Events
NETWORK MEETINGS
The u3a Isle of Man meets on the third Thursday of every month at 2pm in St John's Mill. This is an opportunity to listen to a variety of speakers, meet fellow members, find out more about special interest groups, meet group co-ordinators and find out about new groups and events. You will find the dates and details of the speakers for 2023 in the list below. All the meetings are held at St John's Mill - just past the Tynwald Mills shops on the left. You can either park in the shops car park and walk or use the car park off the Poortown Road and walk from there. There is limited disabled car parking outside the Mill.
If you are interested in the u3a but are not yet a member, attending a Network Meeting is the ideal introduction. The Groups Co-ordinator will be able to explain which groups are running and how to join them. Membership for the year ending 31st March 2024 is £15.00.
u3a Visit Manx Museum Douglas. Mon 26th Feb 10.30am to 12.15pm
Allison Fox, the Curator of Archaeology at Manx National Heritage, will provide a one hour presentation in the Seminar Room on “The Isle of Man after the Viking Age, AD 1200-1600”. There will be an opportunity to handle some of the artefacts from the Manx National Collections. After a short break, Allison will then take us down to the gallery to informally view other objects on display and she will be on hand to enlighten us further on what we are seeing and answer any questions.
Contributions needed to pay for the room depend on the number coming along but will be advised in advance before committing. Likely to be about £4 each payable in cash on the day.
Please bring your own drink and snacks if required.
Anyone interested contact Les Cunliffe who is organizing by email: lwcunliffe@gmail.com. We are limited to a max of 25 people and priority will be given to members of the u3a Archaeology Group – the latter is not active at the moment but we are still hopeful it can be revived say for one off events like this talk or by Members leading.
Meeting Speakers and events - 2023
April - Silver Trust (contemporary silver for use at Number 10)- Christopher English
July - Crogga Gas Field
February Network Meeting Cyber Security - Alan Chambers
Alan Chambers of Cyber Security gave us a talk about what to look out for when using our mobile phones and home computers, to try to ensure we don’t become victims of scammers. He told us about phishing and all sorts of other methods used by perpetrators of crime to obtain our bank details, which would enable them to access our accounts. Quite disturbing! As would be expected, this talk led to many questions from the audience!
Christmas Lunch 2023
A great turn-out of 64 people enjoyed Christmas lunch at the Ocean Views in Onchan Park. Afterwards we puzzled over a quiz, and were entertained by folk singer, Babs Killey.
Samaritans in the Isle of Man - Alan Faragher
At the November Network meeting Alan Faragher, assisted by Sylvia, gave us a talk about the Samaritans and the work they do in the Island. We were surprised to hear that callers are not from the Island, but from Devon. This is how the Samaritans work, and it is in order to keep anonymity and confidentiality between those calling and those providing a listening service. Neither advice nor counselling is given – it is a listening service. We left with a better understanding of the service provided by the Samaritans, and of the need for such help.
Romania Then and Now - Dr Rosa Drown
At the October Network Meeting Dr Rosa Drown gave us a very interesting talk about Romania, a country which she and her husband have visited many times over the years since the fall of Communism in December 1989, and the changes brought about by the Restoration of Democracy in that country. The talk was illustrated by maps and photos of the countryside and villages showing us how beautiful and uncrowded it is outside the cities.
A Loganair Pilot - Steve Thursfield
At the September meeting we enjoyed a most entertaining talk given by Steve Thursfield, commencing with his first job on leaving school in a Leicestershire museum, and how he progressed by a circuitous route to become a commercial pilot with Loganair. Despite difficulties with the technology at St Johns Mill, he remained calm and stress-free, just as you would expect of a pilot, and eventually we were able to view all the slides pertaining to his talk. Many thanks, Steve.
The War in Ukraine - Lieutenant Governor
At our July network meeting we were fortunate enough to welcome, in the Veranda Suite at the Talk of the Town restaurant in Douglas, the Governor, Sir John Lorimer, who was our speaker this month. More than 60 members attended this event which included tea/coffee and cakes, and plenty of time to socialise before and after.
Prior to this event, we didn’t know what the topic of the Governor’s talk would be. However, he gave us an illuminating talk, enhanced by his knowledge gained from his military experience over many years, by discussing the current ongoing conflict in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion in February 2022. Such a serious topic deserved plenty of time to remind us of the position of the borders prior to the invasion, give us a comprehensive explanation of the events of the conflict to date, and his thoughts on the possible outcomes. This was a most interesting and informative talk, and gave rise to many questions from the floor. A couple of times in the Governor’s talk a bold herring gull came tapping at the patio door of the Veranda Suite, clearly wanting to join in! (It had to be shooed away!) Andy suggested that the gull had come to listen to the Governor’s talk, to which Sir John replied that he hoped it wasn’t a Russian spy!
Credit Union - David Talbot
At the June Network Meeting David Talbot gave us an interesting talk about the Manx Credit Unionwhich he was instrumental in setting up some years ago. It is run by local people, who give theirservice voluntarily, for local people in the Isle of Man. You can save with the Manx Credit Union, and borrow small amounts. This is a not-for-profit operation. The Credit Union encourages responsible lending – you can only borrow what you can pay back over an agreed period of time.
A trip to the Calf
On Monday 17 July 11 u3a members enjoyed an outing by boat from Port St Mary to the Calf of Man, with Dave Fisher as our guide on the Calf. It was a bit choppy on the outward journey, but the sea was calmer on our return. Dave is a dry stone dyker, but because he has spent a deal of time working on the Calf, his knowledge goes much further, and we also learned a lot about the Manx language and the work he had been involved in on the Calf. In addition, we were lucky enough to meet one of the ornithologists working on the Calf this summer, who showed us a little meadow pipit and a goldfinch just caught on the mist nets, which were quickly weighed, measured, condition checked, ringed etc, before being set free to fly off completely unharmed by the process. This was a fascinating introduction to the information gained from their work on the Calf.
Ramsey Pier Restoration Trust - Graham Curphey
Our speaker at the May Network Meeting was Graham Curphy, a trustee of the Queens Pier Restoration Trust. He gave a most interesting talk about the Ramsey Pier , and the ongoing restoration work. The pier was opened in 1886 by Bishop Rowley. It was used by the Steam Packet until 1970, but closed due to vandalism in 1991. A team of volunteers have been working tirelessly to restore the pier for people to enjoy for many years to come.
Bishop Rowley of Peel talk
At our April Network meeting, Peter Lipman, organist and director of Music at Peel Cathedral gave us a talk about the history of Peel Cathedral. We learned that the building was only completed in 1887, and surprisingly was only recognised as a cathedral in 1980. A lively question and answer session followed.
100 years of the Manx Museum - March talk by Katy King
At the March Network Meeting Katie King, a curator of Art & History at the Manx Museum, gave us a talk about 100 years of the Manx Museum, although, as she explained, the Manx Museum in some form was actually established in the 19 th Century, and was added to several time before it was housed in its current location. We found her to be an excellent speaker, who was clearly very experienced and enthusiastic about her subject, and kept us all spellbound, and awake!
Working on the Calf of Man - February talk by Dave Fisher
At the February meeting Dave Fisher gave us an interesting talk about volunteering as a dry stonewaller, on the Calf of Man. Anyone interested in learning this new skill should contact Manx National Heritage at enquiries@mnh.im.
Silvercrafting - January Talk by Andy Corrin
At the January 2023 Network meeting Andy Corrin stepped in at the last minute, in place of the Governor who had to cancel, and gave us a talk about silversmithing. Andy and Paul Dunderdale had arranged to meet at St Johns Mill 2 days beforehand to check the technology worked, but unfortunately that was the day of the frost and snow when everyone was advised not to travel unless absolutely necessary, and so that had to be cancelled. Sods law prevailed, and on the day it was found that the wifi at the centre wasn’t strong enough to show us on the screen silversmiths working on a TV challenge, so Andy had to carry on regardless. Nevertheless he made a grand job of
keeping our interest whilst he demonstrated at his workbench, softening silver with a blowtorch,and shaping it into a ring. He had also brought along several pieces of jewellery showing various techniques. A lively question and answer session followed.