Stuart Hall Archive Readings Seminar: 1956 and the First New Left

Stuart Hall Archive Project Readings Seminar 

11 November 2026, 3–5pm

Join us at the BRIG Café for a discussion inspired by Stuart Hall's work, led by researchers, artists, musicians and others.

Stuart Hall and the First New Left, with Prof Em Michael Rustin. Recalling the significance of 1956, Stuart Hall described that year as a 'conjuncture'—a moment of radical transformation, following Khrushchev's 'Secret Speech', the suppression of the Hungarian Revolution by the Soviet Union, and the invasion of Egypt by Britain, France and Israel. That year, Hall and other students (including Michael Rustin) led a demonstration against the government in Trafalgar Square (4 November 1956). In 1985, Hall delivered a seminar, providing a basic history and an analysis of the New Left—its motivations, ambitions, achievements and limits. 

Join us to listen to a recording of that seminar, and a discussion of the history and enduring relevance of New Left politics today.

About the Stuart Hall Archive Project Readings Seminar

The seminar provides an opportunity to read and listen to a selection of Stuart Hall’s unpublished lectures, interviews, and letters, discussing his life and work and our own times.

Open to all - researchers, students, teachers, activists, poets, artists, organisers, those who do the work and need some time to think - the seminars will be held in person at the Birmingham Race Impact Group (BRIG) Café, 54-57 Allison Street, 3-5pm on Wednesday mid-month, with invited discussants who will lead the conversation.