The Peterloo Group public house in Tib Lane adjacent to Albert Square, - and close to St Peter's Square where in 1819 the infamous Peterloo Massacre had taken place, and from which the group took its name. The first discussion was on the subject of ‘The Social Position of the Arts Today’. Meetings continued on a monthly basis with writers and artists talking about their work and inviting discussion. Amongst the poets leading meetings, were Tony Connor, Michael Dixon, David Dunn, Michael Holroyd, John Knight, Jack Marriott, John McDonald, Robin Skelton, Margaret Snow, Noel Varney and Bernadette Wiseman. Several exhibitions of painting and
Peterloo Massacre were given one year each, and Knight was jailed for two years on a subsequent charge. A civil case on behalf of a weaver wounded at Peterloo was brought against four members of the Manchester Yeomanry, Captain Birley, Captain Withington, Trumpeter Meagher, and Private Oliver, at Lancaster Assizes, on 4 April 1822. All were acquitted, as the court ruled their actions had been justified to disperse an illegal gathering. The government declared its support for the actions taken by the magistrates and the army. The Manchester magistrates held a supposedly public meeting on 19 August, so that resolutions supporting the