MONTHLY MEETINGS 2009-09

Monthly meetings are held at 2.00-4.00pm generally on second Mondays.

They are in the Annexe or in the Main hall.

Members and guests are welcome. The normal fee of 50p is payable.

Details on notice board outside the U3A entrance to Haslemere Hall

Organised by Joe McDonald (645062)

We are now starting to book speakers for the next U3A season: 2009/2010; if any members have information on good speakers please do get in touch.

Keep an eye on this page for new talks.

Past meetings

Subject	Speaker
"A MATTER OF HONOUR" Reform of the honours system. The visiting lecturer was Mr John Lidstone who had done much research over the years into the subject of the awarding of civil honours. Our members were astonished to learn that the most senior of politicians had abused their position of patronage in one way or another, to direct cash into their own pockets or into the funds of their political party. Mr Lidstone had been asked to give expert evidence to the Commons Select Committee of Inquiry into the honours system in our country. The Select Committee issued a report in 2004. Of the six recommendations in the report, only 2 have been implemented so far by the government. Mr Lidstone gave his own criteria for reform of the civilian honours system: independent assessment; and awards only to be made for acts of bravery or for actions beyond the call of duty. You might also like to read his lecture to the Churchill society in London.	John Lidstone
The Cold War In a most interesting talk (after the AGM) Colonel Dabson told us a little about his time in Berlin during and after the Berlin Airlift. He told us about the betrayal by Kim Philby of a defector from the communist bloc, and about the tunnel that was dug by welsh miner volunteers to tap into the telephone exchange in the Russian sector.	John Dabson
Travel Photography - "African Safari" Keith Hughes has travelled around the world many times. On his journeys with his great professional ability with photography, he has captured some truly outstanding pictures we can all have the pleasure of sharing. His African safari tour is outstanding.	Keith Hughes
Flying With The Royal Family This was a once in a lifetime look at another world. David Greenway served for many years in the RAF; he commanded the RAF's airborne warning squadron at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland, monitoring the skies around our country. From 1989 to 1991, he was deputy captain of the Queens flight. He was responsible for planning the flying, undertaken by members of the Royal family. He also accompanied all members of the Royal family both in the air and on the ground and was able to make sure all the arrangements were properly carried out. He spent most of his time with HRH the Princess of Wales. This was an affectionate look at the life he led during this time. The talk included slides of his trips.	Group Capt. David Greenway OBE
Royal Portsmouth Dockyard The port of Portsmouth is one of the very best known ports in the world. It is not only part of our history from way back in Roman times and of course we associate it with Lord Nelson and HMS Victory, the Mary Rose and HMS Warrior. It has been an important part of British history during WWI and WWII. During the Second World War, it took a tremendous amount of bombing from the opposition and some of the older residents of Haslemere remember looking south and seeing the red sky from the flames and destruction during 1940. It recovered for the planning of D-Day which included the largest amount of ships ever launched in the world. They left Portsmouth and the South Coast to free France and the rest of Europe. It is still today the home of the Royal Navy and the most visited port by tourists in the country. Mr Ross has for many years been a member of the Portsmouth Royal Historic Trust.	Mr M. Ross
TALK ON THE WILD SIDE Graham has been working with wildlife since 1978, he has a great deal of knowledge and compassion for the subject. He runs a local rescue centre in Godalming for wildlife including birds. In his hospital, he has a few permanent residents, some of which he may bring along to our talk. He will demonstrate how people of all ages may play an active part in the conservation of British wildlife, not just for their own benefit but for future generations in our country. His talk is designed to encourage children, young people, adults, and the older generation to respect wildlife and all animals, wild and domestic.	Graham Cornick
THE ENVIRONMENT Every day global warming is thrown at us on television and on newspapers. Come along to hear someone who knows what it is all about. It has been his job for many years. He led the Clean Technology initiative originally involving three of the UK's research councils. This led to his conviction that developments needed to address Sustainable Development require a fusion of difficult academic disciplines. He established CES in October 1992 as a focus for this work; members of CES include engineers, scientists, social scientists, economists and philosophers. CES is the base for the Doctor of Engineering programme in Environmental Technology run jointly by Surrey and Brunel Universities, for Masters Programmes in Environmental Strategy, Corporate Environmental Management, Sustainable Development and Environmental Life Cycle Management, and various related activities in Continuing Professional Development. Professor Cliff's own research specialisation is in Environmental systems analysis, including Life Cycle Assessment and Industrial Ecology. Professor Clift is the longest serving member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution. In 2003, he was awarded the Sir Frank Whittle Medal of the Royal Academy of Engineering.	Professor Roland Clift OBE Professor of environmental strategy, school of engineering, University of Surrey
WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT? THE HINDHEAD TUNNEL: 4 MILES OF DUAL CARRIAGE WAY, 1.2 MILES OF TUNNEL Ian brought along to our meeting a presentation of the work being done now and the work that needs to be done to complete the tunnel. A great deal has been written in the press and on television about this subject; this is about the largest amount of money (around £365 million pounds) and the biggest construction work in Surrey since the M25 was built. It will affect us all and future generations to come. Some of us love it and some hate it. Ian gave us an excellent overview of the project and answered many questions. More information can be found at the Highways Agency website.	Ian Whyte, senior community Major Projects Manager for BALFOUR BEATTY.
THE FLOWERS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN. By popular request of our members who came to the last meeting that Dr Brandham gave in Haslemere we have invited him back for another talk. He gives 22 lectures on horticultural subjects he has been to most parts of world in his 30 years working at the Jodrell laboratory at Kew gardens. He is one of the very best speakers in the world on the this subject. This talk will be about	Dr. Peter Brandham
A Bold Thing: the untold story of the discovery of vaccination This is a tale of ingenuity and endeavour that begins with a chance encounter with an intriguing inscription on a tombstone. The story unfolds with a hint of a conspiracy theory and ends with the hunt for a legendary portrait of great historic importance that had vanished 120 years ago and was thought to be lost.	Patrick Pead writer and retired scientist. He is the author of the book: Vaccination Rediscovered
CHERNOBYL CHILDREN In 1986 the world's worst nuclear disaster - greater even than Hiroshima in its devastation and long-term impact - struck the previously unknown town of Chernobyl in northern Ukraine, when a reactor in its nuclear power station exploded and devastated its future for centuries to come. In 1991 a group of people in Haslemere made a visit to Belarus, just over the border from Chernobyl, which had suffered equally badly from the nuclear fallout. They provided for a group of sick children to have a holiday in Haslemere. Since then the organisation Chernobyl Children's Life Line, based in Haslemere, has become nationwide and provides holidays annually all over the UK for sick Belarus and Ukrainian children. The story of the organisation's work is both sad and moving and Pauline tells in heart-warming detail the story of the tragedy and its aftermath and also the humanitarian work done each year in the UK to help give respite to over 4000 children.	Pauline Fitter, BEM
Helping the Poorest in India. Colin is the leader of the Kings World Trust for Children, based in Haslemere. The trust works in India to provide a home and an education for homeless children in Tamil Nadu in south-east India. The trust is managed and administered by volunteers. Among its principal recent works has been to help relieve the devastating effects of the Tsunami, in which some members of the trust's staff lost their lives. The presentation will focus on aspects of this and on other parts of the trust's work.	Colin Wagstaff
"DARWIN TO ADELAIDE ON GHAN RAILWAY" The Australian dream of building a railway from Darwin to Adelaide, running through the arid red centre of the country, was finally realised in 2002, after several failed attempts over the previous 100 years. The journey begins in the northern city of Darwin and continues through Alice Springs to Adelaide, named after the wife of William IV of England. The talk included the first crossing of the continent from south to north in the 1860s; the laying of the overland telegraph in the 1870s; the Ghan railway itself; the city of Darwin; the Flying Doctor service; Ayres Rock and its significance; the spectacular flora and fauna of the Northern Territories; and many other aspects of this remarkable region.	Robert Fromow
LIFE AND TIMES OF A FAMOUS JOURNALIST Michael is a renowned television reporter and presenter who has reported from nearly 20 war zones over the past 40 years. As well as reporting from Bosnia, both Gulf Wars, Afghanistan and Rwanda, he was the anchorman for ITV news from 1982 to 1986, Channel 4's Washington Correspondent in 1989 and then ITN's Chief Foreign Correspondent at the end of the decade. He has received most of the accolades available to a TV journalist, including amongst many others the Richard Dimbleby Award, an Emmy nomination and, on three occasions, the Royal Television Society's Journalist of the Year Award. For the newspapers he is a regular contributor to Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Express, Daily Mail and Spectator. Famously, he wrote Natasha's Story, which was made into a Hollywood film, "Welcome to Sarajevo", the story of how he smuggled an eight-year-old orphan girl out of Sarajevo into England. She is now his adopted daughter and lives with Michael and his wife and family in Grayswood, Surrey. Please come armed with questions!	Michael Nicholson OBE