Events
As well as the specific events shown below, click [Calendar] to see also many other notified meetings. The Calendar may be useful for planning individual and group schedules.
Events shown below as a General Meeting or Outing are open to all our members. Unless stated otherwise, the other events are specifically for members of the relevant group and you need to join the group in order to participate. Outings and some group events require booking. Click Outings for more information on booking trips.
A General Meeting is held usually on the first Tuesday of every month (except August) at 2.30pm in the Countess Free Church, 10 Chapel Street, Ely. See the list below for details. New members and visitors are welcome (admission £2).
If your group has an event that you think should be shown here or you see an error or omission in the Calendar please send the details to Peter Lee via the Website button on the CONTACT page.
| Dates for your Diary | ||
|---|---|---|
| January 2020 | ||
| Tue Jan 28th | Social and Sport | Hear for You group meets 10.00-12.00 at The Almonry (Blue Room). Topic: Communication Tactics |
| Thu Jan 30th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Seasonal lunch at Ely Turkish Restaurant & Meze Bar |
| February 2020 | ||
| Mon Feb 3rd | Gardens and Plants | Botany. 100 years of the NIAB (National Institute of Agricultural Botany). Talk given by Dr Tina Barsby OBE, CEO of NIAB. Militia Way meeting room. 10.00am. |
| Tue Feb 4th | General Meeting | Dr Eric Somerville 'Opium eating in the Fens in the 19th Century'. The use of opium in the fens. Countess Chapel 2.30pm |
| Thu Feb 6th | History and Family History | History Group: Kate Cann on 'Henry VIII and his Six Wives', Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £1 |
| Mon Feb 10th | Written Word | Bookmarkers discuss Cold Sunflowers by Mark Sippings |
| Tue Feb 11th | Bird Watching | Visit to Grafham Water. Leader, Nigel Puttergill. Start 10.00am. |
| Wed Feb 12th | Photography | Presentation by visiting speaker Laura Galbraith, a professional photographer and trainer. Laura will be sharing photos from her tours of Africa and Japan. Witcham Village Hall 1.45-3.45pm. |
| Mon Feb 17th | Transport | Nigel Macknight on ‘Regaining the World Water Speed Record', Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Mon Feb 17th | Arts and Crafts | Cardcraft. Free choice. Witchford Playing Fields Association Hall, 2-4pm. |
| Tue Feb 18th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 1. Talk by Peter Lee on 'Gardening from seed'. Library Meeting Room, 2.15pm |
| Tue Feb 25th | Social and Sport | Hear for You group meets 10.00-12.00 (venue to be confirmed). Guest speaker Joy Badcock (former lip reading teacher) |
| Tue Feb 25th | Social and Sport | Hear for You group meets 10.00. -12.00 St Peters Church Room (Broad Street). Topic: Getting the best out of your hearing aid. |
| Tue Feb 25th | Transport | Visit to RAF Marham, organised by Colin George (limit 20 persons) |
| Wed Feb 26th | Outings | The King and I, Milton Keynes Theatre, Matinee performance. £58 not including lunch. Now closed, Depart Barton Square 8.45am, return by 7pm |
| Thu Feb 27th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Speaker Peter Jackson Subject TBC St Peters Church Hall 2.30 |
| March 2020 | ||
| Mon Mar 2nd | Gardens and Plants | Botany. Sweet crops - (honey, beet, cane). Given by Rose, Helen and Peter. Militia Way meeting room. 10.00am. |
| Tue Mar 3rd | General Meeting | Ian Keable 'Unmasking the Cock Lane Ghost' This is a return visit for Ian, with another talk on 18th century hoaxes. Countess Chapel 2.30pm |
| Thu Mar 5th | History and Family History | History Group: Mike Petty on ‘James Withers, Cambridgeshire Bard’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Tue Mar 10th | Bird Watching | Visit to Wimpole Hall. Leader Barbara York. Start 10.00am. |
| Wed Mar 11th | Photography | Another visiting speaker this month, Brian Bignell reminisces on 'Life as a professional photographer in the 60s' before judging our Spring project on portraiture. Witcham Village Hall 1.45-3.45pm. |
| Mon Mar 16th | Transport | Talk by Keith Parkinson, Chairman of the NVR on the ‘Nene Valley Railway - the first forty years’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Tue Mar 17th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 1. Talk by Rodney Tibbs: 'Gardening Then and Now'. Library Meeting Room, 2.15pm |
| Wed Mar 18th | Outings | International Bomber Command Centre, Lincoln and Belton House, Grantham (NT) £22 (plus £15.60 entrance fee to Belton House for non NT members) places available. |
| Sat Mar 21st | Transport | Visit to the Statfold Barn Narrow Gauge Railway, Tamworth (£13 advance booking, shared transport) |
| Wed Mar 25th | Transport | Visit to the RAF Museum, Hendon (organised by Tony Weston), shared transport |
| Thu Mar 26th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Speaker Alistair Huck, Landscape Architect - Garden design. St Peters Church Hall 2.30 |
| April 2020 | ||
| Thu Apr 2nd | History and Family History | History Group: Tim Young on the ‘History of Education in the 20th Century’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £1 |
| Tue Apr 7th | General Meeting | Peter Lawrence 'This Policeman's Lot-from the Krays to the Crown'.In his return visit Peter talk about his life as a police officer.Countess Chapel 2.30pm |
| Wed Apr 8th | Photography | Composition - an interactive presentation and discussion led by Tony Pleasance. Summer project launches on topic of 'A Day to Remember'. Witcham Village Hall 1.45-3.45pm. |
| Sun Apr 19th →Thu Apr 23rd | Outings | North Wales Spring Holiday based in Caernarfon. Portmeirion, National Slate Museum, Snowdon, Ffestiniog Railways. £459pp, Single Supplement £120, now closed. |
| Mon Apr 20th | Transport | Roger Haverson on the ‘Bristol Brabazon - White Hope or White Elephant’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £1 |
| Tue Apr 21st | Gardens and Plants | Garden 1. TBA |
| Tue Apr 21st | Bird Watching | Monk's Wood for dawn chorus and birdsong identification. Leader Barbara York. Start at dawn. |
| Thu Apr 30th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Visit to Oakington Garden Center. Details TBC |
| May 2020 | ||
| Tue May 5th | General Meeting | Derek Niemann 'A Nazi in the Family'. As the title suggests, Derek's presentation tells the story of discovering that a family member had been a Nazi.Countess Chapel 2.30pm |
| Thu May 7th | History and Family History | History Group: Wendy Ramsell on the ‘Mysteries of Easter Island’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Mon May 11th | Bird Watching | Visit to Maid's Cross. Leader Barbara York. Start 5.00pm. |
| Wed May 13th | Photography | Visit to Hamerton Zoo. Numbers were prebooked last year, please speak to Tony about possibility of last minute places. No meeting at Witcham Village Hall. |
| Mon May 18th | Transport | Peter Cox on the ‘History of the Tracked Hovercraft’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Tue May 19th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 1. College Farm Meadows |
| Wed May 20th | Bird Watching | Visit to London Wetland, Barnes. Leader Anthony Weston. Start 8.30am. |
| Tue May 26th | Outings | Chatham Docks, Kent, includes all exhibits (Call the Midwife tour optional) £31 includes coach and docks (approx £5 for Call the Midwife tour depending on numbers) Places available. |
| Thu May 28th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Visit Gs Mushrooms. Details TBC |
| June 2020 | ||
| Thu Jun 4th | History and Family History | History Group: Roy Williams with his talk ‘Air War Over Britain I', from the beginning to the Zeppelin L20 raid, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Wed Jun 10th | Photography | How to deal with bright highlights and dark shadows, always a problem in the summer. Presented by our High Dynamic Range Duo Tony and Nigel. Judge the Summer project on 'A Day to Remember'. Witcham Village Hall 1.45-3.45pm. |
| Mon Jun 15th | Transport | Brian Dyes on the ‘Ipswich Transport Museum’, exploring the development of engineering and transport around Ipswich and the restoration of the Cambridge horse tram, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Tue Jun 16th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 1. Stowe Hall Garden. Tour of Garden and Tea. |
| Tue Jun 16th | Bird Watching | Visit to Holme and Dersingham bog for owls, nightjars and woodcock. Leader Nigel Puttergill. Start 5.00pm. |
| Wed Jun 17th →Sun Jun 21st | Transport | Visit to Isle of Man heritage railways CANCELLED |
| Thu Jun 18th | Outings | Caley Mill Lavender Farm, Heacham and Holkham Hall. £30 not including lunch, Places available. |
| Thu Jun 25th | Gardens and Plants | Garden 2. Visit to Kirtlng Towers Details TBC |
| July 2020 | ||
| Thu Jul 2nd | History and Family History | History Group: Roy Williams continuing on from last month's talk with ‘Air War Over Britain II', through to the WW2 V-1 flying bomb, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Tue Jul 14th | Outings | Saffron Walden with optional guided walking tour (£5) and Audley End House, £26 (£17 for EH members) Places available. |
| Mon Jul 20th | Transport | Paul Young on the ‘Norfolk Orbital Railway’ (TBC), Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Wed Jul 22nd | Bird Watching | Visit to RSPB Titchwell. Leader Tony Pleasance. Start 10.00am. |
| August 2020 | ||
| Thu Aug 6th | History and Family History | History Group: Village walk with a guide round historic Castle Acre with a light lunch in the church (max 20), £15 |
| Tue Aug 11th | Bird Watching | No event this month. |
| September 2020 | ||
| Thu Sep 3rd | History and Family History | History Group: Kevin Boardman on the ‘Oregon Trail’ (TBC), Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| Wed Sep 23rd | Bird Watching | Mepal Nature Walk. Leaders John and Mavis Middleton. Start 2.00pm. |
| Thu Sep 24th →Mon Sep 28th | Outings | Autumn holiday Cheshire and Manchester, based in Warrington. Jodrell Bank, Quarry Bank Mill (NT), Salford Quays for the Imperial War Museum North, Lowry Gallery and Outlet Centre, visit to Port Sunlight, Chester Zoo, Anderton Boat Lift and Lion Salt Works. Includes all admissions apart from Lowry Gallery Cost approx £500 pp, Single Supplement £100. |
| October 2020 | ||
| Thu Oct 1st | History and Family History | History Group: no meeting this month |
| Tue Oct 13th | Bird Watching | Visit to RSPB Rye Meads. Leader David Godsmark. Start 10.00am. |
| Wed Oct 14th | Outings | A Foodie tour of Norfolk, visiting the winery at Bergh Apton and other local food producers. Cost £37 including wine tasting with cheese and charcuterie. |
| Mon Oct 19th | Transport | Tony Kirby on the 'Railways of mid-Anglia (Cambridge and the Fens)’, Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £2 |
| November 2020 | ||
| Thu Nov 5th | History and Family History | History Group: Maggie Haverson on the ‘Sandringham Estate Village', Ely Bowls Club, 2.30pm, £1 |
| Thu Nov 12th | Outings | London, Neasden Temple and Angels Theatrical Costumes. Cost £62 including 2 course lunch at Grims Dyke Hotel. |
| Fri Nov 13th | Bird Watching | Visit to RSPB Sandy. Leader David Godsmark. Start 10.00am. |
| December 2020 | ||
| Thu Dec 3rd | Outings | The 70s Snowball Christmas Party at the Chigwell Prince Regent Hotel, London, Welcome tea/coffee and mince pies, 3 course festive lunch and entertainment. Optional dress code 70s flares and flower power. Cost £47. |
| Fri Dec 4th | Bird Watching | Social event with guest speaker. Leader Tony Pleasance. Ely Bowls Club. Start 2.00pm. |
| Thu Dec 10th | Walking | Combined Walking Groups: Christmas walk and lunch |