Name – John E. Vigar MA FSA Scot FRSA
Email –
Tel – 07962 368062
Title or subject of talk
Bedrooms, Banquets and Balls – The hidden, and often amusing, secrets of the architecture of the English Country House
Leave no stone unturned – The lives and burial places of the famous and infamous
Britain with Betjeman – English architecture as seen through the eyes of our favourite Poet Laureate
Churches in Retirement – The work of the Churches Conservation Trust & Friends of the Friendless Churches
Murder, Sex and Mayhem in English Churches – Fascinating stories including adult content.
For Weddings, Baptisms and Funerals – The history of our Christian rites of passage as displayed in Anglican churches
Crenels and Merlons – A thousand years of buildings with battlements, castles, churches follies and more!
Treasures in Norfolk Churches – from glass to monuments and carvings
In Person Fee – NA
Zoom Fee – £60 (can host at no extra cost)
Name – Alan Benjamin
Email –
Tel – 01789 772464
Title or subject of talk
Constabulary Tales (A light hearted description of my early life as a Police Constable – no gory stories or heroics)
More Constabulary Tales. (A continuation of the above if required – I served for 33 years)
Royal Visits. (Stories of the many Royal visits I was involved in during my police service)
Expedition Golden Orange. (Serious hill walking in Africa – Mt. Longanot, Mt. Kenya and Kilimanjaro – with slides).
Morris Dancing – some history. (This talk is punctuated with Morris tunes which I play on various instruments)
Folk songs from around the British Isles. (With some explanations)
Simple entertainment. (Songs, tunes and clean) jokes
In Person Fee – £45 (+25p per mile)
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – Alan Godfrey FRPSL
Email –
Tel – 01789 765385 (Mobile 07818 633001)
Title or subject of talk
POSTMAN’S KNOCK – A History of the Post in Warwickshire
ROWLAND HILL – Genius & Benefactor
THE LAST EXPLORER – The Amazing Life of Sir Hubert Wilkins 1888-1958
LIFE IN ROMAN ALCESTER
ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME – The Romans & Communications by Road in Britain
KINWARTON – The History of a Pint-Pot Parish
THE BLIND POSTMASTER GENERAL & THE SUFFRAGIST [Henry & Millicent Fawcett]
ALCESTER THROUGH THE AGES
PARCELS & NEWSPAPERS BY BUS – Midland “Red” Parcels Express
In Person Fee – £40
Zoom Fee – £10
Name – David Moylan
Email –
Tel – 07407 715178
Title or subject of talk
FUNNY TURNS A Celebration of the Entertainers and the Entertainment of Days Gone By.
Featuring Comedy, Daft Songs, Magic and Hilarious Routines remembering some of this country’s best-loved entertainers.
In Person Fee – £60
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – David Wornham
Email –
Tel – 01905 775840
Title or subject of talk
A light hearted demonstrated history of world-wide musical wind instruments.
Web site: https://sites.google.com/site/tunefultubes
In Person Fee – £60
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – Anne Marie Lambert
Email –
Tel – 07956 955951
Title or subject of talk
Curry in a hurry – using store cupboard ingredients and includes making chapatis (vegan)
Free from foods with flavour – Savoury pancakes with a cucumber and mint raita – learn how to make pancakes with gram flour and seasonal vegetables (dairy/gluten/vegan)
I have a wide range of sweet and savoury lesson plans and can demonstrate many of them on Zoom and in person. Please get in touch to acquire a full list. My style of cooking is to make the most of affordable store cupboard ingredients enhanced with flavours, seasonal veg and making the most of your leftovers. I provide cooking on a budget programmes in the Warwickshire area for various organisations and talk about my work while cooking. My aim is to inspire you to Get Cooking!
In Person Fee – £65
Zoom Fee – £75 (+ mileage)
Name – Janine Kilroe
Email –
Tel – 07882 033919
Title or subject of talk
Working With Some of the Most Dangerous Men in the Country. 7 Years Inside!
Lady Drone Pilots Flying Experiences. Videography & Photography
British Piers. An illustrated Story of Their History and Future
https://www.janinekilroe.com/workshops
In Person Fee – £65 (Plus 45p per mile travel)
Zoom Fee – £65
Name – Jennifer Rigby
Email –
Tel – 07753 684401
Title or subject of talk
Shakespeare and Me (an anecdotal talk about my relationship with Shakespeare, includes performance extracts)
Albert, worms and George, don’t do that! (comedy classics of the past – Victoria Wood, Joyce Grenfell, Pam Ayres – with performance extracts)
But I can’t tap dance! (an anecdotal talk about the life of a 21st century actress)
In Person Fee – £40
Zoom Fee – £25
Name – Richard Rickitt
Email –
Tel – 07736 383612
Title or subject of talk
Introducing the Amazing Honey Bee!
A Buzz in the Garden: Gardening for Bees
Richard Rickitt is one of the UK’s best-known beekeepers and is editor of BeeCraft, the UK’s beekeeping magazine which has been in print since 1919. His lively, richly-illustrated talks have been enjoyed by groups all over the UK – and around the World. Before becoming a beekeeper he spent 20 years creating special effects for film and TV.
In Person Fee – £70
Zoom Fee – £60
Name – Sue Burton
Email –
Tel – 07773 027243
Title or subject of talk
Award-winning Stylist & Image Consultant
‘Looking Good with Colour’ (45 mins)
Colourful, entertaining and educational presentation which demonstrates how wearing the right colours, or the wrong colours, can make a huge difference to how good you look as well as how confident you feel. See how easy it can be to create a colour co-ordinated wardrobe of clothes and accessories and how to create the maximum number of outfits to wear from a minimum amount of garments.
’Stylish Scarves & Sarongs’ (45 mins) Interactive presentation where ladies can learn how to use scarves and sarongs in more stylish and interesting combinations.
Following the presentation ladies are provided with a very detailed E-guide (free of charge) which illustrates detailed diagrams how to style their own scarves and sarongs.
More details: https://www.colourstyleanalysis.com/events/talks-and-demonstrations
In Person Fee – £75 (plus travelling expenses)
Zoom Fee – £45
Name – Jo Golby
Email –
Tel – 07867 893110
Title or subject of talk
Between Stairs …The Life of a Ladies Maid
Top to Toe…The Price of Vanity
Christmas True Victorian Style
True Tales of a Tour Guide
A Design for Life…The Laura Ashley story
The Time Travelling Tourist…A Postcard from the Past
Ghosts in Grandeur… Real Life Hauntings
The Domestic…Servant to Goddess and all the Ammunition Inbetween New for 2021
In Person Fee – £45 + 45p per mile
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – Cat Weatherill
Email –
Tel – 07904 072941
Title or subject of talk – A New Life in Leathers
Cat has always been a late starter. And now, as sixty approaches, she has started riding a motorbike. Why? How?
What is it like being a woman motorcyclist? Could you do it too? Fresh, funny and hugely entertaining, this is a joyous tale of feeling the fear and doing it anyway.
Cat has been a professional storyteller and best-selling author for twenty five years, appearing internationally at literature festivals, in theatres and on BBC national radio. She frequently talks at large WI gatherings. www.catweatherill.co.uk
Zoom Fee – £60
In person fee – £75 (inc travel) Larger events by negotiation, can provide a PA
Name – Lorna Hulme – All About The Sew
Email –
Tel – 07963 734756
Title or subject of talk
Sewing workshops/demonstrations. Variety of machine sewing demonstrations/workshops. Can provide kits of materials for projects in addition to the demonstration or workshop.
Zoom Fee – dependent on workshop/materials.
In person fee – dependent on workshop/materials.
Name – Vicky Farmer
Email –
Tel – 07790 594940
Title or subject of talk
A Day in the Life of a Quiz Show Contestant – anecdotes based on my experiences from behind the scenes of quiz shows.
For Love of Horses – the story of Dorothy Brooke, founder of The Brooke Charity for working horses and donkeys
How to Survive in a Toxic World – tips on leading a healthy lifestyle and eating healthily in the 21st century.
Zoom Fee – £45
In person fee – £60
Name – Roger Butler
Email –
Tel – 01926 641301 / 07766 038934
Title or subject of talk
Canal History and Heritage – a colourful introduction to our fascinating inland waterways… unusual architecture, heroic engineering, impressive lock flights, dark tunnels and lots of quirky features. The talk can often be tailored to your local area.
A Canal Honeymoon – the story of a hilarious journey in a tiny wooden cruiser in 1962, with wonderful archive photos. The voyage visited such romantic places as Stoke-on-Trent!
A circumnavigation of the West Midlands – an amusing canal voyage from fifty years ago, when Birmingham’s canals were still a secret world.
Treasure Islands – travels through the Hebrides, visiting and exploring some of the smaller islands off Scotland’s west coast… Colonsay, Iona, Eigg, Muck, Canna, and more… landscapes and wildlife; legends and lore.
A week on St Kilda – explore this remote World Heritage Site, a tiny archipelago 40 miles west of the Outer Hebrides, with Europe’s highest sea cliffs, teeming seabirds and unique history.
Travels on the Silk Road – a 3,000-mile journey (by public transport!) following the ancient Silk Road through Tibet, Western China and Pakistan… an amazing array of people and cultures.
The road to Samarkand – a journey through remote Central Asia with high peaks, dazzling lakes, lonely deserts and fabulous ancient cities.
The Monarchs in Mexico – in search of the amazing colonies of bright orange Monarch butterflies, with visits to Mayan temples, Aztec palaces and the remarkable Copper Canyon railway.
Penguins and Patagonia – travelling by bus, train, boat, jeep, plane and foot, a journey through remote southern Chile, with mountains and volcanoes; fjords and forests.
The Magic of Morocco – a visual feast travelling from the markets of Marrakesh to the sand dunes of the Sahara
In person fee – £65 Plus travel
Zoom fee – £55
Name – Chris Chippendale – Lasting Power of Attorney Made Simple
Email –
Tel – 01245 699560 / 07870 677968
Title or subject of talk – Understanding Lasting Power of Attorney
In person fee –
Zoom fee –
Name – Vanessa Cooper at the ARC Shed
Email –
Tel – 07523 959822
Title or subject of talk
FOLK ART/DECORATIVE PAINTING
This style of painting is often used in florals, and the most common British version is Canal Art (Roses & Castles). It is a skill anyone can learn using particular brush stroke techniques and is therefore suitable for absolute beginners.
The talk would include demonstrations, images of what can be achieved as well as samples of work (some items may be available for sale) and the different surfaces it can be applied to.
POWERTEX
This is a fabric hardening, non-toxic water based product that when dry, and following a 3-week ‘curing’ period becomes weatherproof. It is suitable for use on a wide range of materials including wood, metal and glass.
A demonstration would be provided as to how it works, together with (in true Blue Peter fashion) one made earlier and dried to demonstrate how colour can be added using the dry-brush technique. I will also bring a selection of sample items to show you finished results of just what you can ‘sculpt’.
Workshops for either Folk Art or Powertex can be arranged exclusively for your members or, you would be more than welcome to attend workshops at my own home studio in Leamington Spa. If you would like to be kept informed of when workshops are running, please sign up to my newsletter by clicking HERE, or find details on my website: https://www.thearcshed.co.uk
In Person Fee – £85 + Travel 45 ppm
Zoom Fee – £65
Name – Dr Alison Foster
Email –
Tel – 07790202973
Title or subject of talk
Toxic trees, poisonous perennials and wicked weeds
The beautiful world of plants and chemistry
Chemical elements of plant growth
The unexpected role of plants in medicine
Anti-cancer drugs from plants
Plants as global commodities
In Person Fee – £70
Zoom Fee – £70
Name – Julia Mitchell
Email –
Tel – 07548 251234
Title or subject of talk – From IT to Tai Chi – Talk and Tai Chi taster session
Julia has a passion for health and wellbeing and her aim is to inspire and enable others to feel as well as they can possibly feel.
Julia knows that Tai Chi Qigong has changed her life and believes that everyone can benefit from it’s gentle mindful movements.
The sessions begins with a brief introduction of how Julia moved from working in the IT industry to where she is now. This is followed by a short history of Tai Chi and Qigong followed by the potential health benefits including:-
It can help to boost your immune system
It can improve your balance and strength
It can help you to achieve a feeling of tranquillity and harmony
The session finishes with a 30 minute taster that everyone can join in with either seated or standing.
A varied session that is suitable for all
In Person Fee – £60 plus mileage
Zoom Fee – £60
Name – David Fry
Email –
Tel – 01926 632936
Title or subject of talk
Marton Museum of Country Bygones
Victorian & Edwardian Photographers in Warwickshire
Victorian & Edwardian Photographers in Coventry
The History of Coventry Canal in the landscape today
The silk ribbon industry of Coventry
In Person Fee – £40
Zoom Fee – £50
Name – David Price
Email –
Tel – 07528 756124
Title or subject of talk
Kicks and Frills – the Story of the French Cancan
Sophisticated Ladies of the Night – the 19th Century Parisian Courtesans
The Truth Behind Les Misérables
The Truth Behind The Sound of Music
Franz Lehár and The Merry Widow
All talks illustrated with Slides, and most with Video and Music (where appropriate).
In Person Fee – NA
Zoom Fee – £70
Name – Ginny Davis
Email –
Tel – 07889 216474
Title or subject of talk
What Lies Beneath The Surface (the story behind Ginny’s novel which goes under the same title featuring a High Court judge, a QC and a celebrated actress, all tempted to lie when caught up in a police enquiry into an unexplained death in London’s Regent’s Canal in 2019.)
To The Fringe And Beyond (a motivational and entertaining talk charting Ginny’s career from the criminal Bar to the stage and beyond.)
From The Pillory to the Prison Cell (a short history of criminal punishment in England.)
Mad Englishwoman, Three Dogs and the Midday Sun (an unexpected encounter in Crete with a twist and a wag in its tail.)
In Person Fee – £70
Zoom Fee – £80 (+ 30p per mile to and from CV35 9LS)
Name – John Butterworth
Email –
Tel – 07955 262633 / 01905 617058
Title or subject of talk
Hotel with a famous guest list
My day with the Queen
Hitting the headlines as a newspaper editor
How the stagecoach transformed your area
Overland to Nepal
The country that was cut off from the world for 40 years
The nurse that changed a country.
In Person Fee – £60
Zoom Fee – £60
Name – Manuel Queiroz
Email –
Tel –
Title or subject of talk
Chasing the Morning Sun (telling the story of my solo flight around the world in a homebuilt aeroplane)
Overland from Alaska to Argentina (relating the road journey with my wife Jill from the north of Alaska to the very south of Argentina)
In Person Fee – £70 (+ 40p per mile from WR8 9EJ)
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – Martin Sirot-Smith, Former Director of Sulgrave Manor, the ancestral home of George Washington’s Ancestors.
Email –
Tel – 01295 710340.
Title or subject of talk
Sulgrave Manor and the Washington Family
Daily Life in Tudor Times
Tudor Easter or Harvest Customs
Food & Drink in Tudor Times
“Living History”, the success story of Sulgrave Manor
All these Talks are presented in full Tudor Costume as Lawrence Washington, the Tudor builder of Sulgrave Manor.
They will be available from April through to the end of October each year.
In Person Fee – £45 (+ 35p per mile)
Zoom Fee – NA
Name – Pam Sutton
Email –
Tel – 0121 711 7215 / 07306 087443
Title or subject of talk
Supporting Injured Troops
In Person Fee – £ Donation (=40p per mile over 25 miles from Solihull)
Zoom Fee – £30
Name – Jane Lappage
Email –
Tel – 07818 250605
Title or subject of talk
Anything calligraphy depending on the group I can do history of Calligraphy right up to modern, faux and have a go demo.
In Person Fee – £60 per hour plus mileage (from Leicester) and materials cost if we are doing a ‘have a go class’
Zoom Fee – £50 per hour
Name – Kate Allen
Email –
Tel – 07434 046967
Title or subject of talk
Helping You Remain Independent And Safe At Home. A talk from myself, an experienced occupational therapist, on how some-one with reduced mobility, due to age or disability, can keep themselves independent and safe at home, with a focus on the range of equipment and home adaptations that are available.
In Person Fee – £50 plus 30p per mile
Zoom Fee – £50
Name – Marie Rowe
Email –
Tel – 07447993714
Title or subject of talk
Coventry to Hollywood with the help of Pitman’s shorthand.
Behind-the-scene stories from “Rain Man” and “Good Morning, Vietnam”
Writing your life story 2 pages at a time; (4) Attitude is everything. Positive approach to breast cancer.
In Person Fee – £65 plus travel expenses
Zoom Fee – £50
Name – Christine Green
Email –
Tel – 01865 872 820
Title or subject of talk
Working for Auntie – I was a graphic designer for the BBC for 13 years and worked on shows as diverse as the Queen’s Christmas Speech, Our Friends in the North, Tracey Beaker and Foyles War. I have numerous examples of sequences, storyboards and artworks to show and I was BAFTA nominated for my work on Cambridge Spies.
Playing With Knives – this is a craft that I practice myself. I am self taught, and have built up into a small business of printed merchandise featuring my designs. The talk covers international aspects of paper cutting, a bit of history, techniques, popularity and my own take on it and where it has taken me. A couple of years ago I was featured on BBC4’s ‘Make! Craft Britain’ demonstrating and teaching paper cutting. there’s a link to the programme on my website http://christinegreencrafts.co.uk
Patchwork: Bust the rules and get creative – I have been patchworking since I was a child and have made numerous quilts over the years. I have a very creative and liberating approach to patchworking, throwing out most of the rules that many makers adhere to, recycling wherever possible and creating unique improvised pieces. I reference my influences, Gees Bend and BORO, and explain some of the different techniques. I show quilts, patchworked items and lots of samples. I was recently featured in ‘Today’s Quilter’ magazine and there’s an interview I gave earlier this year about patchworking on my website http://christinegreencrafts.co.uk
A Life in Stitches: A look at the many and varied stitchy projects I have created from a needlepoint tea cosy for a BBC drama, stitching buttons onto Pudsey bear, discovering Gees Bend quilts and their influence on my quilts, exploring BORO, creating velvet cushions for ‘The Antique Roadshow’ and lots of crossover points between my tv graphics work and sewing.
In Person Fee – £85 plus mileage at 45p p/m, I live near Garsington in Oxfordshire.
Zoom Fee – £70
Name – Heather Wilson
Email –
Tel – 07841 400 542
Title or subject of talk
I have two talks that I give, one is about my Artwork and Mad Hats, the other is about my Indian Travels.
There is usually too much information to combine the two!
Maker of Mad and Beautiful Things / My Indian Textile Adventures
In person fee – £70 + travel
Zoom fee – NA
Name – Rob Hemming
Email –
Tel – 01386 832817 / 07814 886373
Title or subject of talk
The SHAZAM! Show – Based around my best-selling local book, this is an amusing and nostalgic look at the old picture palaces. A 65 slide journey through the myths and fun of the pictures with emphasis on the wonderful Regal Cinema in Evesham which was the archetypal small-town flicks and has now become the perfect updated venue for movie fans.
The Trouble with Trivia – We all love quizzes, don’t we? The trouble is when you actually appear before cameras the brain often doesn’t function as sharply as you would like. This is the story of my twenty-five years of trials, tribulations and amusing tales of rivalries attempting to recall a million useless facts chasing after glory and cash on ‘The Weakest Link’, ‘Mastermind’, ‘Brain of Britain’, ‘The Chase’, 15-1′, ‘Two Tribes’, ‘Lucky Numbers’ and ‘Sudden Death’. I have had my successes but the true quiz nut is never satisfied….
In person fee – £65 + 35p per mile travel
Zoom fee – NA
Name – Steven B Bruce, Fine Art Agent Consultant Valuer And Auctioneer
Email –
Tel – 01926 641548 / 07778 595952
Title or subject of talk
The Hoarder Next Door ,
Buying and selling at Auction with tales from the auction room.
Buying and selling at antique and car and boot fairs.
All talks are humorous and informative and are illustrated by actual examples.
Members are welcome to bring items along for appraisal and discussion.
In person fee – £85 inc mileage
Zoom fee – £75
Name – Christine Ramsey
Email –
Tel – 07731 773127
Title or subject of talk
I specialise in Talks about flower arranging using home grown produce. Three examples are:-
Bringing the garden in.
Everlastings…how to dry and arrange flowers
Around the house at Christmas.
In person fee – £70 + 45p per mile travel
Zoom fee – £65
Name – Mr Paddy Hannigan
Email –
Tel – 01694 310553 / 07548 254606
Title or subject of talk
The Suffragettes and Votes for women.1890-1920.Terrorists or political freedom fighters?
Boom, Bust and Beyond USA 1919-1940: covering Roaring 20’s WallSt. Crash, Great Depression, New Deals via first hand accounts, music and more to cover this turbulent and dynamic era.
‘I Have A Dream ‘ , exploring how discrimination can divide democracy and society, the campaigns to overcome inequality,the key personalities in campaigns for justice from the Civil War times to BLM, including poetry, music , audio sources and more.
The Dark Satanic Mills and the White Slaves Of England : Working Conditions during the Industrial Revolution and the road to reform and modern working practices.
The Pity Of War 1914. – 1918 : How the contrasts and challenges of the First World War using eye witness accounts, poetry , music investigate how events and personalities changed attitudes and society .
The Christmas Truce 1914 : The extraordinary event where humanity and goodwill overcame the horrors of war , using music, poetry and eyewitness accounts.
In person fee – £40 + 25p per mile travel
Zoom fee – NA
Name – Andy Thomas
Email –
Tel – 01342 826243 (landline) 07771 712960 (mobile – best)
Title or subject of talk
The Crop Circle Mystery
Unexplained Mysteries & Cover-Ups
A Conspiracy History of the World
A Festive History (Nov & Dec only)
The Bonfire Night Capital of the World
The Story of English Freedom
In person fee – £70 + travel – based East Sussex
Zoom fee – £70
Name – Graham Sutherland
Email –
Tel – 01926 495894 / 07801 962981
Title or subject of talk
Law & Order
Memories of Yesteryear
The Warwick Series
Various talks – Town Crier, Mysteries from history, Eleanor Crosses, Parts of the midlands).
Story Telling
In person fee – £60
Zoom fee – £50
Name – Barry Watson
Email –
Tel – 01788 824473 / 07966 156473
Title or subject of talk
Raconteur & Musician
The Agony & Ecstasy of a canal hotel boater.
The life of the wife and family of a canal boatman.
My life story.
Our canal heritage.
Holidays on our waterways.
In person fee – £40.00 + travel at 30p per mile – will travel any time and distance
Zoom fee – NA