Lecturing appearances 2020 – 2021
Lecturing appearances 2020
Lecturing appearance – Thursday 2nd January 2020 | Time TBA | “Charlatans Frauds and Fools”
Hale & District U3A – Time and venue to be advised – “Charlatans Frauds and Fools” Based on the speaker’s researches for his study of charlatans, this lecture explains the two basic rules for being a charlatan: namely that no idea is so stupid that no one will believe it; and that nobody is immune to the wiles of charlatans and frauds. The lessons are illustrated with a humorous account of the modern belief in the Flat Earth, and how a famous writer was convinced of the existence of fairies.
Lecturing appearance – Tuesday 14 January 2020 – 10.30 A.M – “Tango in Madeira”
Cameo Ladies Group 10.30 A.M. at the United Reform Church, Short Street, Hazel Grove “Tango in Madeira” Visit Madeira in the 1920s at the height of the Jazz Age. Dine and dance the tango at Reid’s Palace hotel in the company of an Irish playwright, an exiled emperor, and a lady crime novelist. Learn some interesting facts about the tango and how pure chance may lead an author to write a novel.
Lecturing appearance – Monday 10 February 2020 – Time TBA – “Great Forgers”
Marple U3A Time and venue to be advised “Great Forgers” The boundary between a forgery and an homage or honest copy is not always obvious, and some of the great artists have turned their hands to forgery in order to pay the bills. This lecture focuses on great 20th century forgeries, including the man who sold a fake Vermeer to Hermann Goering and the forging of the autobiography of Howard Hughes. The centrepiece is an explanation of the Speaker’s personal role in the greatest forgery of the 20th century.
Lecturing appearance – Wednesday 4 March 2020 – Time TBA – “The Assassination of JF Kennedy”
Stockport Walking and Outdoor Group 9 P.M. at Hazel Grove Civic Hall “The Assassination of JF Kennedy” Was JFK killed by a lone sociopathic gunman, Lee Harvey Oswald, or was Oswald an innocent patsy, framed for the crime, or a member of a conspiracy. If it was a conspiracy, who were the conspirators? The lecturer was a barrister practising criminal law and takes a lawyer’s view of the evidence.
Lecturing appearance – Tuesday 14 April 2020 Time TBA – “The Man in the Iron Mask”
Bedwyn History Society “The Man in the Iron Mask”
Time and venue to be advised During the reign of the great Louis XIV a strange figure, whose face was always hidden behind a velvet or iron mask and who was forbidden to speak to others, was moved from prison to prison in France and Italy. His identity was so secret that he was guarded always by the same jailer. Who was he and what had he done? This lecture discusses a mystery that remains unsolved to this day.
Lecturing appearance – 14 May 2020 – 10:30 am – “A Message to the Children”
Settle U3A 10.30 A.M. at Victoria Hall, Settle “A Message to the Children” Have you investigated your family history only to wish that your ancestors had left a memoir? Have you tried to write your own autobiography but been overwhelmed by the task? The Speaker has developed an easy method for writing autobiography that has inspired and helped ordinary people to set down the story of their lives. In this lecture he explains his method and illustrates it with readings that are both funny and, occasionally, touching.
Lecturing appearance – 8 July 2020 – Time TBA – “A Message to the Children”
Private readers’ group – Stour minster Newton “A Message to the Children” see above
Lecturing appearances 2021
Lecturing appearance – 11 January 2021 – Time TBA – “Troy & Atlantis – myth or reality”
Heaton Chapel Literary & Philosophical Society Time and venue to be advised “Troy & Atlantis – myth or reality” This lecture explores the human desire to believe in the existence of mythical lands. It explains how a German businessman pursued his dream and uncovered the remains of ancient Troy, and how a Greek philosopher and a Minnesota politician have convinced many people that Atlantis exists.
Lecturing appearance – 6 May 2021 | Time TBA – Subject TBA
U3A Felixstowe Time, venue and subject to be advised (TBA)
Lecturing appearance – 21 May 2021 | Bramhall U3A | “Foul Murder”
Bramhall U3A Time and venue to be advised “Foul Murder” In the year 1613 a heady mix of ambition and sexual jealousy led to the murder of a member of King James I’s court and a spectacular series of trials and executions that saw members of London’s lowlife sharing the dock with the highest members of society. This lecture lets the scandal unfold in stages so that, like those at the time, you will be left uncertain until the last moment as to who will be the victim, who the murderer, and who will pay the price.
Lecturing appearance – 17 February 2021 – Time TBA – Subject TBA
Lymm Beer & Wine Society Time, venue and subject to be advised (TBA).