Events
Our main events are our monthly meetings which take place at:
The Methodist Church, 26 St. Edmunds Church Street, Salisbury, SP1 1EF.
The meetings start at 10 am, and the first 30 minutes are given over to general chat between participants. Tea and coffee are available.
Members of the committee will be there to assist with any queries. Membership cards can be collected if required.
The formal part of the meeting, with the speaker, begins at 10.30 in the Sanctuary and generally lasts for an hour. There is usually time for a few questions to the speaker before the Chair brings the meetings to a close.
| Dates for your Diary | |
|---|---|
| Meetings | |
| Wed Jun 5th | Subject : SS Great Britain: from launch to ‘re-launch’ Date : 5th June 2024 at 10.00 Speaker : Ian Caskie Venue : Salisbury Methodist Church Hall In building SS Great Britain, the second of his three great ships, Brunel successfully combined and adapted the very best of cutting edge technologies to create the world’s first transatlantic liner-a true wonder of the Victorian age. She was the first ocean-going steamship with an iron hull and the first driven by a propeller. This extraordinary ship, launched in 1843 as the largest and fastest afloat, transformed shipbuilding and sea travel for ever. Ian was born and raised on Merseyside, where he spent many an hour watching the arrivals and departures at Liverpool’s busy pier head in the 1950’s and 60’s. This lead to his lifelong passion for ships-especially ocean liners. He was a Primary Headteacher and School Improvement Adviser in Bristol for many years and has been a Visitor Experience volunteer and tour guide with the SS Great Britain Trust since 2007. Ian’s enthusiasm for his subject is clearly evidenced in his illustrated talk which tells the ship’s remarkable story from her original design through the different phases of her working life. It also describes life on board and her incredible salvage and return to Bristol in 1970 and finally her restoration, preservation and ‘re-launch’ as a multi-award winning museum of international renown. |
| Wed Jul 3rd | Subject : Wonders of the Ancient World Date : 3rd July 2024 at 10.00 Speaker : Stephen Carr-Smith Venue : Salisbury Methodist Church hall Stephen recently gave us a very interesting talk about the building of the Suez Canal. His presentation this time will be about the “Wonders of the Ancient World” which he last gave on a Noble Caledonian Cruise in June 2023. |
| Wed Aug 7th | Subject : The Borneo-Graveyard 1941-1945 Date : 7th August 2024 at 10.00 Speaker : John Tulloch MBE Venue : Salisbury Methodist Church hall John was educated in Jersey and began his military career in 1965 in the New Zealand Army. After attending Officer Cadet School in Australia he was commissioned into the New Zealand Artillery. While serving in Vietnam he developed his jungle warfare expertise which would become such an important part of his life. He transferred to the British Army in 1973 and eventually spent 21 years in Brunei instructing on the British Army’s Jungle Warfare Course. He retired from the Army in 2003 and became a MOD Civil Servant until 2015 but was still involved with Jungle warfare instruction and involved in many projects too numerous to mention. He then began writing his book which was the product of 12 years of research. It portrays the horrific story of Borneo during the Japanese invasion and is a tribute to the strength of character and bravery of those who endured the Japanese occupation. He has some books here for sale today. |
| Wed Sep 4th | Subject : Rex Whistler - A Talent Cut Short Date : 4th September 2024 at 10.00 Speaker : Christine Mason Venue : Salisbury Methodist Church Hall Information to follow. |
| Wed Oct 2nd | Subject : Grace Darling and the Fine Art of Saving Lives at Sea Date : 2nd October 2024 at 10.00 Speaker : Dr James Taylor Venue : Salisbury Methodist Church Hall James is a former curator at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich and will talk about Grace Darling’s daring rescue of steamship passengers off the Northumberland coast in 1838 that brought her international fame. Discover more about her bravery and short life living in the Brownsman and Longstone Lighthouses alongside the artists who helped to keep her in the public eye well into the 1970s. She became the ‘poster girl’ of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution that celebrates it’s 200th anniversary in 2024 and was the first woman to be awarded their medal for gallantry. |