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Please save the date for our Annual Thanksgiving dinner at Dartmouth House…

The ESU Buckinghamshire Branch invites you join them for a fascinating talk by Edward Thonne on the Suffragettes and the Hughenden Vote. 7.00pm Wednesday 2nd October Church House Hughenden Manor Event is Free with contribution for refreshments. For Bookings – contact Simon Kearey simonkearey@gmail.com 07956 183262…

Devon & Exeter branch invite you to a dinner & talk on the subject of ‘Celestial Images: Saints and Sinners, Intersections of Astronomy, Art and Religion’ by Professor Michael Mendillo from Boston University, Massachusetts. Celestial imagery of constellations spans human history, from cave art to modern…

What is it about a radio programme that is about cricket but which  appeals as much to those who have no interest or knowledge of the game as its aficionados? As one critic said ‘If you want the best of the English and the best English, there is…

In 1919 Lady Nancy Astor was the first woman to take her seat in the House of Commons. She was MP for Plymouth until 1945. Born in the US in 1879, in 1906 she married Lord (Waldorf) Astor, the  owner of Clivedon. In parliament she supported social issues…

Martin Fisher has had a lifelong interest in cinema since his grandfather took him to see ‘Pinocchio’. The title of his talk speaks for itself and will include many film extracts from those early days of cinema. Born in Windsor, Martin was educated at…

An extraordinary range of musical activities, both forced and voluntary, took place in the Nazi ghettos and camps, from the earliest internment centres established in 1933 until the liberation in 1945. The musical works these prisoners created are extraordinary documents from the time: fragments recovered from the rubble of war and genocide; monuments to the lives that were destroyed. In this talk, which will feature many film extracts, Shirli Gilbert, professor of Modern History at Southampton University with a specialism in Jewish History and particularly the Holocaust, will highlight original music from this period, including some rare post-war recordings. The songs offer rich insight into victims’ experiences, conveying the uncertain and shifting perspectives of prisoner communities as they made sense of lived reality.

Join Devon & Exeter Branch for lunch followed by a fascinating talk by Professor Richard Toye “Churchill’s Great Game”, rethinking the origins of the Cold War Richard Toye is Professor of Modern History at the University of Exeter. He is…

Join Devon & Exeter Branch for a lunch followed by a talk on “Principles, Pragmatism and Politics – the making of public policy in the UK – and why it affects us all” by Professor Tony Stoller CBE.

Devon & Exeter Branch’s annual Black Tie Dinner with a talk autobiographical talk from Billy “Scratch” Hitchen. At the end of the Easter holidays in 1963, Billy ‘Scratch’  Hitchen, instead of returning to school in Salcombe, having already been expelled by his mother, who…

Join Devon & Exter Branch for Lunch followed by an informative talk on “The Public Service Role of the BBC in the Gathering and Broadcasting of News and Current Affairs” by Fran Unsworth. Francesca Mary (“Fran”) Unsworth is a journalist and media executive. Fran began…

The talk follows the trajectory of Susan M. Sandover, who was lucky enough to have chosen an enlightened, forward-thinking Libyan career diplomat, Bashir, to spend her life with. They supported each other through the traumas, difficulties, and terrifying experiences associated with the Gaddafi regime of US and NATO bombings, coups,…

Please save date date for the English-Speaking Union’s AGM, details coming soon……

Please save the date for the ESU Churchill Public Speaking Final – more details soon…

To celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic David Hearn will talk about Liverpool’s strategic role in this crucial battle of World War Two. Ticket price includes a two course lunch at the Athenaeum For further details please contact Sue Davies at suedaviesheswall@gmail.com…

Please save the date for the 60th ESU-Churchill Public Speaking Competition Grand Final…

The English-Speaking Union London Region Branch welcomes you to an intimate evening piano recital with ESU Music Scholarship alumnus Alexander Ullman at Dartmouth House. Programme Liszt – Harmonies poétiques et religieuses Nos. III, VII and X Tchaikovsky/Pletnev – Nutcracker Suite Stravinsky/Agosti – Firebird Suite Drinks and nibbles from 6.30pm Recital…

Professor Niger Biggar, Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology, University of Oxford will deliver a talk on Ethics and Empire. From the 18th century until the years after the Second World War  Britain ruled an enormous  empire. Attitudes to this have changed over the last 100 years, moving from popular…

Professor Alan Smithers, Director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research, University of Buckingham Alan Smithers is a highly regarded national figure who is frequently consulted for his views on a wide range of current issues.  He will talk about the present day state of England’s education, how it…

Talk by Jill Edwards, Member, English-Speaking Union. Jill is going to talk about people she has met and events that have occurred in her lifetime. Educated at Roedean School and the Royal  Central School of Speech and Drama, she was a contemporary of Dame Judi Dench and Vanessa Redgrave. She…

Nick Dobson is new to us as a speaker but he has many strings to his bow – he will take us on a virtual tour of London by tube, stopping off to look at places of historical interest on the route. Refreshments are available from 10.15am and the talk…

Ian Morison is Emeritus Gresham Professor of astronomy, the oldest chair of astronomy in the world dating from 1597 and once helped by Sir Christopher Wren. He studied physics, maths and astronomy at Oxford university and became a research student at Jodrell  Bank Observatory in 1965 before he joined the…

After postgraduate training as a teacher of languages, John Miller made an early move sideways to join BBC staff where he remained for nearly 30 years. Most of that time was spent in television production. He began his BBC career in Sound radio operations  in London, soon moving north to…

Richard McCaulay is a member of the Sandbach Woodland and Wildlife group of volunteers who, over the past seven years, have regenerated the woodland area in Sandbach, increasing biodiversity buy new planting and creating a variety of habitats for woodland creatures and new trails to explore.

The vine project aims to enable vulnerable children and young people in choir Zulu Natal, South Africa to get the best education possible. Kate Stross was inspired to become a supporter of the project in late 2011 and has since visited South Africa regularly.