A chance to share your memories

Posted: February 1, 2025

Inspired by our feature in Mirror Pensioner in autumn 2023, a researcher with a close personal connection to MGN is looking for folk who lived through the Maxwell pensions scandal to *share their stories

MY name is Diane Taylor-Karrer, and I am the daughter of former Mirror Group pensioner and NGA union member, Harold Claydon.

I am currently employed at the London College of Communication (formerly the London College of Printing), and am working on a research project focused on Robert Maxwell and the Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) pension scandal. I was particularly inspired by Andrew Golden’s insightful feature in the autumn 2023 issue of Mirror Pensioner.

I understand that, sadly, some of those directly involved are no longer be with us, but I would be incredibly grateful for any assistance from individuals who would be willing to share their stories. I believe their first-hand accounts would greatly enrich our understanding of this critical period.

My research is focused on the pivotal role unions played in recovering the lost pension funds, and I am very interested in speaking with key pensioners and individuals involved in the aftermath of the scandal as events unfolded.

Taking its lead from Andrew’s feature, the project will be a short independent podcast series, documenting the MGN pensions crisis through first-hand accounts. I’m hoping to interview and record (audio) any pensioners and others who would be willing to provide insights into:

The working environment under Robert Maxwell – both print and press
The day the news broke of Maxwell’s death and the subsequent discovery of missing funds
Union meetings – including but not exclusively NUJ and GPMU members
Negotiations with the executive board and legal teams
The ‘water tank’ proposal for the continuation of funds
The lobbying of Parliament for pension reform
The impact of the missing pensions – both mentally and financially

Interviews would take no longer than an hour and can be held over the phone or in a central location at Elephant and Castle in London. If anyone has any photographs of the working environment at the time they would be willing to share, that would be fantastic.

I’m particularly interested in speaking to any union members and former London College of Printing (LCP) apprentices who were working at MGN and were directly affected by the crisis at the time.

My dad passed away in 2011, and I have few memories of what information was shared at the time via the union. However, after two MGN redundancies, I was aware of the impact the news had on him.

*I can be contacted at: d.taylorkarrer@lcc.arts.ac.uk or on 07738 052592 for those who prefer to phone rather than email