Anne divorced with no love lost. Durung the strike Anne had formed the Women Agaisnt Pit Closures and played an active part in helping the families of the striking miners. After transporting pickets in Nottinghamshire early in the strike she was arrested, detained for hours and strip searched. Scargill, now retired and receiving a NUM pension, lives in a cottage in Worsborough near Barnsley close the village where he was born
Immediately after the strike the NUM imposed new rules on its membership. However, the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire miners voted not to accept the changes and formed a separate union, the Union of Democratic Mineworkers ( UDM). Like the farmer who ploughed up the Roman mosaic, Nottinghamshire miners have always had a reputation for keeping their hands on their ha’penny.