March

Events

SCROLL DOWN FOR 'DATES FOR YOUR DIARY'.

For more information about any Group event see the individual Group Page or e-mail the Groups Co-ordinator from the Contact Page.

For all other events consult the Monthly Notice Sheet (members only) viewable from the Member Page or email a Committee member from the Contact page.

INFORMATION ABOUT SPEAKERS

2023

The new year saw us welcoming, in January, a representative of The East Anglian Air Ambulance Service which provides Helicopter Emergency Medical Services across the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.

The February meeting welcomed Steve Parnwell who, in 2001, following his retirement as the country's most senior operational Police Wildlife Liaison Officer at the rank of Chief Superintendent, founded Greenwillows Associates, an Ecological Management company. He is Greenwillows' Principal Consultant Ecologist with over 50 years’ experience as a field naturalist and ecologist. He told us about the diverse and endangered species found in Fenland and in particular on his nature reserve in Warboys, named after his late wife, Madeleine's Patch. He finished by discussing whether the mystical Big Fenland Cat (Fen Tiger?) actually existed. Who Knows?

Our March meeting saw the return, after more than 6 years, of Jason Middleton who described many of the stunning exquisite jewellery and gemstones owned by Royalty and celebrities. Sadly he didn't have any free samples!

Our April speaker was March physiotherapist Constance Novis who helped us to understand how our bodies' movements illustrate our emotions even if not consciously conveyed. A very thought provoking talk.

In May we welcomed Jim Stebbings who gave us an unforgettable musical presentation about the lives of famous songwriters who contributed thousands of popular songs that remain ‘standards’ today and which comprise much of what is often referred to as The Great American Songbook. The stories behind the lives of our seven American songwriters also revealed extraordinary, fascinating and even shocking facts from their personal lives. For more about Jim and to discover who 'The Seven' are click the link on the right.
Jim will also be seeing the year out by entertaining us at our December '23 Christmas party.

June saw the return again of Barbara Meyer, who this time gave another wonderful talk, supported by some amazing photography, the subject being 'Norfolk and Lincolnshire Seals'. To find out more about Barbara and this talk click her link on the right.

In July we welcomed Brian Butcher of the National Trust who talked about the life of one of the most enigmatic figures of the 16th Century - Anne Boleyn.

The Speaker for August was the brilliant Paul Barwick on "The Life and Times of Agent ZigZag". Edward Arnold Chapman (16 November 1914 – 11 December 1997) was an English criminal and wartime spy. During the Second World War he offered his services to Nazi Germany as a spy and subsequently became a British double agent. His British Secret Service handlers codenamed him Agent Zigzag

September brought the delightful Lucy Allen to March u3a. Her talk was about her life as a Stunt Woman: How she got into it, what Stunt Work actually is, the Highs & Lows of the work they do and other stories about her long career. Lucy will show videos of herself in action while sharing with us her fascinating story.

Our October meeting welcomed Martin Lloyd. He told us how he got his first book published and revealed the truth about writers, publishers and bookshops. In a step by step exposé he explained what he had to do to get his first book published.

Hexachordia - a trio of East Anglian-based professional musicians with a strong track-record of performing entertaining and accessible early music concerts were unable to join us. At very short notice Andrew Callaghan gave an excellent presentation on the Fenland Orchard Project.