2019
9 September: AGM followed by Mark Davies Stories of Oxford Castle: 17th and 18th century crimes, escapes and punishments. Mark is a local historian, author and guide. He specialises in the history of non-university Oxford.
14 October: Liz Woolley Olive Gibbs: local politician and peace campaigner. Olive was a redoubtable Labour politician and a founding member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
11 November: Richard Dudding Radley Large Wood: monks, deer, riots, canal and bluebells. This ancient wood has played a defining role in some of the parish’s events. The talk presents new evidence found during research for the Club’s new book.
Saturday 30 November: Exhibition at The Mansion, Radley College, to launch the Club’s book, Radley Manor and Village: a thousand year story. 11.00am – 4.00pm
9 December: Christmas Dinner at The Bowyer Arms, Radley – members and their guests, 7 pm for 7.30 pm
2020
13 January: Hubert Zawadzki The Reluctant Exiles: Polish resettlement camps in Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds 1946-1970. The talk describes why these camps were set up and what life was like for their inhabitants.
10 February: Dick Richards The Road to Peace is Paved with Headstones: the history and legacy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The talk examines the Commission’s beginnings and the design of its cemeteries and memorials.
9 March: Nick Millea Historic Towns Atlas of Oxford. This book is the latest in a series telling the fascinating history of Britain’s historic towns. Nick is Map Librarian at the Bodleian Library.
Tuesday 14 April: Tim Healey Pagans and Puritans: the story of May morning in Oxford. The talk discusses the history of the Oxford tradition of gathering at 6 am to celebrate May 1st.
11 May: Alastair Lack The Oxford of Inspector Morse. The Inspector Morse novels by Colin Dexter and the popular television series based on them are set in Oxford.
Tuesday 19 May: Tour of Botley War Graves Cemetery led by Dick Richards, start 6.30 pm
8 June: Nic Vanderpeet Spitfires over Oxfordshire and the D day landings. The Spitfire, the famous British fighter aircraft of the Battle of Britain, later played an important role in the invasion of Normandy in June 1944.
13 July: Tom Crook The Great Stink! Engineers, sewerage systems and the Victorian battle against dirt. The talk discusses the notorious ‘Great Stink’ of summer 1858 in London, its causes and the approach adopted to combat the problem.
August: No meeting
14 September: AGM followed by Martin Buckland The Wilts and Berks Canal, Past, Present and Future. This historic canal linked the Kennet and Avon Canal near Trowbridge in Wiltshire with the River Thames near Abingdon.