CEDU3A AGM THURSDAY 11 APRIL 2019
A reminder for your diaries that our first AGM will take place on Thursday 11 April at 12 noon in the Union Church and Community Centre in Weston Park. The meeting should last no longer than one hour. It is important that members are there as we need a minimum of 65 members present to be quorate. Looking forward to seeing you there.
SUMMER GARDEN PARTY
We would like to put on a Summer Garden Party for all members in mid-summer – a chance to meet up, have a drink and bite to eat and listen to music. Can you help us? The Committee has been looking at spaces and will shortly agree a local venue with outdoor space, and a date in June or July. We would love you to help arrange the food and drink and bring us your ideas on entertainment. If you would like to help out with this one-off project so that we can celebrate Summer and the second year of our U3A, or just want to talk over what it might involve, contact: Sue: chair@cedu3a.org.uk or Sally: vicechair@cedu3a.org.uk.
MONTHLY MEETINGS
These are held on the second Thursday of the month at Union Church and Community Centre Weston Park N8 9PX.
Thursday 11 April 2019
Fool’s Gold presents Stormy Stories and Tragic Tales
Something unusual for our monthly meeting, to set us up and get us in good voice for our first Annual General Meeting, which will follow this event, we are delighted to welcome from Durham the acoustic duo, Carol and Steve Robson, who are Fool’s Gold. They are big favourites at U3As around the country and we are very pleased that they are bringing their show Stormy Stories and Tragic Tales to North London. A Fool’s Gold show is rooted in music, but is much more than just a concert performance, using live music, story and projected visuals to reveal the stories behind the songs – and of course there is plenty of audience participation. Carol and Steve’s musical style is folk-based and they are multi-instrumentalists, featuring guitars, flute, whistles, bass and ukulele in their performances.
Thursday 9 May 2019
John Hinshelwood: Crouch End and District: a photographic record from 1860 to 1920
An intriguing glimpse back in time to see how our area looked between 100 and 150 years ago. In 2001 the Hornsey Historical Society (HHS) acquired a collection of prints assembled by the North Middlesex Photographic Society. U3A member John Hinshelwood catalogued the collection and created a digital database of the prints, several of which are included in the National Photographic Record Association’s collection now held by the V&A Museum. This talk will outline the work of the Photographic Society in recording local landmarks for the photographic record and survey of England’s buildings, monuments and customs of historic interest made in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
John Hinshelwood, Curator and Archivist of the HHS from 1998 to 2005, gained an MA in Metropolitan and Regional History in 2007 and now spends his time researching and writing on aspects of local history. He is also convenor of the U3A local history groups. He has published several local history books including, with Janet Owen, A Vision of Middlesex, the HHS’s 40th anniversary publication of photographs of the North Middlesex Photographic Society.
Our monthly meetings are open to all members (please bring your membership card), and you are welcome to bring a guest: it is possible to join at the meeting. Talks start at 10.45 am, tea and coffee is available from 10 am. Union Church is a plastic-free zone, so please bring your own cup or mug.
SCIENCE OF HEALTH
Monday 29 April 2019
11.30 am – 1.00 pm Union Church and Community Centre Weston Park N8 9PX
My Experience at the Francis Crick Institute: Learning how to keep brain cells healthy
Dr Isabelle Blomfield, full-time Research Assistant at the Francis Crick Institute, will introduce us to the Institute, the largest biomedical research institute in Europe, and discuss her work researching stem cells.
FIRST MONDAY PUB LUNCHES
As the first Monday in May is the May Bank Holiday, there will be no pub lunch on 6 May, but the lunches will resume again on Monday June 3 at 1 pm at the Mossy Well in Muswell Hill. These lunches provide an opportunity for members to meet and chat in an informal and social atmosphere. Members will, of course, have to pay for their own food and drinks. If you are interested in coming along on 3 June, please email cedu3a@gmx.com so we have some idea of numbers intending to join us.
COFFEE MORNINGS
These monthly get-togethers, held in people’s homes from 11.00 am to 12.30 pm, are a great way to meet other members. There are a few places available for May 22 (Muswell Hill/East Finchley) and June 12 (Crouch End).
To book, or if you would like to host a coffee morning in the autumn, please contact Jacki on https://cedu3a.org.uk/coffee-mornings/ Expenses can be reimbursed.
GROUP NEWS
As always, we are delighted to be able to offer more new groups to our membership this month. We are continually working to expand our programme of interests and welcome any ideas you may have for new groups. If you would like to suggest a possible topic, please email David Pashley at groups@cedu3a.org.uk.
NEW GROUPS
Ancient History
In this group we aim to explore the beginnings of human societies and consider how the change from hunters/gatherers to settled agricultural communities took place and then affected the development of art and culture. Please contact gretasykes@hotmail.com See https://cedu3a.org.uk/ancient-history/ for further information.
Tennis
Wanted: vintage players who have not played for some time, but would like to join a not too strenuous knock about. See https://cedu3a.org.uk/tennis/
We’re Talking Travel
A new group for those among us who love travelling and are excited at the thought of where’s next in the world to discover and explore. And what better way could there be than to hear first-hand from people who have been there and done it? Together the group will share knowledge and experiences, and agree the theme for each month’s meeting. This could be, for example, a country, a region, special interest holidays, road trips, city breaks or travelling solo. Please note that we won’t be arranging travel. See https://cedu3a.org.uk/were-talking-travel.
Walking Football
Fancy a game of walking football? This is a game for women and men playing together. See https://cedu3a.org.uk/walking-football.
Writing Group 3
Our writing groups are very popular, and we have a third group beginning in May. Writing Group 3 is open to all who have a love of the written word, providing an opportunity to explore a range of styles, write within a supportive group, sharing ideas and, ultimately, have fun. See https://cedu3a.org.uk/writing-3/.
Two new walking groups: Green London Way Group & Middle Way Walkers
Walking groups have proved to be very popular, with both ‘short’ and ‘longer’ walks being consistently well-supported. However, we are very aware of a gap in the market, so we are now setting up two new groups.
The Green London Wayfarers Group is a new middle distance walking group aiming to complete a circular walk round London. The group will be following and adapting The Green London Way, a 108-mile route designed by Bob Gilbert and the first long distance footpath in London to be created. The walks will generally take place on the first Wednesday of each month. The first will be on Wednesday 5 June, from Stratford to North Woolwich (7.5 miles), and Bob has kindly offered to lead that walk. For more information about the route see: http://www.greenlondonway.com.
The second new walking group Middle Way Walkers starts in May, offering a monthly walk of 7.5 to 8.5 miles. These walks will be in or near London and take place on the third Thursday in the month.
For further information about the walks see https://cedu3a.org.uk/green-london-way-walk/ and https://cedu3a.org.uk/middle-way-walkers/.
CURRENT GROUPS
The 1960s
Ancient History
Architecture
Art Appreciation 1
Art Appreciation 2
Art – Beginners
Art – Intermediate
Badminton
Birdwatching
Book Group 1
Book Group 2
Bookbinding
Bridge
Crime Fiction Book Club
Crochet
Current Affairs
Current Affairs: Issues explored in depth
Decluttering
Economics
Exhibitions and Galleries
Family History
Felt Making
Feminism
Films
Foreign Films
French Book Club
French Conversation
Futurology
Gardens
Gentle Exercise (Feldenkrais)
Geology
Green London Way
History
Italian Conversation 1
Italian Conversation 2
Jazz and Improvised Music
Latin
Local History: Introductory Course
Local History: Further Research
Longer Walks
Middle Way Walkers
Music Appreciation
Opera
Outings
Pétanque (Boules)
Philosophy
Photography
Play Reading
Poetry for Pleasure
Polish Conversation
Recorder
Relaxation
Science and Technology
Scrabble
Shorter Walks
Singing for Fun
Singing: Part Songs and Harmonising
Spanish Conversation
Strings
Table Tennis
Tennis
Textiles
Theatre Visits: Fringe
Theatre Visits: West End
Ukulele
Walking Football
We’re Talking Travel
Wine Appreciation
Wine … and more
World Literature
Writing
Groups with a booking system
NB to be eligible to book you must join the relevant group
Exhibitions and Galleries
Films
Foreign Films
Green London Way
Longer Walks
Middle Way Walkers
Outings
Shorter Walks
Theatre Visits: Fringe
Theatre Visits: West End
Wine … and More
For details of all groups see https://cedu3a.org.uk/interest-groups/.
For those without email please ring Jane Clarke on 020 8341 1239 or 07948 27396
An analysis of the posts on our Facebook page shows that 27 groups are represented through photographs and comments. These provide a wonderful showcase of what is happening in our U3A and will hopefully inspire members to give different activities a try. However, as we currently have 72 interest groups on offer, this means 45 groups have no representation on Facebook. Obviously there is a lot of up-to-date, factual information about all our groups on our website, but the Facebook entries add a little more human interest and convey the fun and enjoyment of individual and group experiences. It would be great if we could have these insights into all, or at least the majority of our groups, so if your favourite group is currently not showcased on Facebook, perhaps you could consider taking some photos at your next meeting (with participants’ permission) and sharing them with the rest of us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/300181150556772/.
OTHER NEWS
U3A in London Easter Conference: Upsetting the Applecart: Controversial Figures
The Easter Conference will take place on 23-25 April 2019 at the Main Hall, Hampstead Old Town Hall, Belsize Park, NW3 4QP. The cost is £45.
It will include presentations on Mao, Lenin, Robespierre, Caravaggio, Mondrian, Darwin, and the architect Gaudi, as well as those on the Poll Tax, climate change and other relevant topics.
London Region Summer School 2019
Dates: 23, 24 and 25 July
Venue: St Bride Foundation, Bride Lane, Fleet Street (easy access: five minutes from Blackfriars underground station).
This is a popular annual non-residential event. Members can attend for one, two or three days, and choose from 28 talks, four workshops, and six guided walks around the City of London.
There is a wide range of topics taken from the subjects of Art, Current Affairs, History, Literature, Music, Science and Travel. This year we have selected ‘Celebration of the Sea’ as a general theme. Please note that sessions book up quickly, so we advise booking as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
