The rich mining history of the town was highlighted in the 2000 film Billy Elliot, which was set during the 1984-85 UK miners' strike in the fictional County Durham town of Everington but which displayed characteristics particular to East Durham pit communities such as Seaham and Easington Colliery.
According to Tom McNee's 1992 portrait of the town The Changing Face of Seaham: 1928-1992, St. John's parish church was used as the setting of a 1985 service recorded for BBC Radio 4. Also, a two-part Channel 4 documentary profiled the town in 1991.