One of the few surviving 'Shrewsbury 24' to be jailed and later acquitted dies aged 90

Arthur Murray was one of 24 union activists, which also included The Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson, who were convicted of a variety of offences following the calling of the UK's first-ever national builders' strike in 1972.

The men were arrested and jailed five months after travelling to strikes in Shrewsbury and Telford in September that year to support the workers at the pickets.

Mr Murray, who was from North Wales and died on Saturday, was convicted of affray and unlawful assembly and sentenced to six months in prison, but his conviction was later overturned along with the rest of the men following a ruling by the Court of Appeal in 2021.

Lord Justice Fulford found their convictions unsafe after a near 50 year battle by the men to clear their names.

Trade unionist, Phil Simpson, who knew many of the 'Shrewsbury 24' as they came to be known, said Mr Murray was "instrumental" in seeing the convictions of the wronged men overturned.

He said: “He was instrumental in getting the men cleared. From the very moment he came out of prison, whenever gave up fighting.

“It was Arthur who who used the authorities' own photographs to prove in court that the series of events that had originally been evidenced in their court case had been in the wrong order."

He continued: “Arthur was one of the last few of the Shrewsbury pickets that are now left. I saw him a few days before he died and he was in great spirits and very proud to be in his 90th year.

"He started out as a carpenter and joiner and became was a lovely man, a gentle man and very honest man, a very straight down the line sort of man. He was salt of the earth.”

He said Mr Murray is survived by his wife and two daughters along with his grandchildren.