6th Jan 2025 Monthly Meeting – Our Annual Quiz
Come along and join us in pitting your wits against other members of Kingston U3A. There will be prizes…..
Monthly meetings are held in the Richard Mayo Centre in Central Kingston. There is a charge of £1.00 foe members and £1.50 for guests.
Doors oepn at 1.30 and the talks begin at 2.00 – followed by tea/coffee and biscuits.
London Region Jan 6th Leonardo Da Vinci Would he make a good U3A Member? Zoom Talk
January Monday 6th 17.30-18.30 Log on from 17.00 to Zoom
Catherine Stevenson: Leonardo da Vinci: would he have made a good u3a member? This presentation will explore Leonardo’s incredible range of skills and talents, from his innovative designs for machines to his groundbreaking studies of human anatomy. We’ll delve into his remarkable artistic techniques and examine how he shared his knowledge with others through his writings and lectures. However, what makes Leonardo truly remarkable is his commitment to lifelong learning, always seeking to improve and expand his knowledge. This presentation will ask you, ‘Would Leonardo da Vinci have been a good u3a member?’ We’ll also consider what we can learn from his approach to learning, creativity and curiosity. Catherine’s passion for art history, history and the humanities began in her childhood. Actively involved in the u3a, she served as the chair of Newcastle u3a for six years and currently leads two groups as well as two IGO groups alongside three informal networks. Her presentation experience spans all levels of u3a as well as other organizations. She is renowned for her animated presentations. Catherine is a volunteer for Tyne and Wear Museums, serving as a tour guide mainly at Newcastle’s Laing Art Gallery. “Ars longa, vita brevis.” “Art is long, life is short.”
https://lru3a.u3asite.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2025.01-OnlineTalksJan-Mar.pdf
15th Jan 2025 – Museum of the Home – Away Day
Museum of the Home Situated in east London and originally known as the Geoffrey Museum, the museum’s main purpose is to show how our ancestors lived, worked and furnished their homes.
We’ll see the furnishings, objects and personal stories of life as experienced by Londoners past and present, and discover what awaits them in the future.
Room settings display textiles and furniture from 1630 and the Victorian era to the present day.
An extensive garden area continues the theme and takes us from a Tudor knot garden to modern roof gardens, echoing changes and innovations in society and fashion.
On arrival we’ll self-guide through the rooms, using the information provided by the museum.
When ready, we can refresh ourselves in the café next door.
Date: Wednesday, 15 January Meeting Time/Place: 10.15am, at Waterloo Station opposite platforms 1-4
Cost: Entry to the museum is free. Accessibility: The museum is step free.
To join us, please fill in the form in the centre of this newsletter and send it (no cheque required) to Nanette Gray. Mobile: 07747 088395
3rd Feb Monthly meeting – Balancing Life and Legacy – Richard Brewer
An informative and light hearted view of all estate planning, including updates after the October 2024 Budget.
Monthly meetings are held in the Richard Mayo Centre in Central Kingston. There is a charge of £1.00 foe members and £1.50 for guests.
Doors oepn at 1.30 and the talks begin at 2.00 – followed by tea/coffee and biscuits.
London Region – Feb 3rd Human Instinct for Language. Log on 5.30 Zoom Talk
Alan Freeland: Our human instinct for language Language is perhaps our most important invention. It gives us the best of times and the worst of times. In this talk we focus on verbal communication and look at how and why language arose, how languages are similar and different, and how and why they change. We will learn why we say mice infestation but not rats infestation, what the Intestines Affairs Ministry does, what children think our cutlery should be called, how we learnt to talk about time, and how ‘evidentials’ could improve our social media. Alan had a long career in IT and is now an active member of Farnham u3a, running the AI group and giving talks for the History and Art History groups. Previously he ran for three years a Silk Roads group and for a year a group called The Art and Science of Communication where this talk comes from.
https://lru3a.u3asite.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2025.01-OnlineTalksJan-Mar.pdf
24th Feb 2025 – Spencer House – Away Day
Spencer House Spencer House, built 1756-1765 for John, later 1st Earl Spencer, and his wife, Georgiana, is a Grade I listed building.
It was not only a family home in the city but a venue for lavish entertaining and the display of their growing art collection. One of the architects, James ‘Athenian’ Stuart, pioneered the neoclassical style and Spencer House contains some of the earliest neoclassical interiors in England.
The Spencers’ social circle included many notable cultural figures like actor David Garrick and the playwright Sheridan. During the ‘season’ the Spencers hosted large assemblies for hundreds of guests, for which the grand reception rooms were designed. Owing to financial pressures, from 1883 onwards the family lived at Spencer House only intermittently.
The building was leased to a succession of wealthy tenants like the Duke of Marlborough and his American wife, Consuelo Vanderbilt. In 1986 the family company of Jacob, 4th Lord Rothschild secured a 96-year lease for Spencer House. He restored the building to a state worthy of its historical and architectural significance. The newly restored house was officially reopened in 1990 by Diana, Princess of Wales, a direct descendant of the 1st Earl and Lady Spencer.
Join us and prepare to be dazzled! Date: Monday, 24 February Meeting Time/Place: 10.30am at Waterloo Station, opposite platforms 1-4 Travel: Jubilee line to Green Park Station, Buckingham Palace exit.
There are two cafés opposite the station(or perhaps the Ritz!), where you can enjoy refreshments.
We’ll then make our way to Spencer House, a 10-minute walk, for our guided tour at 12pm.
The tour lasts 75 minutes. Afterwards we’ll retrace our steps to Waterloo Station. Cost: £15.40 (includes the guided tour) Accessibility: There are lifts in the house and seating in most of the rooms.
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 Pamela Crisp. Email: pamelacrisp50@hotmail.com Mob: 07846 722278
London Region- March 3rd IQ2 Brave New World vs Nineteen Eighty Four -Zoom Talk
IQ² Cultural Debate: ‘Brave New World’ vs ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ This is a new venture for the London Region Events Team! Liz Day and Vivek Nanda will use a recorded debate staged in 2018 by Intelligence Squared, to consider the mood of our time as reflected in two great 20th century novels – ‘Brave New World’ by Aldous Huxley and ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ by George Orwell. The books, written in 1931 and 1949 respectively, portray the troubles of their period, but which looks most relevant to our 21st century world? In the Chair is Jonathan Freedland, political columnist at ‘The Guardian’ and presenter of Radio 4’s contemporary history series ‘The Long View’.
The debate is presented very engagingly with cogent arguments from two eminent advocates and illustrated by excellent dramatised extracts from the novels. Advocating for ‘Brave New World’ is Will Self (novelist, critic, broadcaster, political commentator). Advocating for ‘1984’ is Adam Gopnik (author, writer for the New Yorker, lecturer, and broadcaster). The ‘expert witnesses’ are distinguished actors – Tuppence Middleton, George Blagdon, Orlando Seal, and Simon Callow. Both novels are described as ‘dystopian’ (opposite of utopian). 1984 issues a stark warning about the loss of freedom and democracy by claustrophobic state authoritarianism. Words from the novel such as Big Brother, Thought Police, Newspeak, Doublethink etc. have entered today’s vocabulary. In Brave New World the state uses science and technology (especially drugs) to control the population, and children are conditioned out of their emotions and individuality. The objective is to create a mindless sense of happiness and stability.
If you’ve not read these novels, or need a refresher, you may wish to prepare by reading a summary of each on the Internet or by reading the books themselves. At the end of the debate, you will be asked to vote in a simple online poll to indicate which novel you feel better captures our present world and offers the keener warning about where we may be heading. After hearing the poll results, you may wish to stay online (max 30 mins) for a discussion to hear the scores that were given by participants in the IQ² recording. The recording will also be uploaded to the Talks Archive of London Region website. To book for this talk please Register here
https://lru3a.u3asite.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2025.01-OnlineTalksJan-Mar.pdf
2nd Dec Monthly Meeting – Great Ormond Street Hospital – Alan Doig
Alan Doig Alan is an ambassador for Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital Charity. His talk describes the past and present role of the hospital, one of the top three children’s hospitals in the world.
Alongside our usual offering of tea and biscuits there will be mince pies as a Christmas Celebration!
Door open as usual at 1.30 for a 2.00 pm start charge £1.00 for members