Previous Visits

Booking Months: July and September
                     Cost: 7.00

Alastair Lack will lead a walking tour with the theme of “The Oxford Movement” .
This was a 19th century movement centred at the University of Oxford and it sought a renewal of catholic thought and practise within the Church of England in opposition to its protestant tendencies . Leaders of the movement were John Henry Newman, John Keble and Edward Pusey who were fellows at Oriel College.

Make your own way to Oriel college to start at 2pm with a visit to the chapel and the Newman Oratory. We shall then move to The University Church where Newman was vicar and where John Keble preached a famous sermon that launched the Oxford Movement.
Finally we shall walk to Keble College, named after John Keble. It has an astonishing chapel with one of the iconic paintings of the 19th century , Holman Hunt’s  “ The Light of the World”

Afternoon tea is not included in the cost of this visit but we shall go to either the Crypt, the cafe of the University Church or to the cafe of The Bodleian Library and we hope that you will come too.
There is also an option to go to the Weston Library Cafe after the walk for afternoon tea of tea/coffee and mini-scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam for an extra cost of £4.00

The numbers on this visit will be restricted to 20.

Website:

Booking Months: September and October
                     Cost: To be advised

Christopher Vane, Chester Herald will show us round the College of Arms and tell us about the history of the College and the history and architecture of the building, also the work of the heralds and their uniforms, English heraldry, the granting of arms and their descent and the design of arms. We’ll be shown the Earl Marshal’s Court and the Records Room with documents dating back to the 16th & 17th century. Our visit concludes with light refreshments.

Earlier, during the afternoon, we have a guided tour of the Guildhall Great Hall, which has been the centre of City government since the Middle Ages, and visit the Guildhall Art Gallery, established in 1886 as ‘a Collection of Art Treasures worthy of the capital city’ and see works dating from 1670 to the present, including 17th-century portraits, Pre-Raphaelite masterpieces and a range of paintings documenting London’s dramatic history. If time permits, we’ll visit the Roman Amphitheatre beneath the gallery.

We’ll depart the Bear Hotel, Wantage at 12pm and return, departing College of Arms approx 8.15 – 8.30pm arriving back in Wantage around 10pm.

Numbers are limited to 20 for this trip.

PLEASE BRING A PACKED LUNCH TO EAT ON THE COACH

Website:
https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/
http://www.guildhall.cityoflondon.gov.uk/

Booking Months: October and November
                     Cost: to be advised

We shall meet at Jesus College Lodge at 1.45 pm. The Fellows’ Library is a glorious galleried room built in 1676-1677. It contains bookcases that are decorated with strap work dating from around 1628, as well as around 11,000 antiquarian printed volumes.
We shall then move to Merton College. The Library here is one of the earliest libraries in England and the oldest academic library in the world still in continuous daily use. The oldest part known as The Upper Library is on the first floor of two orthogonal ranges of buildings which were built around 1373 as part of the completion of Mob Quad, one of the first collegiate quadrangles. Because Merton will only allow 10 people per visit to the library, Alastair will take the other 10 for a visit to the college and the chapel and then swap the two groups over.
Our last port of call will be Christ Church College Library. The first library was established in 1562 and the books, of which around 140 remain, were originally chained to wooden lecterns. The new library was designed in the 18th century. The building was started in 1717 and was not completed until 1772. The books were housed on the first floor to avoid damp and flooding while the ground floor was designed as a loggia, but the protracted construction led to the enclosure of the ground floor as a picture gallery.

Website:

Booking Months: January 2019 and February 2019
                     Cost: to be advised

This guided tour offers an opportunity to visit the 15th century Divinity School, Convocation House, the Chancellor’s Court, Duke Humphrey’s Medieval Library, the Radcliffe Camera and the Gladstone Link.
The Divinity School was designed specifically for lectures, oral examinations and discussions in Theology. It is built in the Perpendicular style with a very beautiful vaulted fan ceiling. The Convocation House and the Chancellor’s Court adjoins the Divinity School which pre-dates it by 200 years. It was built as a meeting place for the University’s supreme legislative body and Parliament was held there during the Civil War
Duke Humphrey was the youngest son of King Henry IV. He collected many books (a relative term as the printing press had not been invented). He bequeathed his collection to the University which built a new library to house it. Today it is the oldest reading room in the Bodleian.
There are 5 reading rooms in the old Bodleian and the Radcliffe Camera and the two buildings are connected by the underground Gladstone Link.
There will be availability for 2 groups of 13 on different Sunday afternoons in March 2019 – either the 3rd or 17th. Both visits start at 13.15pm. The guided tour is 90 minutes long and will finish with a cream tea at the Bodleian cafe. There are a number of stairs.

Website:

Booking Months: January 2019 and February 2019
                     Cost: to be advised

This guided tour offers an opportunity to visit the 15th century Divinity School, Convocation House, the Chancellor’s Court, Duke Humphrey’s Medieval Library, the Radcliffe Camera and the Gladstone Link.
The Divinity School was designed specifically for lectures, oral examinations and discussions in Theology. It is built in the Perpendicular style with a very beautiful vaulted fan ceiling. The Convocation House and the Chancellor’s Court adjoins the Divinity School which pre-dates it by 200 years. It was built as a meeting place for the University’s supreme legislative body and Parliament was held there during the Civil War
Duke Humphrey was the youngest son of King Henry IV. He collected many books (a relative term as the printing press had not been invented). He bequeathed his collection to the University which built a new library to house it. Today it is the oldest reading room in the Bodleian.
There are 5 reading rooms in the old Bodleian and the Radcliffe Camera and the two buildings are connected by the underground Gladstone Link.
There will be availability for 2 groups of 13 on different Sunday afternoons in March 2019 – either the 3rd or 17th. Both visits start at 13.15pm. The guided tour is 90 minutes long and will finish with a cream tea at the Bodleian cafe. There are a number of stairs.

Website:

Booking Months: March 2019 and April 2019
                     Cost: £48

George Frederic Watts OM, RA (1817 – 1904) was widely considered to be the greatest painter of the Victorian era. A portraitist, sculptor, landscape painter and symbolist, his work embodied the most pressing themes and ideas of the time.
His wife Mary Watts (née Fraser Tytler) (1849-1938) was a renowned designer in her own right, founder of the Compton Pottery (1900) and creator of Watts Chapel.
Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village is a unique Arts & Crafts gem nestled in the Surrey Hills. Discover stunning Victorian paintings and sculpture, wander to the nearby Grade I listed Watts Chapel, taking in the beautiful woodlands and grounds, or find out more about the lives and works of G F and Mary Watts at Watts Studios before taking a tour of the artists’ home, Limnerslease, which was designed by Sir Ernest George with original ceilings designed by Mary Watts. Hear about the people who visited and the creative and cultural life of George and Mary, as well as their contemporaries and the local community who they welcomed here.
Mary Watts was the artistic force behind the creation of Watts Chapel, and she dedicated it to ‘the loving memory of all who find rest near its walls…..’. G F and Mary Watts both rest in Cemetery, as do many other people who have played a role in the Artists’ Village over the years. Landscape, art and remembrance are beautifully blended together in this Grade I listed building. Up close, the extraordinary design and decoration both fascinate and overwhelm all who venture up the winding yew tree paths.
In 1895 Mary began to run evening Terracotta Classes at Limnerslease, the Watts’ nearby residence and studio. At these classes Mary would teach local villagers how to model tiles from local terracotta clay with the beautiful and symbolic patterns that she had designed to decorate the walls of the Chapel. G F Watts financed the building of the Chapel through painting commissioned portraits.

Including:
Coffee & biscuits on arrival
Lunch
Tours of Limnerlease House/Watt’s Gallery/Watt’s Chapel
Free time to visit the studios & De Morgan Collection

Website:
https://www.wattsgallery.org.uk/

Booking Months: May 2019 and June 2019
                     Cost: £39 – cheque or cash only

Brunel’s SS Great Britain is one of the most important historic ships in the world. When she was launched in 1843 she was called ‘the greatest experiment since the Creation’.
By combining size, power and innovative technology, Brunel created a ship that changed history. She was built as a luxury liner but ran aground in 1846. She then carried 15,000 emigrants to Australia, after which she was converted to sail as a cargo ship and finally acted as a floating warehouse. In the thirty years between her scuttling and recovery the elements had taken their toll on her iron hull. At the time of her rescue she was in a poor state and a team of seven conservators took three years to complete the restoration.
We’ll have a private guided tour of the ship, with lunch on board, and visit the Brunel Institute to see items from the archive/hear about passenger diaries etc and in the afternoon a guided walk of the historic dockyard. 

Website:
https://www.ssgreatbritain.org/

Booking Months: June, July and September
                     Cost: £35

The museum is housed in factory buildings remaining when it closed in 2009. It holds the world’s largest collection of Worcester porcelain dating back to its inception in 1751.
In 1751 John Wall, a physician, and William Davis, an apothecary, with investment from a group of local businessmen, established a porcelain factory in Worcester on the banks of the river Severn.  Royal Warrants were subsequently granted by George III, George IV and Charlotte, Princess of Wales due to the high quality of Worcester Porcelain and the word ‘Royal’ was added to the name.
Manufacture was consolidated on the current factory site in 1840 and major modernisation followed in 1862 leading to the formation of the Worcester Royal Porcelain Company Limited

On arrival we shall have a cup of tea/coffee and a biscuit and then enjoy a talk by Roger Green. With over 40 years experience in Ornamental Ware, Roger is well qualified to take visitors through the process of figurine construction from design to construction. His role at Royal Worcester covers every aspect of production and he will talk about the many designers and characters he worked with and will use real examples to show how the models were cut into pieces, blocked,cased and propped up ready for firing in the kiln. Many different skills are required in the ornamental department, and with the use of his own quirky stories about the eccentric workforce and the factory social scene, Roger will unravel the process which took seven months from design to completion.
Once you have heard Roger’s talk, you are free to visit the Museum Galleries at you leisure and watch Ken Russell , a master gilder, at work and marvel at the skills he shows .
We shall have lunch in a private room in the museum at about 1pm
After lunch you are free to leave the museum and can re-enter at any time of the day.
In addition to the Museum there is a Heritage Trail Walk. It is all close by.( You will be given a map) It includes Worcester Cathedral, 5mins away, The Commandery, a grade 1 listed property which served as King Charles’ 11 headquarters during the Civil War, Friars Street, which contains some of the oldest buildings in the city dating back to the 13th Century and The Infirmary which combines history, science,art and technology.
There is plenty to do and see for an enjoyable day out.

Website:
https://www.museumofroyalworcester.org/

Booking Months: Zoom Link will be sent to members
                     Cost:

Explore the private spaces of the Inns of Court with its cobbled streets, gas lights and ancient buildings, stunning architecture, tranquil gardens, gowned and bewigged barristers. Uncover the secrets of crusaders and campaigners in a hidden part of London dating back to the 1200s. Emma, a former barrister, worked in the Inner Temple and Royal Courts of Justice for many years before she became a guide, and is the perfect companion on this virtual tour.

Society members will receive an email invitation with the Zoom Link.

START TIME 10.30

Website:

Booking Months: Zoom Link will be sent to members – Start at 10.30
                     Cost:

The West End of London, with its theatres, hotels and huge mansions, has always been one of the most glittering districts of the city. However there is a small part of it that had an altogether darker reputation.
Soho for centuries was the place where the rich went to have illicit fun. This virtual walk will introduce you to some of the famous characters and personalities that have shaped the last 350 years of Soho history from Casanova’s mistress to the King of Porn, from the creator of communism to the inventor of television.

Pepe Martinez is an award winning London Blue Badge Tourist guide.
He was born in the East End and has lived there all his life.
He is an accredited Institute of Tourist Guiding Trainer and is currently tutoring on the London Blue badge training course

Society members will receive an email invitation with the Zoom Link.

START TIME 10.30

Website: