General Interest
We meet at the Salvation Army Centre, Catherine Street, Whitehaven every other Wednesday afternoon at 2pm.
We make a small charge of £3 which includes refreshments and also covers venue hire and speaker costs.
Please note NO PARKING is available at the centre but a few spaces can be kept for disabled drivers by arrangement - please see Kevan.
NB: there is actually a public car park right next door.
U3A General meetings Spring/Summer 2025
Wednesday 7th January 2pm - DAVID JUTSON - “The Diseases of Brunus Edwardii”
Wednesday 21st January 2pm - SUZANNE BARNINGHAM “The Energy Savings Trust - Take charge”
Wednesday 4th February 2pm - JOHN LITTLE - "Sal Madge"
Dr John Little was born at number 7 College Street, Whitehaven which was his grandfather’s house. Shortly afterwards he moved with his mother to Granby Terrace, which once stood where Peter Street is today, and his first memories date from that time, living in an area that looked like a bomb site. When his father came back from national service to work in the dockside power station, the family moved to Whinlatter Road in Mirehouse.
Leaving Whitehaven at the age of five did not remove his strong sense of being Cumbrian, for his parents had long roots in Whitehaven, Workington and north west Cumberland. He has always had an interest in the rich and varied history of the area, which he now explores by writing factually based historical novels. Currently he is writing his eighteenth book, which is set in the Cleator Moor area. Three of his past volumes touch on Whitehaven, one of which is the story of Sal Madge, that throws new light on why her memory is so respected in the town.
After almost forty years of teaching, and becoming a head of history department, he retired back to his home county, and is now intent on bringing some of its history back to life.
Wednesday 18th February 2pm - AGM followed by Coffee and Cake
Wednesday 4th March 2pm - MAUREEN MONKHOUSE “ Flying visit to Lublin in Poland”
Wednesday 4th March 2pm - last minute cancellation.
JOE HARPER Cumbria Wildlife Trust “Allonby Highly Protected Marine Area”
Allonby Bay is home to a hidden world of unusual and varied marine life, including many different species of sponge, soft coral, sea squirt, anemone and reef-building honeycomb worms.
In 2023 it was one of just three sites across the country to be given the gold standard of protection by the Government which designated it England’s first inshore Highly Protected Marine Area (HPMA).
The sea at Allonby Bay hides a world of marine life that lives on the muddy ocean floor all the way up to just beneath the waves. It's home to weird and wonderful life like sea squirts, anemones, soft coral, reef-building honeycomb worms, cuttlefish, plaice, skate, thornback rays and different species of sponge. It’s also a potential pupping area for harbour porpoises.
Allonby Bay supports birdlife too, including waders like curlew and oystercatcher, and seabirds such as guillemots and gannets.
Wednesday 18th March 2pm - SUE DUNLOP “The Cumberland International Youth Camps 1944-1958”
Cumberland was a pioneer local education authority, operating initially in conjunction with the British Council, in organising international youth camps to bring together local sixth-formers and young people of the same age from a substantial number of European countries, with the aim of promoting international understanding and friendship in the context of pursuing outdoor activities together and visiting places of historical, cultural and industrial interest in Cumberland and further afield.
The research for the book published last year, The Cumberland International Youth Camps 1944-1958, encompassed records in the Cumbria County Archive, articles published in local newspapers (the camps were very widely reported at the time), school magazine articles and personal recollections, documents and photographs provided by surviving participants, most of whom were contacted via local history groups. According to Dr Gillian Sutherland, one of the readers who reviewed the final draft of the book, there has been no published academic research concerning this overlooked aspect of post-war British social history; international youth camps subsequently took place under the auspices of other local education authorities – again initially with British Council support – in Cornwall, Derbyshire, northern Scotland and possibly Northumberland and Hertfordshire, too, but Cumberland got there first.
Sue Dunlop, the speaker on 18 March, graduated in Modern Languages (French and German) from the University of Bradford in 1976. She laboured in the cocoa mines of York (aka Rowntree Mackintosh) for a number of years and subsequently spent many years as a translator working in Luxembourg first for the European Parliament and then for the European Commission, from which she retired in 2018. There is a personal dimension to her involvement with this subject, since her father was a key member of the staff organising and running the Cumberland International Youth Camps in their early years.
Wednesday 1st April 2pm - ANDY LAIRD - “Rapid Blocs system for creating Kayaking courses”
In the competitive environment the whitewater must be fair for all, as well as the very best quality for high level competition. Against strong local competition the RapidBlocs system was successful at providing a proven and high quality solution to the generation of whitewater in artificial channels for the Paris 2024 games venue. With such pedigree in design and long life in service, even in the toughest of environments such as mass commercial rafting operations in a post games legacy– RapidBlocs have proven themselves to be the best system long term and in the top level Olympic competition environment in London, Rio, Tokyo and Paris. RapidBlocs are proud to continue to support the Olympic games.
Wednesday 15th April 2pm - FOOLS GOLD “The Blaydon Races”
Our new show for 2026 takes inspiration from William Irving's painting 'The Blaydon Races'. In it, we can see lots of characters from the time. Nanny the Mazer, Cushy Butterfield, The Swallwell Cat, Black Diamond, Geordie Ridley himself and many more - our show tells their stories and features a great mix of original and traditional music all about these wonderful characters.
This show which is full of great songs and fascinating stories is great for audiences all over the world - not just the North-East!
Our projected visuals help bring the whole show to life, with state-of-the-art animations and images.
All the music is played 100% live, no backing tapes - Fool's Gold began in the Folk Clubs, so we know how to do that!
We will be using our array of acoustic instruments during the show - and you can join in too!
In 1862, a Newcastle music hall entertainer wrote a song to promote his own show, which followed the Blaydon Races and fair - no prizes for guessing what he called it! Forty-odd years later, a painter called William Irving painted a picture of what he imagined the fair to be. It was packed with fascinating details of Northern life, the people, their lives and the great characters of the day.
This is the theme for Fool’s Gold’s latest show. Carol and Steve will be telling the tales of some of the folks and events in the painting and live performing songs - some original, some well-known and traditional.
Is there a Cumbrian connection? Well, he was born in Ainstable!
Wednesday 29th April 2pm - JULIAN BLATCHLEY - “Remaining Norse Culture in Cumbria”
Have you ever wondered why the place names of Cumbria are so different from the rest of Britain? Or why the surviving influences appear inconsistent with the accepted history of the area? Join Julian in a ramble through the folklore, toponymy and speech of Cumbria which shows a rich heritage, a dominant thread, and the survival of surprisingly ancient influences.
Raised locally, Julian was influenced by the local folklore of Viking settlement. During four decades of living and working at sea, he retained his Cumbrian connections by making a personal exploration of the stories, language and historical records of the Lakes Mountains to build a persuasive case for re-assessing post-Roman Cumbrian history. Once regarded as an extraordinary theory, this theme is now gathering academic support through recent archaeological work and discoveries
Wednesday 13th May 2pm - BECKS SKINNER - “Mrs Davidson’ Wedding Dress”
Inspired by a Wedding Dress from 1911, within The Beacon Museum Collection, Becks set herself the challenge of making a ‘going away’ outfit from the period, using her 1905 Frister and Rossman Sewing Machine and learning historical hand sewing techniques.
This talk explores the research carried out as part of the project, as we look for traces of Mrs Davidson's story through the records left of her life in Egremont and St Bees. What was life like for Women during this time? What would they have been wearing and how was the fashion’s changing during her lifetime?
Wednesday 27th May 2pm - WILL RAWLING - “Common Land”
Wednesday 10th June 2pm - TRACEY WEST “How Sellafield Support the Local Community”
Tracey who is Sellafield’s - Head of Social Impact, will tell us about their community engagement.
Wednesday 24th June 2pm - JOHN LITTLE - “Riotous Whitehaven”
Wednesday 8th July 2pm - MARY SAVAGE - “Trip to Israel and the West Bank”
Mary will give a slide show and talk about her visit to Israel and the West Bank with ICADH (International Committee against House Demolitions) She will talk about the unrecognised villages, Hebron and the Aida Refugee Camp and describe the work of Israeli and Palestinian peace activists.