Bexhill’s Fearless Rebel: The story of Minnie Pallister

Minnie Pallister (1885–1960) was one of Bexhill’s most remarkable residents. Once banned by the BBC for years because of her pacifism and feminism, she eventually became a household name on the BBC’s own Woman’s Hour programme. Minnie moved to Bexhill to accompany her pharmacist sister Gladys, who worked at the Old Town Surgery, then at 4 High Street, over which they lived in a flat for 25 years. She is the subject of a talk by her biographer Alun Burge at 2pm on Thursday 19 June 2025 at Bexhill Museum.

In her time Minnie was a pioneering feminist, pacifist, journalist and political activist. A passionate advocate for social justice, she was one of the first women to stand as a parliamentary candidate for the Independent Labour Party and a tireless campaigner for peace during both World Wars. Pallister was also a gifted orator and writer, challenging societal norms with wit and conviction. Her legacy remains an inspiring example of principled activism and commitment to gender and class equality.

Less flatteringly perhaps, but affectionately,  she was also the inspiration for Spike Milligan’s Goon Show character ‘Minnie Bannister’.

Our speaker Alun Burge lived in Nicaragua in the 1980s, and during the 1990s worked for international organisations, mainly in Latin America. After a decade in the Department of Social Justice of the Welsh Government, he now has an honorary research post in the History Department of Swansea University and is currently doing a project on international solidarity at the National Museum of Wales.

Tickets are £10 (£8 for museum members). Call in to the museum to pay by cash or card. You can also book online here.

Places can be reserved by phoning the museum on 01424 222058.