Events | KingstonU3A – Kingston upon Thames University of the Third Age

6th Oct Monthly Meeting – The Marie Curie Charity – Sophie Alexander

Sophie’s talk covers some of the history of the Charity, what services it offers and the people they support, as well as how you can get involved.

Held at the Richard Mayo Hall, Kingston Doors open at 1.30 talk starts at 2.00. Coffee/ tea and biscuits at the end of the talk. Cost £1.00 to members £1.50 foe guests.

16 Oct – Globe Theatre Tour – Visits

Would you like to be transported back to 1599 and tour the theatre for which Shakespeare wrote some of his plays? Well, a reconstruction of that theatre. Our guided tour, bringing the theatre to life, lasts about 50 minutes. It’s followed by a self-guided tour of the exhibition space, reliving the sights, sounds and secrets of Shakespeare’s London. In total the tour can last for two hours.
Afterwards you can explore what the area has to offer – Tate Modern (next door), St Paul’s Cathedral (across the Jubilee Bridge) and nearby Borough Market.
If you wish, you can take a leisurely walk along the river back to Waterloo.

Date: Thursday, 16 October

Meeting Time/Place: 10am, Waterloo Station, opposite platform 4

Cost: £21.40

Travel: We leave Waterloo Station via the exit at the end of the concourse by the old Eurostar platforms. We take the steps down to pavement level in York Road and walk to bus stop V to catch bus 381 towards Peckham Bus Station.

The bus journey takes about 10 minutes (5 stops) and we get off at Lavington Street. We turn left into Great Guildford Street and then right into Park Street which leads to New Globe Walk and the Globe Café for a welcome cuppa (not included in the price). There is also a Starbucks opposite.
We assemble in front of the Globe Theatre at 11.30am for our guided tour at 11.45am.

Accessibility: The Waterloo Station exit has steep steps down to pavement level in York Road. Please contact Pam Townsend if you need a different exit.
The guided tour in the Theatre covers four floors but there is a lift if required.

To join us, please fill in the form in the centre of this newsletter and send it with your cheque, made payable to Kingston u3a GAS, to Pam Townsend

pamandgil@icloud.com, 07789 397635

Please keep this page for reference.

3rd Nov The Kingston U3A AGM starting at 1.30pm. Followed at 2.00 by RNLI: it’s Not all at Sea

Please try to attend the AGM as we need to have enough members present to make the meeting quorate, we have never failed YET!

A talk on the Royal National Lifeboat Institution by Colin Brown. Colin explains the RNLI provides the finest Marine rescue service entirely funded by voluntary contributions. Some multimedia clips and illustrations will add to his talk.

Held at the Richard Mayo Hall, Kingston Doors open at 1.30 talk starts at 2.00. Coffee/ tea and biscuits at the end of the talk. Cost £1.00 to members £1.50 foe guests.

6th Nov – Charles Dickens Museum – Visits

48 Doughty Street in Bloomsbury was the London home of Charles Dickens 1837-1839.

The five-storey house opened as a museum 100 years ago on 9 June 1925. It holds the world’s most important Dickens collection. It contains many mementos from Dickens’s life and writings.

The house is furnished throughout as it was when Dickens and his family were in residence. There are thousands of objects on display, including the writing desk where he wrote Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities. I

n the basemen kitchen is the washhouse copper, which was cleaned out every December so they could boil the Christmas pudding. The artefacts, manuscripts, paintings and furniture give a valuable insight into Dickens’s life,

his family and the times in which they lived.

Only small handbags or backpacks are allowed in the Museum and must be worn on the front, or carried by hand.

After the visit, to round off your day, you may want to spend time in the British Museum, which is a short walk away from Dickens’s house.
Date: Thursday, 6 November

Meeting Time/Place: 10.15am, Waterloo Station opposite platforms 1-4

Travel: We leave the Station via the escalator to walk to the bus stop and take a bus to Russell Square (details to follow). After refreshments at the Caffè Tropea in the Square (not included in the price), we set off for the 15/20-minute walk to the Museum. Depending on the group size, our entry may be staggered, with half entering at 12pm and half at 12.15pm. If this is the case, the second group will stay a little longer at the Caffè to avoid congestion outside the Museum.

Cost: £11.35 (entry to Museum and self-guided tour). There is no reduction for National Art Pass holders when in a group.

Accessibility: There are five floors with many stairs. There is a staff operated platform lift as far as the 4th floor, then stairs to the attic.

To join us, please fill in the form in the centre of this newsletter and send it with your cheque, made payable to Kingston u3a GAS, to Hazel Burr.

07950 687553

Please keep this page for reference.

London Region U3A Talks and Walks August to October

For infomation about our current Talks and Walks programme view here: May-July. You can also click on the event title in the list below. To book, once events are open for bookings, click on the title of the particular event you want to attend and follow the booking link there. The May and June events are now all fully booked (sorry). Bookings for the July events: mostly all events booked now. Only one left with tickets, see below.

Forthcoming events

19th Sept- Vulcan and Concorde Aircraft -Surrey Network Study Day

Friday September 19th 2025 – Study day on Vulcan & Concorde Aircraft
Presented by Guy Bartlett, Aviation Historian

Surrey Network Study Days

Study Days 2025

Friday September 19th 2025 – Vulcan & Concorde: Iconic Aircraft
Presented by Guy Bartlett, Aviation Historian

Friday October 17th 2025 – Guiding, Ghosts & Gossip at Royal Palaces
Presented by Sarah Slater, White Badge Guide Lecturer, Hampton Court Palace & Blue Badge Tourist Guide, Windsor Castle

Friday November 21st 2025 – The History of British Industry: Iron & Rivets, to Electronics & Jets, to Robots & A I Presented by Dr Richard Marks

Study Days 2026

Friday February 20th 2026 – Study day on National Gardens Scheme planned

Friday March 20th 2026 – Study day on Climate Change planned

Friday April 17th 2026 – Study day on Medieval History planned

Friday May 15th 2026 – Study day on Lies & Statistics planned

Friday June 19th 2026 – Study day on Theatre planned

Surrey Network Study Days 2024

Surrey Network: Study Days

Study days have been arranged in the coming months.

Time: 10am-4pm (registration and login begin at 9.30am)

Dates: See programme details below.

Place: You can attend in person at the Menuhin Hall, Stoke d’Abernon or join online via Zoom.

Cost (including tea/coffee biscuits): £12 for members and £15 for guests attending in person. Attendees should bring their own packed lunch. £5 for those attending via Zoom.

Programme

2024

Earth’s Atmosphere: Our Life Support System – Fri, 19 Apr
The Jazz Age and Beyond with Talks, Film, Demonstrations and Musical Finale – Fri, 17 May