Society's Programme
Society’s Programme 2026/27
All meetings are held in Whittingham Memorial Institute at 7.30.
Visitors are always welcome at £3 per meeting.
- 16 September 2026: Women in Anglo-Saxon Northumbria
Dr Chris Ferguson
Museum & Experience Director, Ad Gefrin
- 21 October 2026: Hill Forts: Citadel of the Chariot Queens
Michael Thompson
- 18 November 2026: The Kremlin's Geordie Master Spy: Rudolf Abel (1903-71)
Professor David Saunders
- ---------Winter Break----------
- 17 March 2027: TBA
- 21 April 2027: Understanding the Northumbrians: 2000 Years of History in the North East
Dr Dan Jackson
- 19 May 2027: Life and Times of St Cuthbert
Dr Makysmillian Loth-Hill
- 16 June 2027: The Forgotten Northumberland Appeaser: Viscount Runciman's Mission to Czechoslovakia
Michael Frazer
Society’s Programme 2025/26
All meetings are held in Whittingham Memorial Institute at 7.30.
Visitors are always welcome at £3 per meeting.
The Society's Programme for 2024/2025 is still available by scrolling down the page.
- 16 April 2025: Josephine Butler,Victorian Social Reformer and Feminist
Born in 1828 at Milfield Hill in Glendale, Josephine Butler went on to become one of the most well-known social reformers of the Victorian age. Northumberland based theatre company, November Club, became intrigued by her story and decided to make it the basis of a new musical. They are working in partnership with North-East Singer/Songwriter Katie Doherty to create the show. During this evening’s talk, members of the theatre company will share a talk, commissioned from Bryony Taylor, about Josephine’s work as an activist, her home life in Northumberland, her encounters with parts of the North and her legacy. Following this, November Club will play you “Josey, The Indignant Daughter”, a digital audio that gives you a little taste of what the musical will have to offer.
- 22 May 2025: Empathy Architecture: Why our Built and Natural Heritage Matters
Speaker: John W. Matthews
Chairman and Trustee, Northumberland and Newcastle Society
This meeting will start with the Society’s AGM
- 18 June 2025: The History of Alnwick and its Surroundings
Speaker: Nick Lewis, National Trust
- 17th September 2025: The Chillingham Cattle
Speaker: Dr Stephan Hall
- 15th October 2025: William Turner of Morpeth “father of English Botany”
Speaker: Professor Brycchan Carey
- 19th November 2025: Understanding Northumbrian Gravestones
Speaker: Mark Hatton
- 18th March 2026: Reiving the dark tradition
Speaker: Michael Thomson
- 15th April 2026: The Rise and Fall of the House of Dacre: Power and Loyalty in the Anglo-Scottish Borderlands
Speaker:Dr Maksymilian Loth-Hill
- 20th May 2026: Lives of Victorian Servants in Northumberland
Speaker: Mary McIlroy Hipwell
- 17th June 2026: Northumberland Place Names
Diana Whaley Professor Emerita Newcastle University
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Society’s Programme 2024/25
- 20 March 2024: Local Boy, International Sensation
W T Stead of Embleton 1849-1912
Controversial journalist, pacifist, convict, Titanic victim.
Speaker: Dr Helena Goodwyn
Dr Helena Goodwyn is a Vice Chancellor’s Senior Fellow in the Humanities Department at Northumbria University. Her research interests include British and American literature of the long 19th century, women’s literature, and book and media history. She is the author of several articles, books, and book chapters on these subjects. Her monograph, The Americanisation of W. T. Stead is forthcoming with Edinburgh University Press.
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17 April 2024: Northumberland Archives
An introduction to who we are and what we do
Speaker: Jo March
Jo has worked in the archives sector for 20 years and still gets excited about looking at old documents. She has been fortunate enough to have worked in record offices across the country, including in Cambridge, London, Durham and Bristol. Now much of her time is spent sharing her enthusiasm with school children of Northumberland
Northumberland Archives are based at Woodhorn Museum, QE II Country Park, Ashington -
15 May 2024: Archeology of Ad Gefrin
Ad Gefrin (Yeavering), near Wooler, one of the most remarkable UK archaeological discoveries of the 20th century
Speaker: Dr Chris Ferguson
Director of Visitor Experience, Ad Gefrin Museum, Wooler. An Oxford scholar with a PhD in the archaeology of early medieval Northumbria, Chris Ferguson epitomises Ad Gefrin’s passion for the ancient values of Northumbria’s Golden Age
Chris Ferguson happy to be at Ad Gefrin -
19 June 2024: Visit to St John the Baptist Church, Edlingham, NE66 2BL
With a talk by Rev Rich Townend entitled 'Sacred Space' exploring how church architecture influenced the Book of Common Prayer.
Guide: Rev Rich Townend
Priest-in-Charge of Felton, Longframlington and Whittingham.
Please lift share if possible as there is limited parking.
He researched this topic for his recent dissertation.
There are no facilities in the building.
Edlingham Church - photo courtesy of Paul Bartlett -
18 September 2024: Investigations at the Medieval Settlement of Linbrig
Speaker: David Jones
David chairs Coquetdale Community Archaeology and manages the group’s fieldwork projects
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16 October 2024: 'Angels of the North: Volume Two - More Notable Women of the North East'
Joyce Quin and Moira Kilkenny's new book delves into the stories of thirty-five remarkable North East women whose achievements deserve recognition.
Speaker: Joyce Quin - The Right Hon. the Baroness Quin
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20 November 2024: The Butcher, the Baker and the Candlestick Maker - Shops and Shopkeepers of Seahouses in the 19th Century
Speaker: George Scott
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19 March 2025: Northumberland in Parliament
Speaker: Alan Beith, The Right Hon. the Lord Beith
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16 April 2025: Josephine Butler, Victorian Social Reformer & Feminist
Speaker: Andrea Perrett
Business Operations Director, The November Club
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21 May 2025: ‘William Turner of Morpeth: the Tudor “Father of English Botany”’
Speaker: Professor Brycchan Carey, Northumbria University
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18 June 2025: Outside Visit TBA
Society’s Programme 2023
- 15 March 2023 - The Blacketts : Rise, Crisis and Redemption .
Speaker: Dr Greg Finch, historian and author.
- 19 April 2023 - The Buildings of William Newton.
Architect of over 40 buildings including Howick Hall and Lemmington Hall.
Speaker: Richard Pears, Librarian, Durham University.
Lemmington Hall - Copyright Stephen Richards - 17 May 2023 - The Roman Presence in the Vale of Whittingham.
Speaker: Dr Anthony Henfrey, President ABLHS.
Section of Roman Road at Sharperton Edge. Excavated 2022 - 21 June 2023 - The Church of St Michael & All Angels, Alnham.
Our final event before the summer break is a visit to Alnham Church on the evening of the summer solstice. This is a rare opportunity to explore the church’s interior with knowledgeable guide Rev Ann Peters. Discover historical features unveiled after centuries during a recent major restoration project. Hear how this small, dingy and damp church was transformed into a bright, airy space designed for modern day use yet still brimming with historical detail.
Alnham Church - photo courtesy of Paul BartlettMeet at the church, Alnham NE66 4TL for 7.30pm
Please park on the verge outside the church and be prepared for a short walk on rough ground around the churchyard. - 20 September 2023: Dere Street - Its Life and Times.
Speaker: David Jones
David chairs Coquetdale Community Archaeology and manages the group’s fieldwork projects including research into the ancient roads through the Cheviots
- 18 October 2023: Searches for Churches on Lindisfarne
Exploring the origins of the early Medieval Monastery on the island based on recent archaeological evidence
Speaker: John Woodhurst
Local historian and Natural England volunteerAn artist’s impression of the 10thC Heugh with the two recently discovered chapels.
Drawing by Keith Cooper who worked on the digs
- 15 November 2023: Hidden Gems of Northumberland
The story of Northumberland’s early history through images of historic sites that can still be found in its landscape
Speaker: Richard Booth
Moving to Northumberland allowed Richard to combine his interests in hill walking, photography, history and archaeology. He is particularly interested in Northumberland’s early history, its Neolithic rock art sites, its Iron age hill forts and the Roman military activity North of Hadrian’s Wall
Ketley Crag rock shelter near Chatton - Photo courtesy of Richard Booth
- 20 March 2024: Local Boy, International Sensation