You might also like to peruse the recordings on our YouTube channel. We generally make them publicly accessible six months after the event.
Tuesday 15th April 2025, 7pm
The Nine Days' Wonder of Will Kemp - Rick Jones
William Kempe (c. 1560-1603), commonly referred to as Will Kemp, was an English actor and dancer specializing in comic roles and best known for having been one of the original players in early dramas by William Shakespeare. After his departure from the Chamberlain's Men, Kemp continued to pursue his career as a performer. In February and March 1600, he undertook what he would later call his 'Nine Days Wonder,' in which he morris danced from London to Norwich and later published a description of the event. He danced through Whitechapel on his marathon. This is an illustrated account of Rick Jones's 2016 re-creation of Kemp's dance.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 18th March 2025, 7pm
Bewitching Harz: the mountains of Central Germany - Frank Pattison
Illustrated talk exploring the sometimes harrowing history of the region, its beautiful towns and its reputation as the habitation of witches in lore and literature.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 18th February 2025, 7pm
Joseph Haydn in London 1790-1794 - Rick Jones
Illustrated talk on the Austrian composer's four-year sojourn in the world's most advanced city.
One of the greatest composers in the history of music, Joseph Haydn, lived in London for four years during the 1790s, just as the Napoleonic conflict was beginning to convulse Europe. During this time he thrilled its citizens with twelve symphonies, including The Surprise, The Drumroll, The Clock and The Military. Concerts took place at The King's Theatre in the Haymarket (now Her Majesty's) or the Hanover Square Rooms (which no longer exist).
The talk will explain how this came about and some of the revolutionary changes taking place in the society, politics and culture of the period.
Rick Jones is a London Blue Badge guide and chair of the local committee of St George's German Lutheran church, London E1 8EB.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 21st January 2025, 7pm
Safe Haven: the UK's investigation into Nazi collaborators and the failure of justice - Jon Silverman, Bob Sherwood
The controversial 1991 War Crimes Act gave new powers to courts to try non-British citizens resident in the UK for war crimes committed during WWII. But in spite of the extensive investigative and legal work that followed, and the expense of some £11 million, it led to just one conviction: that in 1999 of Anthony (Andrzej) Sawoniuk.
Bob Sherwood and Jon Silverman will talk about why and how convictions failed to follow investigations and so many Nazi collaborators escaped justice and never appeared in court. Copies of their book on the subject will be available to buy.
Jon Silverman is Emeritus Professor of Media & Criminal Justice at the University of Bedfordshire (UK). His main area of research is media and post-conflict justice/governance in both West and East Africa. Before becoming an academic, he was a journalist for the BBC and worked for 13 years (1989-2002) as Home/Legal Affairs Correspondent, winning the Sony Radio Journalist of the Year award in 1996 for his coverage of the UK’s war crimes investigations. He has written extensively about international criminal tribunals, including the International Criminal Court (ICC) and attended both the Rwanda and Yugoslavia tribunals as a reporter.
Dr Sherwood was an operational Detective Inspector in the Metropolitan Police Service, retiring in 2003. With a keen interest in life-long learning, he obtained a Law degree in 1993, and returned to university in 2011. After an MA in Holocaust Studies sparked his interest in the subject of war crimes, he completed research for his doctorate in the UK War Crimes Team since 1945.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
January 2025-April 2025, Organ Vespers 6pm on the first Saturday of each month (earlier on 1st March)
On the first Saturday of each month at 6pm, please join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ. Please note that on 1st March 2025, to fit in with the Organ Week, this event begins at 3pm with a talk by Richard Brasier, the service running from 3:30pm-4:30pm. Owing to the large number of visitors expected, there won't be capacity to serve refreshments on this occasion.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Wednesday 4th December 2024, 7pm
Christmas Carols by the London Gallery Quire - In Person Only
We think of Christmas as a timeless tradition, perhaps going back to mediaeval days. But many familiar elements go back little further than the Victorian period, and that applies to many of the most popular Christmas carols. This evening we take you back to earlier times, to hear again Christmas hymns, carols and settings that were sung on the village green, around the hearth, and, sometimes, in church, in a different, more rural England. The familiar characters are there – angels, shepherds, the baby in the manger. But the music is different, ranging from exuberant and boisterous to reflective and poignant, all full of the wonder and intense excitement of this special season. On the way we shall all sing together two well-known Christmas carols which do go back to the old times. Finally, as is our tradition at this concert, we will finish with a German piece which this year is a short Bach Chorale from his Christmas Oratorio of 1734.
Most of the music in this evening’s concert comes from manuscript and book sources from well before the Victorian period, and much of it has been little sung for 200 years. We hope you enjoy rediscovering it.
Philip J Price, Musical Director London Gallery Quire
See more about the London Gallery Quire at https://www.lgq.org.uk/ .
The admission price of £8 includes Stollen and a measure of Glühwein or a soft drink if you prefer.
This concert will not be live streamed. Please purchase your ticket online in advance or at the door (cash or contactless).
Tuesday 19th November 2024, 7pm
The First Railway Murder in London: How was Franz Müller convicted? - Dr Rudolph Muhs
Bow resident Franz Müller was executed outside Newgate Prison on 14th November 1864, for the assault and murder of Mr. Thomas Briggs of Clapton Square in Hackney. The case gripped the nation at the time and made headlines both here and abroad. How was the case solved?
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
September 2024-December 2024, Organ Vespers 6pm on the first Saturday of each month
On the first Saturday of each month at 6pm, please join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 15th October 2024, 7pm
A Lutheran Minister in the Anglican Church - Revd Christoph Lindner
Revd. Christoph Lindner, although trained and ordained as a pastor of the Lutheran church in Germany, is now Rector of St Mary's Parish Church, Denham, Buckinghamshire. He explains how this came about and the unique perspective this dual heritage can give. Incidentally, Revd. Lindner's picturesque parish church features in the TV detective series Midsomer Murders, so answering questions about the TV show has become part of his remit.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 17th September 2024, 7pm
Ein Feste Burg: a Come-and-Sing Evening of classic German hymns - Phil Price, music director of With Cheerful Voice and the London Gallery Quire, with organ accompaniment by Richard Brasier
German hymnody was born in the Reformation, and, starting with Luther himself, has produced a treasure store of powerful and profoundly moving hymns which have given expression to a characteristic German sense of personal piety, an awareness of the natural world of creation, and Christian hope. Paired with simple yet compelling hymn tunes and arrangements from composers including Bach, Luther himself, Nicolai, Crüger, and Praetorius, these hymns continue to uplift and inspire. But they are not sung as much as they used to be. St George’s would once have resonated with these hymns each Sunday. Here is a rare chance to sing these tremendous classics once more, in the very kind of place for which they were originally intended.
Copies of all the hymns will be provided, with full four-part settings, allowing those who wish to do so to sing in harmony, which would be very much in the German hymn-singing tradition.
This event will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. Download a copy of the music booklet from the With Cheerful Voice web site before the event (16 A4 sides to print). You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Saturday 7th and Saturday 14th September 2024, 10am-4:30pm
The church is open for the public to view as part of the Heritage Open Days 2024
Heritage Open Days is England's largest community led festival of history and culture, involving thousands of local volunteers and organisations. Every year in September it brings people together to celebrate their heritage, community and history. Stories are told, traditions explored, and histories brought to life. It’s your chance to see hidden places and try out new experiences – and it’s all FREE. No need to pre-book.
Find out more about the Heritage Open Days HERE.
Tuesday 16th July 2024, 7pm
Albrecht Dürer, Humorist and Politician - David Van Edwards
Albrecht Dürer was born in Nuremberg on May 21, 1471, during the Renaissance. Dürer’s genius so dominated the art of the early bourgeois revolution in Germany that it has been called the Dürer epoch. In this talk, David Van Edwards intends to cast some light on Dürer's under-appreciated wicked sense of humour and, in the case of the Rose Garlands, his careful political balancing act for the German community in Venice. David is President of the Lute Society and lives in Norwich.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 18th June 2024, 7pm
The Sugar Bakers: How sugar was imported, refined and used in London - Professor Sarah Palmer
Many German immigrants in the 19th century, especially from NW Germany, worked in the sugar industry in London's East End. The British obsession with sugar has deep roots in the slave trade, where enslaved workers produced sugar for over 170 years, earning it the moniker "white gold." This trade not only fuelled the slave industry but also drove the sugar refining sector in London, then known as sugar bakers because sugar was sold in cone-shaped sugar loaves. Grocers prominently displayed sugar loaves outside their shops, and locations like the Sugarloaf pub and Sugar Bakers Court reflect this history. Sugar theft was a significant crime, with cases like Philip Goodson's theft of 26 pounds of sugar leading to transportation. The sugar refining industry saw significant growth with the influx of German sugar bakers, establishing a community in London's East End. The laborious and dangerous refining process involved boiling, clarifying with bullocks' blood, and moulding into cones. Despite its complexity, the industry has made a significant contribution to British history.
This talk will be online via Zoom only, due to circumstance beyond our control. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link.
Tuesday 21st May 2024, 7pm
The Many Faces of Berlin - Frank Pattison
An illustrated journey through the history and culture of the German capital.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Tuesday 16th April 2024, 7pm
Smithfield past and present - Alec Forshaw
Author and architect Alec Forshaw, a former Conservation Officer for Islington, presents, live and online, a history of Smithfield Market in advance of its re-purposing as the new Museum of London. He traces its origins to Roman times and covers its development as a meat market, site of executions, red light district, health centre (St Bartholomew's Hospital), and fairground. His illustrated talk will present photographs from his book Smithfield Past and Present, now in its third edition. Copies of the book will be available at the live event.
This talk will be online via Zoom and in person at St George's. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link. You can also pay at the door (cash or card).
Saturday 6th April 2024, 6pm
Organ vespers by Jonathan Lilley, Director of Music, Waltham Abbey Church
Jonathan Lilley trained at the RAM as a first-study organist and member of the Church Music and Choral Conducting classes. Whilst still a first-year undergraduate he held the organ scholarship at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, and passed the notorious Fellowship exam of the Royal College of Organists. He began his career proper as Sub-Organist of what is now Leeds Minster, before moving to Ely Cathedral as Assistant Organist. He has gained the RCO's diploma on Choral Directing and diplomas in piano and singing, and in 2005 was awarded the RAM’s honorary diploma of Associate. Jonathan was appointed Director of Music at Waltham Abbey Church in 2013, alongside which he is establishing a freelance career as accompanist and general keyboard person in and around London. In January 2016 he became accompanist to the English Baroque Choir.
We hope you will join us for an hour of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 19th March 2024, 7pm
Tracing Your German Ancestry - Peter Towey, Anglo-German Family History Society
Peter Towey is the vice-president of the Anglo-German Family History Society (AGFHS). He has uncovered some unexpected sources of information about the lives of ancestors from across the channel, including ships' passenger lists and British census records, and reveals some of the tricks that make ancestry research fruitful.
This talk will be online via Zoom only. If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link.
Saturday 2nd March 2024, 6pm
Organ vespers by Richard Brasier, of St Mary with St George German Lutheran Church, London
Richard Brasier [BMus (Hons), MMus (Orgelsolo), LRAM, ARCO, ATCL] enjoys a busy and far-reaching international career as a soloist, teacher, recording artist and musicologist. Richard is active as a teacher and examiner for the Royal College of Organists, is a member of the Academic Board, and is Artistic Director of the college's annual study trips to instruments of historic significance in Europe. He was Artistic Director for the 2022 RCO Organ Forum, at which the college celebrated the bicentennial of the birth of César Franck. Since 2020, Richard has been organist of St Mary’s with St George's German Lutheran Church in Central London.
We hope you will join us for an hour of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 20th February 2024, 7pm
Fundraising concert for St Christopher's Hospice in memory of Sunhild Walker-Kier
Local Committee chair Sunhild "Sunny" Walker-Kier left us in September 2023, spending the last weeks of her life in St Christopher's and staying cheerful to the end. Her final wish was that a fundraising event for St Christopher's be held in her memory. So this is it - featuring Imke Siegerist (organiser and soprano), Janna Hüneke (flute), Rick Jones (baroque lute) and Erik Eichelberger (organ). We are also expecting a guest appearance via Zoom by singer-songwriter Eddi Hüneke from Germany - Sunhild was his Number One Fan.
This concert will be accessible both in person and online. Entry is free, but please donate generously to St Christopher's hospice either at the concert (if attending in person) or by visiting https://stchristophers.org.uk/donate and mentioning Sunhild's name when submitting your gift.
If you wish to watch online, please register here to get the Zoom link.
Saturday 3rd February 2024, 6pm
Organ vespers by Jeremiah Stephenson, organist of All Saints’ church, Margaret Street, London, UK
Currently Associate Director of Music at All Saints Margaret Street in London, Jeremiah combines his Sunday duties with a busy career as a freelance recitalist, accompanist and teacher. Jeremiah has performed solo recitals across the UK, Europe and America. His work has been broadcast on television and radio in the UK, France and the Czech Republic, appearing alongside the BBC singers on Radio 3 and playing a televised recital as part of the Janáček May International Music Festival. This year’s projects include recitals in venues such as St Paul’s Cathedral in London and Uppsala Cathedral, as well as participation in the Toulouse les Orgues and Rocamadour Musique Sacrée festivals.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 16th January 2024, 7pm
The Life and Times of Hans Holbein The Younger - Ulla Thiessen
Blue Badge guide Ulla Thiessen gives a talk on the current Hans Holbein exhibition at the Queen's Gallery (soon to be King's). This promises to be a fascinating study of the life and times of the man who painted Henry VIII's portrait and freeze-framed a moment in history in his work The Ambassadors.
This talk will be held in person and online. Tickets are £7 from Eventbrite.
Saturday 6th January 2024, 6pm
Organ vespers by Francesca Massey, Rochester, UK
Francesca Massey has recently embarked upon an active portfolio career as an organist, choral conductor and teacher, having worked as a cathedral musician for 15 years. Born in Birmingham in 1982, Francesca was educated at Cambridge University and the Royal Northern College of Music (on a prestigious ABRSM Scholarship), holding Organ Scholarships at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge and Manchester Cathedral. She later became Assistant Organist at Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, Assistant Director of Music at Peterborough Cathedral, Sub-Organist at Durham Cathedral and Director of Music at Rochester Cathedral.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 19th December 2023, 7pm
Finding Hope and Opportunity at the End of Life: Reflections on the work of St Christopher's Hospice - Heather Richardson
St. Christopher's is a hospice in south London, England, established in 1967 by Cicely Saunders, whose work is considered the basis of modern hospice philosophy. Heather Richardson is the former Chief Executive of St Christopher's Hospice and present Director of Education, Research and End of Life Policy for the charity. She gives an illustrated talk on the history and founding principles of St Christopher's, explaining how these may bring comfort to individuals approaching the end of their lives and be of value to families and communities facing the challenge of accompanying someone in their last days.
This talk will be held in person and online. Tickets are £7 from Eventbrite.
Wednesday 13th December 2023, 7pm
Christmas Carols by the London Gallery Quire - In Person Only
Founded by Dr Francis Roads in 1997, the London Gallery Quire performs West Gallery Music - the hymns and psalmody heard in parish churches and nonconformist chapels during the Georgian period, from about 1722-1850. It is often vigorous, poignant, and very enjoyable to sing. Many of the pieces are a lot livelier than later Victorian hymnody, and there is a wonderful repertoire of Christmas carols. The choir has a long tradition of giving a Christmas concert in this wonderful original 18th century chapel. The Stollen and Glühwein that follows is always much enjoyed too!
See more about the London Gallery Quire at https://www.lgq.org.uk/ .
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Saturday 2nd December 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Richard Brasier, organist of St Mary with St George German Lutheran church, London, UK
Richard Brasier [BMus (Hons), MMus (Orgelsolo), LRAM, ARCO, ATCL] enjoys a busy and far-reaching international career as a soloist, teacher, recording artist and musicologist. Richard is active as a teacher and examiner for the Royal College of Organists, is a member of the Academic Board, and is Artistic Director of the college's annual study trips to instruments of historic significance in Europe. He was Artistic Director for the 2022 RCO Organ Forum, at which the college celebrated the bicentennial of the birth of César Franck. Since 2020, Richard has been organist of St Mary’s with St George's German Lutheran Church in Central London.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 15th November 2023, 7pm
Clement Attlee: an enigma of 20th-century British history - Geoff Cosson. Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Clement Attlee, sometimes referred to as "the suburban revolutionary", was MP for Limehouse and, as leader of the Labour Party, the unlikely victor of the first post-war general election in 1945. For the next six years he led a government that would transform the country and lay the foundations on which so much that we value in this country still rest, especially the National Health Service. These achievements were all the more remarkable given that they were forged in the gloom of an economy broken by war and with a Cabinet riven by rivalries, distrust and raging egos. Geoff Cosson summarises his life and work.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturday 4th November 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Tina Christiansen, Ansgars Church, Odense, Denmark
Tina Christiansen is a concert organist, organist at Ansgar's Church, Odense and artistic director of Odense International Organ Festival. In 2011, she graduated from The Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus (DK) with the highest marks at the master’s exam in the class of Professor Ulrik Spang-Hanssen. After completing the master’s exam, Tina was accepted with top marks in the Soloist class (the advanced postgraduate diploma), from which she made her debut concert in 2013. Alongside the Soloist class, Tina has studied with Anders Johnsson at Malmö Academy of Music, Sweden, and finally she has supplemented her studies with masterclasses with Dame Gillian Weir, Roger Fisher, Nigel Allcoat, Leo van Doeselaar, Paolo Crivellaro, Marie-Louise Langlais, Winfried Bönig, Bjørn Andor Drage, Eric Lebrun, Ullrich Böhme, Michele Croese, Hans Fagius and Thomas Trotter.
Tina has played numerous concerts throughout Denmark as well as more than 70 concerts across large parts of Europe (Norway, Sweden, the Faroe Islands, England, Scotland, Germany, Austria, The Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Hungary, Poland, Latvia) and in Russia (the Far East Coast, Siberia, Kaliningrad Cathedral, Saint Petersburg, etc.). Tina has also performed as an organ soloist at concerts with the Odense Symphony Orchestra and the Prince's Music Corps. In 2017 she was invited to play a solo concert at St Paul's Cathedral in London and the final concert at London Organ Day. The year 2023 offers, among many other concerts, concert appearances in Rome and France as well as a major tour in England, including a recital at Westminster Abbey. More information can be found at https://tina-christiansen.dk/cv/cv%20english.html .
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 17th October 2023, 7pm
The Infirmary of London - Medha Chetai (archivist of the Royal London Hospital). Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Medha Chetai is the archivist for the Royal London Hospital. She illuminates the rich and varied history of this venerable institution, which started life as the Infirmary of London in Prescot Street in 1740 and moved 17 years later to its present location in Whitechapel - both almost within a stone's throw of St George's church. After a series of changes of name, governance, funding model and architecture, the hospital continues its vital work today as part of the Barts Health NHS Trust, formed in 2012.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturday 7th October 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Ewa Belmas, Organist of Lviv Concert Hall, Ukraine
Ewa Belmas is a member of the Society of Women Organists and resident organist at Lviv Concert Hall, Ukraine. She currently lives in Kent and has become renowned for spirited performances of her own transcriptions of the Harry Potter film scores at prestigious venues such as Rochester Cathedral.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 19th September 2023, 7pm
Dennis Hayes, Academics for Academic Freedom: Does Anyone Believe in Free Speech? Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Dennis Hayes, founder of Academics for Academic Freedom, asks 'Does Anyone believe in Free Speech?' In liberal Western democracies, almost everyone says that they believe in free speech, but this belief is being challenged. Young people are now said to be less inclined to support free speech and more inclined to censor speech they find offensive. Many activist groups believe that free speech must be curtailed to protect oppressed minorities from harm. The government's promotion of free speech through the recent Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act has been denounced by trade unions and left-wing groups as a blank cheque for racism and hate speech. Free speech is no longer seen as the foundational value, but one among many so that it can be traded off to support other values.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturdays 9th and 16th September 2023, 10am-4pm
Heritage Open Days / London Open House. Free entry - complimentary refreshments
Depending on volunteer availability, the morning session on 16th September looks a little doubtful at the moment. Watch this space for updates.
Saturday 2nd September 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Richard Brasier, Organist of St Mary with St George German Lutheran Church, London
Richard Brasier [BMus (Hons), MMus (Orgelsolo), LRAM, ARCO, ATCL] enjoys a busy and far-reaching international career as a soloist, teacher, recording artist and musicologist. Richard is active as a teacher and examiner for the Royal College of Organists, is a member of the Academic Board, and is Artistic Director of the college's annual study trips to instruments of historic significance in Europe. He was Artistic Director for the 2022 RCO Organ Forum, at which the college celebrated the bicentennial of the birth of César Franck. Since 2020, Richard has been organist of St Mary’s with St George's German Lutheran Church in Central London.
Andrew Dewar was originally scheduled to appear at this event, but has had to withdraw at short notice for health reasons. He has been Organist at the American Cathedral, Paris, since 2010. Alongside side his position in Paris, Andrew is professor of organ at the Royal College of Music in London. He was winner of one of the most prestigious of all competitions – St. Alban’s – but has also won a host of other international Organ Competitions, inter alia Dublin, Wiesbaden, Berlin, Landau an der Isar, plus prizes in Montreal, Schramberg and the Julius Reubke Prize at Erfurt. It is hoped that he will be able to appear at a future Organ Vespers.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 18th July 2023, 7pm
Immo Hüneke: German Black-Letter Typefaces and Cursive Scripts, past and present. Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Local committee member Immo Hüneke surveys the German black-letter typefaces (Schwabacher, Fraktur and Gotisch): their calligraphic counterparts, their artistic value, the reasons they were created, their history and why today there is widespread antagonism to them, in the face of which a few enthusiastic supporters are keeping the tradition alive.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Tuesday 20th June 2023, 7pm
Frank Pattison: Glory, Delusion, Destruction, Rebirth – The Story of Nuremberg. Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Traveller and lecturer Frank Pattison on Nuremberg's golden age from 1500 to 1700, its importance as effective capital of the Holy Roman Empire; its shameful support of Hitler and the Nazis; the Nuremberg Rallies; the devastating bombing; the war trials; the post-war reconstruction of a city which was 90% destroyed; and its rebirth as the "City of Peace and Human Rights".
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Tuesday 16th May 2023, 7pm
Khalil Mohammed: the Thames Tunnels, the 8th wonder of the world! Tickets £7 via Eventbrite
The Brunel Museum’s curator, Khalil Mohammed, spotlights the history of the Thames tunnels, which connect North and South London.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Tuesday 18th April 2023, 7pm
Alec Forshaw: London in the 1980s - tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Author and former town planner Alec Forshaw gives an illustrated talk on London in the decade of Mrs Thatcher, the Falklands, Eastenders, Loadsamoney, Yuppies, Sloanes and the slow gentrification of the East End.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturday 1st April 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Richard Brasier, Organist of St Mary with St George German Lutheran Church, London
Richard Brasier [BMus (Hons), MMus (Orgelsolo), LRAM, ARCO, ATCL] enjoys a busy and far-reaching international career as a soloist, teacher, recording artist and musicologist. Richard is active as a teacher and examiner for the Royal College of Organists, is a member of the Academic Board, and is Artistic Director of the college's annual study trips to instruments of historic significance in Europe. He was Artistic Director for the 2022 RCO Organ Forum, at which the college celebrated the bicentennial of the birth of César Franck. Since 2020, Richard has been organist of St Mary’s with St George's German Lutheran Church in Central London.
Andrew Dewar was originally scheduled to appear at this event, but has had to withdraw at short notice for health reasons. He has been Organist at the American Cathedral, Paris, since 2010. Alongside side his position in Paris, Andrew is professor of organ at the Royal College of Music in London. He was winner of one of the most prestigious of all competitions – St. Alban’s – but has also won a host of other international Organ Competitions, inter alia Dublin, Wiesbaden, Berlin, Landau an der Isar, plus prizes in Montreal, Schramberg and the Julius Reubke Prize at Erfurt. It is hoped that he will be able to appear at a future Organ Vespers.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 21st March 2023, 7pm
Unearthing the Boar's Head Playhouse in Whitechapel - tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Heather Knight from the Museum of London Archaeology will talk about the recent unearthing of the Boar’s Head Playhouse in Whitechapel.
Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturday 4th March 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Stephen Farr, Director of Music at All Saints, Margaret Street, London
Stephen Farr (born 1967 in London) is currently the Chief Examiner at the Royal College of Organists and the Director of Music at All Saints, Margaret Street. In the years following his time at Clare College, Farr won the Royal College of Organists Performer of the Year Award (1988) as well as a number of international prizes. Farr has performed a number of world premieres for famous composers, including Judith Bingham's The Everlasting Crown in 2011 at the Royal Albert Hall; Thomas Hyde's Improvisation on Puernatus in 2012 as part of Worcester College Choir's 2012 CD This Christmas Night; and Cecilia McDowall's First Flight in 2021, performed online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Farr appeared at the BBC Proms in 2011, 2015, and 2017. He has also led and continues to lead a number of ensembles, including Florilegium, the Bach Choir, BBC Singers, BBC Concert Orchestra, English Concert, London Baroque Soloists, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Wallace Collection, Endymion Ensemble, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Britten Sinfonia, the Academy of Ancient Music, and Polyphony.
We hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ. No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 21st February 2023, 7pm
I Walked Across Germany in the Steps of JS Bach - tickets £7 via Eventbrite
Composer Johann Sebastian Bach walked across Germany from Arnstadt to Lübeck in 1705. Blue Badge guide, musician and music writer Rick Jones gives an illustrated account of his 2005 re-enactment of Bach's trek. Tickets will be £7 at the door (cash only) or in advance via Eventbrite. We plan to live-stream the talk via Zoom.
Saturday 4th February 2023, 6pm
Organ vespers by Daniel Moult, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
We are very excited to welcome Daniel Moult to play this organ vespers. Daniel is Head of Organ Studies at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and a trustee of and examiner for the Royal College of Organists. One of the leading organists of his generation, he has pioneered the use of film to promote the music of the organ, has made many recordings and broadcasts, and performs around the world both as a soloist and ensemble player, so we hope you will join us for an evening of music, played on our historic Organ.
No need to book. Please contribute to the retiring collection.
Tuesday 17th January 2023, 7pm
My Years as the BBC's Man in Berlin - Ben Bradshaw MP
Ben Bradshaw is the MP for Exeter. He talks about his time as BBC Berlin correspondent in the late 1980s, around the time of the fall of the Wall.
This talk will be on Zoom and in person. Tickets are £7 from https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/360310417157
Tuesday 20th December 2022, 7pm
The Ghost of Future Past, WG Sebald and the Trauma of Modernity - writer and philosopher Will Self
The writer WG Sebald died twenty years ago in a car crash outside Norwich where he taught at the University of East Anglia. He left four novels and was seen as a future Nobel laureate. His death was a great loss to literature and Will Self has been untiring in his support for his legacy. He often wandered in the area around Whitechapel before and after his train journeys from Liverpool Street Station to his home in East Anglia and perhaps came across St George's German Lutheran Church in his travels.
This talk will be held in person and online. Tickets are £5 from HERE
Wednesday 6th December 2022, 7pm
Christmas Carols by the London Gallery Quire - In Person Only