A few shots from our summer programme this year to remind you of recent pleasures.
The start of 2024 – 2025
Welcome back to a new term and a new academic year! This is a long Update, so please do read all of it.
The Monday Talks
The list of Monday talks for this term is available in the Office. : Our Autumn programme opens with ‘The Cross Swiss Walk’ by our very own polymath Ken Baldry who holds a 50 year membership of the Swiss Alpine Club. So sit back, relax and let him carry you across Switzerland by photograph.
The timetables for the week
This update, The full timetable, the Town Hall room timetable and the Zoom timetable are available in the Common Room and on the corridor noticeboard. A final version of the Summer programme will be sent next week.
RENEWAL OF MEMBERSHIP FOR 2024/25
We thank members who have renewed their membership. This is a reminder for those who have yet to do so. The fee for the coming year is £50, with £10 for those on the reduced rate. You can pay by cheque or by card in person. The quickest and easiest way however, both for you and us is to pay direct to our bank. No postage and no queueing
Thank you in advance for your co-operation.
Sad News about Stan Clingman
Stan died in August and those of us whose memories go back a long way will feel his loss deeply, remembering the beautiful melodies he presented as part our redular programme.
Even when he felt too old to continue with weekly classes, he and his wife Valerie made important contributions to our Summer programmes. Stan was much loved, respected and admired and we have many fond memories of him.
Exciting new Classes for the Autumn Term (and some changed):
Mondays: Art Reading Group with Rita Jancovich 12.50 in room 1.29 (and see below), History of Mathematics with Robert Solomon 15.10 in Room 1.29. Welcome back to Scrabble on Mondays in Room 1.24, now with Ruth Sober. N.B. French Intermediate with Paulime Malpas and Liz Goodfelllow is in Room 1.33 every week and not on Zoom.
Tuesdays: Yoga with Darshna Parma, 14.00 in Room 2.21, Reading books From Around the World with Ann Sharifi, fortnightly at 14.00 in room 1.24. Spanish Beginners Plus with Agustina Toscano at 14.00 in Room 1.30 and Hebrew: Roots and Patterns with Elana Gal-Edd 11.40 in Room 1.26. Autumn Term only and Welcome back to Ninety-Years-Old Chat Group with Gillian Kogan Change to a Writing class (see below).
Thursdays: Poetry: Form and Function with Constantine Baxter 10.30 in Room 1.30, Chinese with XiaoYan now Zoom only at 10.30, Using Excel with Eugene Moshan, 11.30 in Room 1.26 and welcome back to Hypnotherapy with Adeline Khan, Law and the Elderly with Gill Krogaonkar and Theatre, A History with Irene Kyffin
DETAILS OF SOME NEW CLASSES:
Monday: Art – Reading About the Artists
with Rita Jankovich, monthly 12.50 – 13.50 (Room 1.29). NOTE: On September 16, there will be no reading, but we have a treat – a special guest lecturer will talk about the history of the Dutch Golden Age that influenced Vermeer – and we will also be discussing future books. If you love art and would like to read about the artists themselves, then join us as we discuss fiction and non-fiction about artists. October’s book is about Vermeer: Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier.
Tuesday: Writing For Everyone
with Nicola Menasseh 12.50 – 13.50 (Room 1.30) Have you got a story to tell and would like some help writing it? In this relaxed and friendly class you will get helpful feedback on your writing from Nicola Manasseh, journalist, author and editor of Belsize Park local magazine In The Square. All levels are welcome and beginners will also get inspiration to write articles, blogs, important letters or to enter competitions.
Wednesday Literature Modern and Contemporary
We welcome new members to our thriving group starting again on 18th September, fortnightly at 2:00pm-3:30pm online. This term we will be discussing: on Sept 18 and Oct 2 Virginia Woolf: Jacobs Room (pub. by Penguin). After that, Philip Larkin, Collected Poems; and Yasunari Kawabata, Snow Country. If you are interested in being involved, you are welcome to join for books that interested you.
OTHER NOTICES ABOUT CLASSES:
From Mike Newman Politics and Current Affairs: Peace and Conflict
at 2pm on Tuesday in Room 1.22. This class will start on Tuesday 24th September (no class in Week 1)
From Caroline White:
I’m not able to teach at 10.30 this Tuesday. I will start my course on Tuesday 24 September at 10.30.
From Wally Howard:
Film Classes: week commencing Monday 16th September in Room 1.22 at 2.00pm
Monday 16th September at 2pm
THE ROOSEVELTS: AN INTIMATE HISTORY Part 5.
Wednesday’s and Thursday’s films are tributes to Alain Delon, an icon of French Cinema, who died last month:
Wednesday 18th September at 2.00pm
LE SAMOURAI Starring Alain Delon and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville
Thursday 19th September at 2.00pm
LE CERCLE ROUGE, starring Alain Delon, Gian Maria Volonte and Yves Montand
Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville
From Ken Baldry
European History on Wednesday Sept 18th 11.40 – 12.40 in Room 2.21. The Autumn term first talk is no.148: American Independence, with 133 slides. The following week is Talk 149: other countries to 1789, with 117 slides The full programme is on http://www.art-science.com/history-talks.html.
From Stephen Barry
The first London Miscellany class of the new term, will be on Wednesday, September 18, in Room 1.29 at 2.00pm. We will look at how the Thames floods of 1928 and 1953 affected London. New members welcome.
From Yvonne Dove
Secular and Mythological Art: Room 1.33 at 11.40 on Thursday 19 September. This week we will be examining the scandalous life and career of the 18th century artist, Anjelica Kauffman, known as the female Raphael. We will explore her works including Colour, Portrait of Winckelman, The Artist in the Character of Design Listening to the Inspiration of Poetry and Portrait of Emma, Lady Hamilton, as Muse of Comedy.
From Rachel Tyndall: Wednesday walks
These are between 4 and 8 miles, starting at 2pm (when the clocks go back they start at 1pm). They aren’t a route march but not a stroll either. This term we will usually use ‘Beyond the End of the Line’ as our guide, with walks from the end of Underground lines. The walk on Wednesday 18th September will be from Amersham to Little Missenden and back again, almost 7 miles. The 13.04 Metropolitan Line from Baker Street arrives in Amersham at 13.53. Trains are every 30 minutes so you do need to catch this one! Please let me know (email or text) by the evening of Tuesday 17th September if you intend to join me. Walks will be cancelled if the weather is bad: persistent rain or too much heat.
From Stanley Volk
Wednesday 18th September, 2.30pm in room 221. Following the success of the JAZZ GODDESSES talk in the summer programme, I am continuing the theme with a look at the music of Billie Holiday, Lena Horne and others.
OTHER NOTICES
Ben Uri
Uri is delighted to invite you to the Private View of Lancelot Ribeiro:
Heads – In and Out of Our Time’ Juxtaposed with 20 diverse head portraits from the museum collection. At 108a Boundary Road, St. John’s Wood, London NW8 0RH. 17th September, 6.30pm to 8pm.
London Region U3A
is offering a range of talks and other activities this autumn. Click here to access the Events page of their website for the Autumn Programme with further details and links to booking forms.
Silver Sunday 6 October. National day/week to celebrate with free events. Link is
To make you smile
Blessed is the man, who having nothing to say, abstains from giving wordy evidence of the fact. George Eliot
Will glass coffins be a success? Remains to be seen. Definition of a college Professor: Someone who talks in other people’s sleep
W.H. Auden
Good wishes from Gilli, Richard and Maureen
