Monthly Meetings - 2018-19
All meetings are held in St Mark’s Church Hall and start at 2.00pm
September 25th -
Theatre Ghosts and Superstitions - Lorna Baines
Lorna will explain the origin of some theatre expressions that are in common use in the English language. She will also talk about theatre ghosts not just in London theatres but also in a number of provincial theatres.
November 27th -
The Plight of the Bumble Bee - Nikki Gammans
Nikki will cover the different types of bees in the UK, their ecology, conservation and the decline of Bumble Bees. How to identify the UK’s common species and how to help to conserve them.
January 29th -
Heroes & Villains of the Basingstoke Canal - Roger Cansdale
The most remarkable thing about the Basingstoke Canal is that it still exists because there were many times when it could have been abandoned. The fact that it wasn't is due to a relatively small number of people who popped up at critical moments in its history. Some of them acted from perfectly respectable motives, but others from fraudulent and criminal ones.
February 26th -
To the end of their days - Tony Cross
History has a romantic appeal and we are drawn to the burial places of those men and women who have played a part in shaping our past. Hampshire is the last resting place of many famous folk and an interesting selection from monarchs through military men to writers, artists and inventors are outlined here.
March 26th -
The Story of Fishbourne Roman Palace - Stuart Faulkner
A Guide at the Palace will give us the highlights of the discovery of this Roman palace, which lay unknown until 1970s in spite of being one of the largest roman constructions outside Rome.
April 30th -
The Schneider Trophy 1913 to 1931 - Steve Alcock
Tragedy and triumph - the Right Stuff' of the early 20th Century.
May 28th -
The History of Wills - Jennifer Margrave
Wills have been around since Egyptian times when they were written in hieroglyphs. The talk will cover their development from then through the time of John O’Guant when they were written under church law, up to modern days times when they are written under civil law.
June 25th -
The history and work of the Air Ambulance Service - Volunteer speaker
Our helicopter, based at Thruxton and is specially equipped for night flying it can land in an area the size of a tennis court and can be anywhere in Hampshire within 15 minutes. It can carry three or four crew members which means that we able to carry a doctor and a paramedic on board most flights, but sometimes a family member can also travel with the patient.
September 24th 2019 -
Forty Years catching Smugglers, part 1 - Malcolm Nelson
Forty Years catching Smugglers, part 1
Why do I always feel so guilty? An insight into how Customs Officers select passengers who they think might be carrying drugs. Just what is it they are looking for? What are the tell-tale signs? How do the guilty ones give themselves away?
November 26th 2019 -
The Flighty Women of White Waltham - Hugh Gibbons
The Flighty Women of White Waltham The Flighty Women of White Waltham tells the uplifting story of the Air Transport Auxiliary - the civilian pilots who ferried 600,000 RAF aircraft during WW2. It's full of surprises and laughs - with a few tears. And it includes news of some of them today!
