Now in its 43rd year, the Royston Pike Lecture Series continues to attract audiences with its eclectic mix of subjects. While we are finalising the programme, here are some highlights from the 2018-2019 series:
Wednesday 13 February 2019 - 7.30pm
Owen Manning, William Bray and the writing of Surrey’s County History, 1760-1832 by Julian Pooley
Riverhouse Arts Centre, Walton-on-Thames KT12 2PF
Manning and Bray’s ‘History and Antiquities of the County of Surrey’ took more than forty years to research and thirteen to publish. Though acknowledged as one of the finest county histories of Georgian England, its production was fraught with difficulties. This talk, drawing on the rich archive materials of Manning and Bray, the antiquary Richard Gough and the printer, John Nichols shows how the project was part of a national culture of local history research and charts the friendships behind the production of a county history which remains a basic tool for students of Surrey’s past.
Julian Pooley is Public Services Manager at Surrey History Centre in Woking and has been a professional archivist for over thirty years. He has published widely in the field of eighteenth century antiquarian and biographical research. He is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and Honorary Visiting Fellow at the Centre for English Local History at the University of Leicester.
Friday 15 March 2019 - 1.30pm
The Wind in my Wheels by Josie Dew
King George’s Hall, Esher KT10 9SD
Josie Dew’s life has revolved around cycling both before children and since. She has cycled over 530,000 miles across 6 continents and 49 countries (some of them by accident). The survivor of several wonky knees and worn-out bottom brackets, she is still firmly fixed in the saddle. She has written 7 books about her travels and is in the middle of an eighth. She is a patron of Sustrans and Vice President of Cycling UK.
Wednesday 3 April 2019 - 7.30pm
A Holiday in North Korea by Hilary Brandt
Riverhouse Arts Centre, Walton-on-Thames KT12 2PF
North Korea is a country full of surprises, with visitors’ expectations overturned on a daily basis, and the media struggling to keep up with the ever-changing news. Hilary Bradt enjoyed an 18-day ‘pioneering’ trip to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in 2016, travelling to all parts of the country, discovering beautiful mountain scenery and fine beaches, as well as numbingly dull factories. But in North Korea, even the boredom is interesting and the people, without exception, friendly and charming.
Hilary Bradt MBE is the founder of Bradt Travel Guides which published the first ever guide to North Korea in 2003. It was a response to President Bush naming it as part of the ‘Axis of Evil’ (the other two countries, Iran and Iraq, also benefited from a Bradt guide).
Tickets are £3 per person, payable in cash and available at the door. No advance booking required.
Download the full 2018-2019 programme.
For further details or to be included on the mailing list for current or future lecture brochures please contact arts@elmbridge.gov.uk.
