Members’ Letter January 2025

Dear Members

A very happy and prosperous New Year to you. A New Year Message from our Chair, Jeanette McCauley, containing lots of information and news about the Society’s activities can be accessed here.

We hope that you will enjoy our selection of events this year. Do browse through our latest programme for this spring and summer which includes a diverse range of courses, study days, visits and walks. More events will be added during the year. New events which have just  been added and are now open for booking are:

• The Foundling Museum and Exhibition: Self Made: Reshaping Identities – a study visit to the museum and current exhibition led by curator Lucy Shanahan, with an option to attend a music performance afterwards
• John Donne – Poet and Prelate in the City, a study walk led by City of London Guide, Jill Finch
• The Chapel of Carlo Spiafame in Avignon Cathedral, the final lecture of the 2024-25 series given by Dr Geoffrey Nuttall
• Imperial Garden Cities: Babylon, Palmyra, Samarkand, Agra, a study day led by Sue Rollin

Please note that following the very sad death of John McNeill before Christmas the study visit to Ely Cathedral on 30 April will be led by Dr Richard Plant, an architectural historian and friend of John’s. Booking has reopened and there are some places available.

We are opening the study day Merry Monarch and Art Lover on 18 March to non-members at an additional fee of £10 since the current uptake is low. If you know anyone who would be interested in attending the event, please contact the organiser, Maggie Stockton: mags.stock@gmail.com for more information.

Please do book as soon as possible to help us to ensure that we have sufficient participants for events to go ahead.

We are committed to providing the best possible experience for all our members and are always interested in your opinions and suggestions, so please email our Secretary, or write to us via our correspondence address if you have any comments about our Society.

Best wishes
Rae Richardson
Communications Coordinator