Budleigh Salterton Probus Club
For more details of each event over 2023/4, just click on the speaker’s name.
For a look at the events that took place over 2022/3 click here.
| Date | Title | Speaker |
| 07-Sep-23 | “Having a lovely time. Wish you were here” – a history of the picture post card | Ken Atherton |
| 21-Sep-23 | Taking Liberties …. a Life in Fiction. | Graham Hurley |
| 05-Oct-23 | Mary Rose | Peter Marsden |
| 26-Oct-23 | Sky Diving | Lottie Dale |
| 02-Nov-23 | Art and Avocados | Angela Yarwood |
| 16-Nov-23 | Winter lunch | |
| 07-Dec-23 | The Theatre of the World | Andrew Kingsnorth |
| 21-Dec-23 | The Seeds and our own survival | Richard Jones |
| 04-Jan-24 | Every Rolex tells a Story | Peter Boeuf |
| 18-Jan-24 | John Scott – Nelson’s Secretary and Friend: An Unsung Hero | John Maynard |
| 01-Feb-24 | Churchill’s Life through his Painting – Fighting the Black Dog | Marilyn Bishop |
| 15-Feb-24 | The Eastern European Experience | Brian & Chris Clarke |
| 07-Mar-24 | Devon’s Orchards – How Devon took to Cider | Michael Gee |
| 21-Mar-24 | Transport: Trials and Tribulations | Clive Yeates |
| 04-Apr-24 | My Favourite Sings | Julia Green |
| 18-Apr-24 | Rome – Foundation to Empire | Bryan Short |
| 02-May-24 | Sharks – Much Maligned and Misunderstood | Mark Taylor Hutchinson |
| 16-May-24 | Chairman’s Lunch | Photos |
| 06-Jun-24 | Debating | Richard Doorbar |
| 20-Jun-24 | Our Season in One Day: The Met Office, Weather and Climate | Jeremy Walton |
More about the speakers
7th September : Ken Atherton – “Having a lovely time. Wish you were here’ – A history of the picture post card
This illustrated talk is based on an extensive collection of Blackpool postcards and begins with a very brief history of the picture postcard as we know it, but concentrates mainly on the amusing comments written by visitors to Blackpool since the beginning of the 20th century.
21st September Graham Hurley : Taking Liberties….a Life in Fiction.
A candid account of the traps, tribulations, and occasional triumphs occasioned by putting pen to paper.
5th October : Peter Marsden : Mary Rose
Peter is a world-class archaeologist who will reveal fascinating insights into the Mary Rose. He was an archaeologist at the Museum of London, recently retired to the Exeter area of Devon, and is now a speaker and author. He will discuss the loss of the King Henry VIII’s warship Mary Rose when she sank off Portsmouth on 19 July 1545, with the loss of over four hundred men, including Exeter-based Vice-Admiral Sir George Carew. In 1982 the ship was raised, enabling archaeologists and historians to find out how and why she sank. Peter has walked on her decks, and recently, with others, found clues to the circumstances of her sinking on a calm summer’s day in July and who was responsible for the disaster.
26th October : Lottie Dale : Sky Diving
Lottie’s dad was a Spitfire, Hurricane, Mustang pilot in WW2 – he passed his love of flying over to Lottie. Unable to learn to fly due to the costs involved, I took the next best route and learned how to fall out of a perfectly serviceable aircraft. Her first jump was at the age of 31 – and she had a malfunctioning canopy on 12th jump – her second free-fall! Undeterred, she persevered and over the next 17 years completed more than 1200 jumps.
2nd November : Angela Yarwood – Brook Gallery : Art and Avocados
Not a natural pairing, but in Budleigh, this unlikely combination provides the backdrop for a voyage through the world of collectors’ art, original print and the art gallery model. Angela Yarwood, Managing Director of Budleigh’s Brook Gallery with Brook Kitchen takes the role of tour guide through this unusual but exciting journey.
7th December : Andrew Kingsnorth : The Theatre of the World
Andrew was introduced to charitable Outreach surgery in Botswana in 1986. Since 2000, he has volunteered with the European Society of Surgery, visiting eight of the countries of the former USSR – and in 2005 founded the UK-based charity “Hernia International”, which works worldwide.
21st December : Richard Jones – The Seeds and our own survival
Humans started domesticating crops about 10,000 years ago, but the application of modern breeding methods is much more recent. Increases in agricultural productivity have led both to more and cheaper food but there is growing concern that global food systems are under threat. Richard’s talk will draw on examples from his work in sub-Saharan Africa to increase agricultural productivity and how many of the same challenges are relevant to us locally.
2024
4th January: Peter Boeuf – Every Rolex tells a Story
The talk is based on a murder investigation from the mid-1990s which was set in train when the body of a man was recovered by a fishing vessel from a position approximately six miles off Teignmouth.
18th January: John Maynard – John Scott – Nelson’s Secretary and Friend : An unsung hero
1st February: Marilyn Bishop – Churchill’s Life through his painting – Fighting the Black Dog
15th February: Brian & Chris Clarke: The Eastern European Experience
Brian and Chris will discuss their important work in Easter Europe, especially in Bulgaria. They have presented to the General Synod of the Church of England and will explain the function and purpose of their charity.
7th March: Michael Gee – Devon’s Orchards – How Devon took to CiderMichael traces the history of orchards in the county. He explains how Devon took to cider in a big way after Tudor times, planting so many orchards that they exceeded needs. Now, after a long period of decline, there has been a revival in orchard planting and cider
21st March: Clive Yeates – Transport: Trials and Tribulations
Tales include the merits of stripping a motorcycle in the comfort of one’s parents’ lounge, the downside of asking a girlfriend to get out and push when stuck in the middle of a ford, why you shouldn’t buy a sailing dinghy by torchlight at a party when you have had too much to drink, how to avoid being machine gunned by the Royal Marines when sailing off Exmouth, why trying out a ski jump after just one week’s skiing instruction isn’t a good idea, advice to audience members planning on driving a steam traction engine for the first time
4th April : Julia Green – My favourite singsJulia will take you through a musical journey through her life in singing – from musical theatre to jazz; with a little bit of classical music thrown in!
18th April: Bryan Short – Rome – Foundation to Empire
This talk gives some insight into the way Rome evolved from an insignificant agricultural community to the greatest power on earth. It illuminates the social and moral imperatives and catalytic events that stimulated this transition, leading to the dominance of a single person over the ‘civilised’ world, the brilliant Octavian, or Augustus Caesar.
2nd May: Mark Taylor Hutchinson – Sharks – Much maligned and misunderstood.
The talk will focus primarily on Mark’s diving and photography experiences with sharks. He will also include a recent trip diving with crocodiles and a few wildlife images from the UK. He hopes the talk will foster a greater understanding and appreciation of sharks and the vital role they play, along with the threats they currently face.
6th June: Richard Doorbar – Debating
Richard will provide an introduction to ‘Debating’ There will then be an active session involving members of Probus in debating. There will be an opportunity to hear a light-hearted Balloon Debate and then an opportunity to participate in a debate with a topical motion.
20th June: Jeremy Walton – Our Seasons in One Day: The Met Office, Weather and Climate
After giving a brief history of the Met Office, we discuss how to forecast the weather, using observations as a starting point for large-scale computer models. The outputs from the models are assembled by a forecaster, and the results communicated through a variety of media. We assess the accuracy of the forecasts and compare them to those from other meteorological services around the world. We also describe the Met Office’s work in climate modelling and its contribution to climate change studies. Finally, we discuss the services offered by the Met Office to help the nation’s planning, travel, defence, industry, agriculture, and work with international partners.
Budleigh Salterton Probus Club 