Lytham St Annes CA

19th September 2024

Helen Dorey, MBE

‘Sir John Soane’s “Permanently Magical” Museum’

Sir John Soane’s Museum at 13 Lincoln’s Inn Fields in London became a public museum on the death of its Founder, the celebrated architect Sir John Soane, in January 1837.  A ‘total work of art’, Soane spent a quarter of a century perfecting his home as a setting for his extraordinary collections which range from mummified cats to paintings by Canaletto.  Helen, Deputy Director of the Museum, will introduce us to this unique Regency museum with special reference to Soane’s antiquities and his lifelong love affair with ancient Rome.

FRIDAY 18th October 2024

Professor Edith Hall – LSA High School

‘Ghosts, goats and Greek tragedy’

Prof. Hall, a longtime supporter of the branch, will treat us to a masterclass in one of her many specialist subjects – Greek drama. Edith, a Professor in Classics at Durham University, has published more than thirty books, broadcasts frequently on radio and television, works as a consultant with professional theatres, lectures all over the world, and publishes widely in academic and mainstream journals and newspapers. She is a world leader in the study of ethnicity, class and gender in ancient sources, of ancient theatre, and of the instrumentality of ancient ideas in world culture since the Renaissance.

14th November 2024

Professor Catherine Fletcher

‘The Roads to Rome: Two Thousand Years of Travel Along the Routes of Empire’

Catherine, an historian of early modern Europe as well as of landscapes and places, will guide us on an exploration of over two thousands years of travel to Rome and on the Roman road network, in light of her most recent publication. Alongside her work at Manchester Metropolitan University, she is interested in the communication of history to wider publics, via fiction and non-fiction, on radio and TV, at heritage sites and beyond, and she has worked as an adviser to the set team on Wolf Hall and now broadcasts, podcasts and writes for magazines on Italian Renaissance history and beyond.

16th January 2025

Professor Michael Scott

‘”Sometimes a festival ain’t no party”. The curious case of the Panathenaic festival in ancient Athens’

Our President returns, back in his January slot, to deliver his annual Address – in 2025, he will focus on the highlight of the ancient Athenian religious and cultural calendar, the Panathenaic Festival, and shed new light on its history. Michael combines his academic work with his position as Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) at the University of Warwick and he is a prolific broadcaster, author and public engagement specialist who was the recipient of the Classical Association Prize in 2021. You can read about his latest book on archaeology, X Marks the Spot, here.

13th February 2025

Professor Judith Mossman

‘Pets in antiquity: Man’s Best Friend?’

Chair of the Council of the national Classical Association, Judith is also President of the Hellenic Society and a Professor Emerita at Coventry University. Judith specialises in Greek literature in the fifth century BC and the second/third century AD and is the author of two books and a number of edited volumes and articles on Euripides and Plutarch. In her talk for the Association, she’ll be exploring a topic close to many of our hearts – animals!

13th March 2025

Dr Emily Hauser

‘Mythica: In Search of the Real Women Behind Homer’s Myths’

Dr Emily Hauser, a previous speaker at our Book Club, is an award-winning classicist and historian and the author of an acclaimed trilogy of novels retelling the stories of women of Greek myth, For the Most Beautiful, For the Winner and For the Immortal. She is now a Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History at the University of Exeter, and teaches and researches on women’s writing, ancient and modern. Her recent publications include How Women Became Poets: A Gender History of Greek Literature and a book for younger readers – Ancient Love Stories, illustrated by Sander Berg, as well as a very exciting upcoming publication!

10th April 2025

Change of Speaker!

Dr Jane Draycott

Fulvia: The Woman Who Broke All the Rules in Ancient Rome

We’re delighted that Dr Jane Draycott (University of Glasgow) will join us to cast light on her upcoming book. The charismatic Fulvia amassed a degree of military and political power that was unprecedented for a woman in Ancient Rome. Married three times to men who moved in powerful circles, including Marc Antony, Fulvia was not content to play the usual background role that was expected of a wife – instead she challenged the Roman patriarchy and sought to increase her influence in the face of determined opposition. It’s rare to know so much about a particular Roman woman, but Fulvia was so despised by her male detractors that she was much written about!

Dr Draycott investigates science, technology, and medicine in the ancient world, and is particularly interested in the history and archaeology of medicine; impairment, disability, and prostheses; and botany and horticulture. Recently, she has begun exploring the use (and abuse) of history and archaeology in video games, particularly those set in classical antiquity. She has also long had a special interest in Graeco-Roman Egypt and the Roman client kingdom of Mauretania.

Unfortunately, Prof. Wood is unable to visit us this April due to filming commitments for an upcoming documentary but we hope that he will visit us again soon!

In-person events are £5 a ticket, or free to members. If you’d like to become a member for just £12 a year (or £5 for students), please click here. We continue to offer online access to recordings of our lectures for members; if you would like online-only access, membership costs £5.