Latest news with #JulianaHeron
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Bruce Springsteen hailed for 'life-saving' $20,000 gift to striking miners in the north-east of England in the midst of sweeping pit closures
Rock veteran Bruce Springsteen has been hailed as a 'hero' after his 'life-saving' $20,000 donation to striking miners was revealed in a new documentary. In the BBC show, When Bruce Springsteen Came To Britain, it is revealed the 75-year-old invited women from miners' support groups to his show at Newcastle United's St James' Park stadium in 1985, amid sweeping pit closures across the country. Juliana Heron, who ran a support group of wives of miners faced with losing their jobs, joked in the feature that she was initially reluctant to attend the stadium as she supported Newcastle's rivals Sunderland, before her friend Anne Suddick was presented with the cheque. She explained: 'I got a phone call off Anne Suddick, she was the kingpin for the… support group. 'She says, 'Juliana, do you fancy going to a concert?' and I said, 'what concert?' She says, 'it's Bruce Springsteen', I says, 'well, who's Bruce Springsteen?' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the Daily Mail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'I says, 'it'd be difficult for me to go in there as a lifelong supporter of Sunderland football club, I'll cross myself when I go in', but I've got to say, I'll remember that day for the rest of my life. 'During the interval, this man tapped Anne on the shoulder, and he says, 'could you please come and meet Bruce Springsteen?' 'So she went in, and she was about half-an-hour anyway, she comes back, and she sits down. 'She says, 'you'll never believe this, look', and she just handed this cheque that says $20,000. She says, 'yes, it's for the… support group in Northumberland off Bruce Springsteen'. 'I says, 'wait, he doesn't know us', she says, 'yes, but he knows what we're doing'. 'He's a hero to us, he didn't do it for publicity. He did it because he wanted to do it, and that would have helped a great deal in the support groups. 'It was absolutely life-saving, it was life-saving.' Speaking about his support for the miners, Springsteen said in the documentary: 'My parents were working class people and I watched them struggle their whole lives. 'I'd been reading about it (the strike) in the newspapers and so it was just something that felt it would be a good thing to do. 'It wasn't a big thing, it was just a good thing to do at the time.' Beginning his career in the 1960s, Springsteen has gone on to have 12 UK top 10 albums and four UK top 10 singles. He is best known for songs such as Born In The USA, Glory Days, Dancing In The Dark, and Born To Run. Even as his fame and wealth have soared over the decades, Springsteen has retained the voice of the working class' balladeer, often weighing in on politics - most notably when he was a regular presence on Barack Obama's presidential campaign. In May, his music and public statements have ended up as particularly pointed and contentious. At a concert in Manchester, England, Springsteen denounced President Donald Trump's politics, calling him an 'unfit president' leading a 'rogue government' of people who have 'no concern or idea for what it means to be deeply American.' 'The America I love, the America I´ve written about that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration,' Springsteen said in words that he included on a digital EP he released a few days later. Trump shot back and called Springsteen highly overrated. 'Never liked him, never liked his music or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he´s not a talented guy - just a pushy, obnoxious JERK,' he wrote on social media. The full programme, When Bruce Springsteen Came To Britain, will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 9.30pm on May 31.
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Bruce Springsteen hailed for `life-saving´ $20,000 gift to striking miners in the north-east of England in the midst of sweeping pit closures
Rock veteran Bruce Springsteen has been hailed as a 'hero' after his 'life-saving' 20,000 dollar donation to striking miners was revealed in a new documentary. In the BBC show, When Bruce Springsteen Came To Britain, it is revealed the 75-year-old invited women from miners' support groups to his show at Newcastle United's St James' Park stadium in 1985, amid sweeping pit closures across the country. Juliana Heron, who ran a support group of wives of miners faced with losing their jobs, joked in the feature that she was initially reluctant to attend the stadium as she supported Newcastle's rivals Sunderland, before her friend Anne Suddick was presented with the cheque. She explained: 'I got a phone call off Anne Suddick, she was the kingpin for the… support group. 'She says, "Juliana, do you fancy going to a concert?" and I said, "what concert?" She says, "it's Bruce Springsteen", I says, "well, who's Bruce Springsteen?" From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the Daily Mail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'I says, "it'd be difficult for me to go in there as a lifelong supporter of Sunderland football club, I'll cross myself when I go in", but I've got to say, I'll remember that day for the rest of my life. 'During the interval, this man tapped Anne on the shoulder, and he says, "could you please come and meet Bruce Springsteen?" So she went in, and she was about half-an-hour anyway, she comes back, and she sits down. 'She says, "you'll never believe this, look", and she just handed this cheque that says $20,000. She says, "yes, it's for the… support group in Northumberland off Bruce Springsteen". 'I says, "wait, he doesn't know us", she says, "yes, but he knows what we're doing". 'He's a hero to us, he didn't do it for publicity. He did it because he wanted to do it, and that would have helped a great deal in the support groups. 'It was absolutely life-saving, it was life-saving.' Speaking about his support for the miners, Springsteen said in the documentary: 'My parents were working class people and I watched them struggle their whole lives. 'I'd been reading about it (the strike) in the newspapers and so it was just something that felt it would be a good thing to do. 'It wasn't a big thing, it was just a good thing to do at the time.' Beginning his career in the 1960s, Springsteen has gone on to have 12 UK top 10 albums and four UK top 10 singles, he is best known for songs such as Born In The USA, Glory Days, Dancing In The Dark, and Born To Run. The full programme, When Bruce Springsteen Came To Britain, will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 9.30pm on May 31.
BBC News
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Bruce Springsteen speaks out on North East miners' strike support
Rock legend Bruce Springsteen has spoken for the first time about his decision to donate thousands of dollars to the families of striking singer invited women from support groups backstage at a concert at St James' Park in Newcastle in was when mining communities in the North East were trying to recover from the bitter year-long dispute, and he handed over a cheque for $20, in a forthcoming BBC documentary, Springsteen said he had followed news coverage of the strike in the months before the concert. Springsteen, nicknamed The Boss, said: "My parents were working class people and I watched them struggle their whole lives."I'd been reading about it (the strike) in the newspapers and so it was just something that felt it would be a good thing to do."It wasn't a big thing, it was just a good thing to do at the time." 'Hero to us' The cheque was handed to Anne Suddick, from Northumberland, who was at the concert with her friend Juliana Heron. Both had been running support groups during the strike. Mrs Heron said a man had tapped her friend on the shoulder and asked her if she could "please come and meet Bruce Springsteen"."She was about half an hour and she comes back and she says, 'You'll never believe this'," she said."She just hands us this cheque and said, 'Look'. "I said, 'That says $20,000', and she said, 'Yes, it's for the Northumberland and Durham Miners' Support Group'."And I said, 'But he doesn't know us', and she said, 'Yes, but he knows what we do'."Mrs Heron described Springsteen as "a hero to us"."He didn't do it for publicity," she said. "He did it because he wanted to do it." The story features in a documentary, When Bruce Springsteen Came to Britain, to be shown on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 21:30 BST on 31 May. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
