Free Nelson Mandela: New documentary on an era when music and politics collided

A new documentary series, Free Nelson Mandela, tells the story of what is often described as the largest campaign ever mounted for a single prisoner, a global grassroots movement driven by popular activism and a powerful wave of musical protest.

The series also charts Mandela’s journey from activist to revolutionary, from prisoner to negotiator, and examines how he helped lead South Africa towards democracy from behind prison walls. 

Directed by James Rogan, the three-part series features interviews with South African and UK-based anti-apartheid activists, including Nkosinathi Biko and Dali Tambo, sons of prominent anti-apartheid figures Steve Biko and Oliver Tambo.

It also includes contributions from musicians and activists such as Jerry Dammers of The Specials and Bono, lead singer of the Irish rock band U2. 

The documentary features archive footage of anti-apartheid protests and landmark events, including the Festival for Freedom on London’s Clapham Common in 1986 and the Free Nelson Mandela at 70 concert at Wembley Stadium in 1988. 

Rogan says his South African heritage inspired him to make the documentary. “My dad is South African, so this was a story I grew up with,” he explains. “I grew up with the music and with accounts of people risking their lives or being threatened by the security services. 

“I’ve always wanted to tell a story about South Africa, but in the current climate it can be difficult to get projects of this kind commissioned. Many films about Nelson Mandela have focused heavily on Mandela as an individual.

“But Mandela himself always said he was part of a movement. That inspired the idea of telling his story not only through his own experiences, but through the story of the movement that fought to secure his freedom.”

He adds: “Because the entry point for so many British people was through songs such as Free Nelson Mandela, we wanted to use that music as a kind of score for the entire series. 

“As the story unfolds, viewers see how the music evolved alongside and helped support the movement. We felt this would provide a strong point of connection for a global audience, while also doing justice to the story itself.”

Dammers, 71, a founding member, keyboard player and principal songwriter of the ska group The Specials, wrote Free Nelson Mandela, the song that became an international anti-apartheid anthem.

When asked about the global impact of the song, Dammers says: “I didn’t really think about that. I don’t think I’ve ever really thought about that when I write a song. I’d already written the tune, so I had to get some words for it, simple as that.”

Speaking about his activism, he says: “I’ve always worked as closely as I could with the anti-apartheid movement, because musicians can’t achieve anything on their own, really.

“They have to work with the people who have been involved for years and years. I think that’s the mistake a lot of musicians make. They think they can just go in there and make a difference, but you do have to work with the proper people.

“We approached artists, we tried to get them to put clauses in their record contracts to boycott South Africa, not to sell their records there. We also organised concerts that slowly got bigger and bigger and bigger.” 

In June 1986, Dammers organised the Festival for Freedom on Clapham Common, where around 250,000 people gathered in what was one of the largest anti-apartheid demonstrations ever held in Britain.

Performers included Sting, Peter Gabriel, Sade, Elvis Costello, Big Audio Dynamite, Billy Bragg, and The Pogues. He was also involved in organising the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute in 1988.

Speaking about his contribution to the movement, he says: “It’s easy to get a bit carried away with the contribution of musicians like me, because the people who really, really struggled and made this happen were the people inside South Africa.

“Unfortunately, they didn’t have much of a voice outside the country, so we were able to pass their message on through our contacts, Top of the Pops, and other platforms. But the people who truly fought the struggle were the people inside South Africa.”

‘Apartheid could not survive’

Chitra Karve, a prominent anti-apartheid activist in the UK who also features in the documentary, says international solidarity and sanctions helped bring an end to apartheid.

“I think it was around the time of the Freedom at 70 campaign that it became clear internationally how important solidarity and sanctions were. They were huge and widespread. Apartheid was becoming impossible to sustain,” she says.

“Companies were divesting, there was a cultural boycott, and apartheid itself was increasingly isolated, as we had been calling for. Sanctions around the world were beginning to bite, although Britain did not do much on that front. 

“It became clear that the system was no longer sustainable and that change was coming. It also became clear that there was a significant international movement, as well as strong resistance within South Africa and across the region, which meant the struggle would continue. 

“South Africans themselves said, ‘We are going to make this country ungovernable’ and they did. So it was inevitable that apartheid would fall. The only question was when. 

“Around that time, the mood of the anti-apartheid movement shifted: we were very angry, but increasingly hopeful that change was coming, and that we needed to seize the moment.

“It was an enormously exciting and energetic period for us, but it had become clear that apartheid could not survive.”

• Free Nelson Mandela airs on Channel 4 on Sunday, June 14