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Jan 19

CANCELLED -15th May Surrey U3A Network – The Development of British Style + Desert Island Antiques & Life on the Antiques Roadshow

Study Day at  The Menuhin Hall, Stoke d’Abernon   Speaker – Paul Atterbury

From the 1870s the British domestic house and its contents changed almost beyond recognition, reflecting the social and economic revolution that paved the way for the modern world of today. Many factors contributed to this change, from William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement, to the rise of the department store, suburban living, the garden and the emancipation of women. After the First World War, the pace of change increased, prompting rapid stylistic development, from 1920s and 1930s Art Deco to the modernism of the 1950s and 1960s and the style wars of the late 20th century. The first two talks consider architecture, interior and domestic design and the products that reflected the fashions of the time. In the process they show how the last 150 years have determined the way we live now.

Paul Atterbury has been involved all his life in the world of art and antiques, as a writer, historian, collector and exhibition curator. The two talks in the afternoon offer an insight into his life, his enthusiasms and his time as a member of BBC’s Antiques Roadshow team of experts.

Programme
9.30 Registration

10.00 The Arts and Crafts House and Garden
11.00 Coffee / Tea
11.30 At Home in the 20th Century
12.30 Lunch – Bring your own – Tea / Coffee available

1.30 Paul Atterbury’s Desert Island Antiques 2.30 Tea / Coffee
3.00 Life on the Antiques Roadshow
4.00 Departure

Speaker – Paul Atterbury is a writer, lecturer, historian, curator and broadcaster specialising in the art, architecture, design and social history of the 19th and 20th centuries. As a writer he has written or edited over 50 books, covering art, antiques and design, travel, canals and railways, history and the First World War. Paul has curated exhibitions for the Victoria & Albert Museum and for other institutions in Britain and the United States and he has worked on the Antiques Roadshow since 1990.

To book send the slip below, with a cheque for £10 (non-U3A guest £12) payable to ‘Surrey U3A Network’, or bank transfer to HSBC acct 11519018 40-27-07, ref ‘Event month(s)’ e.g, Feb, Mar, to John Kennedy – U3A, 20 Greville Park Road, Ashtead, KT21 2QT, Tel 01372 273561, e-mail surreyu3astudyday@btinternet.com.
Enclose a SAE or e-mail address for confirmation. Fees are not normally refundable. Website, see the next page. ———————————————————– British Style Study Day See – Nut Allergy & Other Notes on page 2 15th May 2020

Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Post Code . . . . . . . . . . . Telephone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E-mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . See page 2 if you need disabled parking, tick , or a wheelchair space in the hall, tick 

Please print Confirm by ticking E-mail  or enclosed SAE  Cheque  or Bank Transfer 
Title . . . . . .First Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Surname . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Name of U3A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

May

The Menuhin Hall
Cobham Road, Stoke d’Abernon, KT11 3QQ Map ref: TQ 132 579 on Landranger 187, Explorer 146

Telephone 07763 805046 (emergency, on day only) or Menuhin Hall Office 08700 842020

There is a Garden Centre (01932 862530), about 800 metres to the north of the Menuhin Hall where light lunches are available. Reservations not required.

The Menuhin School was founded in 1963 in London and moved to its present site in 1964. It has about 80 pupils learning to play stringed instruments including piano and is financed, in part, by the DfES. Lord Menuhin was born in New York on 22nd April 1916 and died on 12th March 1999 in Berlin. His parents had come from Russia. His first public concert was in March 1924 and his first in Europe, in Paris, in 1927. His performance of Elgar’s Violin Concerto was recorded at the Abbey Road Studios in 1932. The Hall, designed by Mark Foley, was conceived as a memorial to Yehudi and was handed over to the school on 5th August 2005. The official opening was on 7th January 2006. Yehudi is buried near the stone pillar in front of the Hall. Nearby is an oak which he planted on his 80th birthday. The Hall was first used for U3A Study Days on 14th October 2005 when the Steinway grand piano was used as no other was available.

Surrey Network Website – http://u3asites.org.uk/surreyu3anetwork/ has application forms for study days & other events plus information about the Surrey Network and links to Surrey U3A websites.

Nut Allergy. The Menuhin School has pupils who have an allergic reaction to nuts and the staff have taken the decision to make the school and the Menuhin Hall a nut free environment. Please ensure that your lunch does not contain any trace of nuts.

Disabled Parking. There are six spaces behind the hall, there are more in the main car park. If you have a blue badge and need level access to the hall then tick “Disabled parking” on the booking slip. You will then be allocated a space at the back of the hall if available and sent a permit. If you can manage from the main car park (i.e. you are able to manage some steps with handrails) then please do not tick “Disabled parking”. That will leave the back of the hall spaces for those that are very immobile.

There is a “drop off” space at the back of the hall where disabled who are not the driver can gain level access to the hall.

Wheelchair spaces. If you need a seat removed in the hall to accommodate a wheelchair then tick Wheelchair on the booking slip.

Jan 19

CANCELLED – U3A in London Easter Conference 21st, 22nd and 23rd APRIL 2020

MAIN HALL: HAMPSTEAD OLD TOWN HALL, LONDON, NW3 4QP

Freedom and its Consequences
The highly awaited and popular Easter Conference includes a fascinating, intriguing and challenging programme of talks over three days given by a range of speakers.
The subject is explored from a variety of different standpoints: art –‘Freedom and Art’, music –‘How music has been a potent force in expressing dissent and motivating social reform’ and science –‘Freedom in Medical Science’, that have all impacted on social reform and on our society today. Further topics include ‘Our Planet: Spirituality and Responsibility’ and ‘Curtailment of Freedom: Indefinite Detention of Immigrants to the UK.’
In addition, the historical background is explored in the following talks: ‘Liberalism and its enemies since the Enlightenment’; ‘Diplomacy Lessons from the 1930s’ and ‘The Fear of Freedom: Erich Fromm on the Authoritarian Personality’.
The keynote address,  ‘Literature: When Literature Became Free’ given by Professor Susan Kord, a cultural historian and Professor of German at UCL, introduces the conference. She has written on many aspects of cultural and social history and will explore Patronage and Poverty in the 18th century.
The final talk ‘Overcoming Prejudice and so-called Traditional Roles.’ How Women won the fight for Freedom in Education provides a fitting end to the three-day programme for this thought-provoking conference.
Application forms are available by post (please send a stamp-addressed envelope) and phone. The cost is £50 for all three days and includes all coffees, teas and delicious lunches from the Atrium café.
U3A in London, Hampstead Town Hall, 213 Haverstock Hill, London NW3 4QP
Tel.020 7692 5440

Jan 18

June 3rd 2020 National U3A Day – Spread the Word

What will you be doing on U3A Day?

The very first national U3A Day – celebrating the learning, activity and fun that happens every day in U3As across the country – will take place on Wednesday 3 June 2020.

Each U3A is invited to mark the day by showcasing what they do – from displays, parades, flashmobs or performances – the day will show all the learning, activities and fun that make the movement so amazing.

Coordinating the day, Regional Trustee, Sue Stokes, said, “We are so excited that from now on, every year, there will be a day dedicated to learning, staying active and having fun in your Third Age – that’s people who are retired, semi-retired or no longer bringing up a family.

“We hope this day will help to challenge negative perceptions of older adults and will bring together all Third Agers in the community to learn about the contribution U3A makes to the quality of life for retired people”.

We will post regular updates in the monthly national newsletter – which you can sign up for here

Below is a presentation to be used when raising awareness of U3A Day with your members, with your networks and with any external partners.

“If you want to find out more about organising U3A Day, and what other U3As are planning, you can join the closed (U3A members only) Facebook group. This website will also have downloadable templates and materials to assist U3As in making our first U3A Day a success.

If you are not currently a U3A member, we’d love you to come along to your local U3A event and help us celebrate the new experiences and fun we are having in the third stage of our lives. And if you want to get involved but you are not yet a member – why not consider joining? You can find more from your local U3A – find it here

documentU3A Day Presentation (414 KB)

imageU3A Day banner (308 KB)

Nov 27

11-15th May 2020 Historic Houses and Gardens in the Peak District

Day 1: Travelling by executive coach from our designated pick-up points, our first stop is the National Trust’s Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire, home of the Ferrers family for 500 years. Much of the house was built in the late

1500s by Henry Ferrers, a lawyer, diarist and antiquarian. It was a sanctuary for the Ferrers family and for persecuted Catholics who were concealed from priest hunters in its secret hiding places. We’ll continue to the 4-star Copthorne Hotel in Sheffield for our four-night stay.

Day 2: Our guide accompanies us throughout the day as we visit Bakewell in the morning before continuing to Chatsworth (home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire). One of Britain’s most famous houses and estates, it featured in the film Pride and Prejudice. With its works of art and beautiful gardens, Chatsworth is set in the magnificent landscape of Derbyshire’s Peak District National Park.

The gardens at Chatsworth Photograph courtesy of A J Hall

Day 3: We visit Renishaw Hall and Gardens, home to the Sitwell family for almost 400 years, before continuing to Hardwick Hall and Gardens, another National Trust property. It was built by the famous Elizabethan Bess of Hardwick and is testament to her wealth and status. Hardwick Hall is almost unchanged since she lived there in the formality of Elizabethan courtly life.

Day 4: In the morning we spend some time in Buxton before driving to Haddon Hall, a fortified manor house dating back to the 12th century, and surrounded by terraced Elizabethan gardens.

Day 5: On our way home from Sheffield we visit the Crich Tramway Village in the heart of Derbyshire overlooking the Derwent Valley. This restored period village is home to the National Tramway Museum and its archives.

Hotel: 4 nights in 4-star Copthorne Hotel, Sheffield www.millenniumhotels.co.uk

Cost: £469 (including executive coach, hotel for four nights sharing a twin/double room on half-board basis, Blue Badge guide for days 2,3 and 4. Single room supplement: £99)

If you would like to join this holiday, please complete the enclosed application form and send it with an sae (not too small, please) to:

Gisela Zürcher-Feiß, 37 The Byeways, Surbiton, KT5 8HT Tel: 020 8399 4990

Nov 26

U3A Network of SW London Interested in Theatre History?

A project is starting early next year at Kingston University archives to be based on the Cary Ellison Theatre Programme Collection.

Cary Ellison was a talent spotter who worked for the casting directory Spotlight and as part of his work he went on twice yearly tours of repertory performances around the country in order to find up and coming actors, directors and plays. The programmes of these productions, heavily annotated by Ellison, are now at Kingston University. They cover theatre performances from around the UK and also the London West End from the Fifities to Eighties when Ellison was touring the country.

Actors he spotted early on their careers include Derek Jacobi, Richard Briars and Judi Dench. He also made notes on established actors as Lawrence Olivier, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson and Vivien Leigh at the peak of their fame.

His engrossing and entertaining programmes with their detailed notes are being conserved at Kingston University archives. U3A has been asked to work on a project to research aspects of the history of the programmes and the British theatre during the Fifties to early Eighties relating to Cary Ellison’s work.

This project will interest anyone with a love of the theatre in this country. A small number of members have already registered that they would like to be involved and we would like to extend involvement to other members of the U3A. If you wish to know more about these programmes and the archives at Kingston University contact Dayna Miller, the archivist at D.Miller@kingston.ac.uk

If you would like to register an interest in working on this project please email Sue Leigh (Wandsworth U3A) at smleigh@hotmail.co.uk and further details on the arrangements for the project and an application form will be sent to you.

 

OLDERNEWER