16th January 2023 ‘What my Company did in the War’ – Gert Bakker
Gert – a member of our U3A – repeated the talk he gave (very interestingly) to the Science & Technology Group in 2022. He talked about how NCR managed to break the Enigma Code used by the Germans during WW2 and how the unsung heroes of the time are beginning to get recognition now.
20th February – Coleshill and District U3A Annual General Meeting
20th March – Stories of our British Mammals – Nick Martin
Nick was formerly Reserve Manager at the RSPB reserve at Middleton Lakes near Tamworth and was instrumental in developing this site for wild birds. He has since moved to take up a part-time post with Warwickshire Wildlife to concentrate more fully on wildlife photography, talks, workshops etc. in the time he has freed up. He provided us with a fascinating, knowledgeable and enjoyable talk on British mammals, illustrated with his own photographs.
17th April – The Joy of Singing – Claire Fowler
Claire’s talk was all about how singing is good for you – both physically and mentally! It was very informative and interactive – and by the end – everyone was singing.
15th May – Collar the Lot – David Hess
This was a follow-up to the talk – “Out of the Frying Pan” that David delivered to us November 2021 covering his parents’ escape from Nazi Germany. This talk was the story of his parents’ experience of the INTERNMENT OF ENEMY ALIENS, 1941 – 45. ….. why were they interned; what were the processes undertaken; what happened to them; was the Internment a necessary or a just policy?
19th June – VIPs go to Everest – David Carrington Porter
David’s talk included a brief background about his upbringing and experiences of walking trips as a blind person followed by a PowerPoint slide presentation of a trek to Everest Base Camp to celebrate his 60th birthday in December 2011 and to raise funds for Milton Mountaineers – with a description of the charity and what it does. The more remarkable as David has been totally blind since the age of 7.
17th July – Smart Homes – Mandy Dowd
This month’s event was to have been ‘We Can’t Let You Broadcast That’ by David Clark (the story of tracks banned by the BBC and their reasons for doing so). Unfortunately, David was unable to attend because of an accident, so Mandy (one of our members) stood in at the last minute and gave a talk on her experiences with Smart Home technology and implementing it in her and her family’s homes.
21st August – 50th Anniversary of the Birmingham Rep
The REP on Centenary Square was 50 years old in October 2021. This is the story of how it came to be built and how it continues to follow the ideals of Sir Barry Jackson.
18th September – Everyone loves a wedding – Molly Murray
Molly is a very entertaining speaker who delivered her talk – ‘Little Black Dress’ to us in 2018. “Everyone loves a wedding” was another of her talks about her interesting and humorous take on life – this time her memories of working as a waitress for various wedding receptions.
16th October – Sing a Century – Andy Smith
Andy Smith entertained us with a century of songs, all of which brought back memories and encouraged us to join in. Andy was an expert player on guitar and ukelele and provided a great morning of music!
20th November – The Kings Loose Box – Mary Bodfish
The originally planned talk this month, The King’s Loose Box by Mary Bodfish, unfortunately, did not take place, as Mary got caught up in a hold-up on the motorway on her way to us – hopefully we will see her instead at a later date. Instead, three of our members gave impromptu talks on various subjects – many thanks to them for a last-minute stand-in!
11th December – Christmas Lunch
We held a fish-and-chip (or alternative!) lunch with music and games to celebrate the season.