2015 - 2016 Talks

2024 - 2025
2023 - 2024
2022 - 2023
2021 - 2022
2020 - 2021
2019 - 2020
2018 - 2019
2017 - 2018
2016 - 2017
2015 - 2016
2014 - 2015
2013 - 2014
2012 - 2013
2011 - 2012
2010 - 2011
2009 - 2010
22 Sep
2015

The Modern History of the Castle

by Christopher Moule

Tuesday 22 September 2015
This illustrated lecture will explore the uses (and abuses) of castles from the close of the medieval period until modern times.
13 Oct
2015

The History of Gunpowder

by Dr Brenda Buchanan

Tuesday 13 October 2015
A wide-ranging illustrated talk from the editor of the two-volume collection of articles Gunpowder: The History of an International Technology.
27 Oct
2015

Dorset Heroines

by David Beaton

Tuesday 27 October 2015
An illustrated talk about the women living in Dorset who contributed to the county’s history, culture and folklore down the ages.
10 Nov
2015

The Story of Tea

by Nick Berthoud

Tuesday 10 November 2015
This illustrated talk covers the social history of tea, the practices surrounding its use and, through this, the history of British society as a whole.
24 Nov
2015

Social Realism in Victorian Painting

by Julian Halsby

Tuesday 24 November 2015
Dickens lays bare Victorian Society, warts and all, but what about Victorian artists?  This lecture will debate how far and for what reasons artists went in search of ‘realism’ and how realistic their paintings actually were.
8 Dec
2015

Medieval Music and Instruments

by Jonathan Weeks

Tuesday 8 December 2015
Delightful sounds together with fascinating cultural and social insights are guaranteed for this Members’ Christmas Entertainment evening.  
21 Jan
2016

Sherborne and the First World War

by Patrick Francis

Thursday 21 January 2016
The author of Vivat Shirburnia traces the surprisingly wide-ranging, often tragic, impact of the Great War on the local communities of Sherborne Town and Sherborne School.
4 Feb
2016

Magna Carta

by Professor Nicholas Vincent

Thursday 4 February 2016
The ‘Great Charter of Liberties’ sealed by King John at Runnymede in 1215 is seen as laying the foundations of British democracy. What led to this concession by John and why did a medieval political crisis plant the seeds of today’s freedoms?     
18 Feb
2016

Henry III and the Building of Westminster Abbey

by Professor David Carpenter

Thursday 18 February 2016
The leading authority on Henry III explains in this illustrated talk why the art-loving king rebuilt Westminster in such spectacular style as a coronation church and royal mausoleum.
3 Mar
2016

A Chronicle of Country Life – the Photographs of James Ravilious

by Robin Ravilious

Thursday 3 March 2016
The widow of artist James Ravilious shares with us her husband’s legacy of exquisite photographs of North Devon farming communities in the 1960s and 1970s. Taken to preserve a vanishing world, these are poignant and memorable images.
17 Mar
2016

History in Our Town’s Schools

by Six Students

Thursday 17 March 2016
In a repeat of a successful event first held two years ago, sixth formers from our local senior schools will speak about their favourite historical personalities and themes.
31 Mar
2016

The Earls of Pembroke and the Ladies Who Made a Difference!

by Ros Liddington

Thursday 31 March 2016
The ladies are so often the movers and shakers in aristocratic families. Starting with Ann Parr, wife of the first Earl of Pembroke and sister of Catherine Parr, a steady succession of wives and daughters influenced the history of the family and its home in many different ways.