Club Events
Whether it’s a dining in or ball, a notable speaker or garden party, there’s a whole host of events organised by, and for, Strangers’ Club members – all being a great excuse for members to enjoy themselves with likeminded people.
The Societies and Groups at the Strangers’ Club organise a range of events, including external speakers, competitions and a variety of visits.
Strangers’ Club events provide an excellent way of making the most of membership. Enjoy time with other members, often with their partners. Come to the Summer Dinner Parties and Barbeques, Formal Dining-In and lunches such as the Beaujolais lunch.
The Art of Documentary Making - Dick Meadows - Speakers Lunch
The art of documentary filmmaking is as old as film itself. But why do some films fly and others fail? Award-warning producer Dick Meadows draws aside the curtain to reveal some of the secrets from more than twenty five years of documentary filmmaking around the world for the BBC from their base in Norwich.
During that time the programme-making landscape has changed irrevocably. A digital revolution has swept through the industry. The familiar terrestrial channels face being brushed aside in a tsunami of programmes, podcasts and digital platforms.
In this over-heated media landscape there are winners and losers. More choice for some, but older audiences sacrificed, current affairs and factual programmes diluted, regional programmes and local radio starved of funds.
Dick reflects on a life in journalism and television with some stories of the films and all the intricacies and anxieties of how they reached the screen.
The talk will be followed by a two course lunch and coffee. £28
Please book online and advise of any dietary requirements.
Lunchtime Barbecue - Tuesday 3rd June
‘Fire up the grill and bring your appetite - it’s BBQ time!’
A delicious two-course lunch including coffee
Meet in the bar from 12:30pm
We’re firing up the grill and bringing out the best BBQ flavours for some Summer gatherings you won’t want to miss!
Join us for a terrace lunch of mouth-watering food, refreshing drinks and convivial company (hopefully great weather too!)
Please book online or contact Kim Donellan, the Club Steward, at: steward@strangersclub.co.uk or
Tel: 01603 623814
Please include any queries / comments (dietary requirements, smaller portion size, etc.) at the time of booking.
Speakers Lunch - From Mud to Media (Building a World View) - Sally-Ann Wilson
Sally-Ann Wilson began her working life as a conservationist in the mangrove swamps of Indonesia. Driven by an intense curiosity about the world, her career led her to broadcasting and in 2010 she was appointed as Secretary General of the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association. Part diplomat, part troubleshooter, she was fascinated by the world of international broadcasting becoming long-time CEO of the Public Media Alliance, the umbrella group for the national broadcasters of the world.
It all began with a degree in Ecology and Development at UEA. While studying for her PhD she started reporting for BBC Radio Norfolk. After training in news and production she migrated to the BBC’s Natural History Unit in Bristol. Filming wildlife took her to many remote and exciting places for the BBC, Discovery and Survival Anglia, including, time spent with chimpanzees in West Africa for David Attenborough’s series, The Trials of Life. The series was aptly named and left her fighting for her own life.
She’ll share the tales and challenges of wildlife and documentary film making and provide an insight into the world of broadcasting from the BBC to TV Tonga.
Now, at last, she is back in the mud, as Chair of the Ted Ellis Trust, that manages Wheatfen Nature Reserve in Surlingham.
The talk will be followed by a two course lunch and coffee. £28
Please book online and advise of any dietary requirements.
Lunchtime Barbecue - Tuesday 8th July
‘Fire up the grill and bring your appetite - it’s BBQ time!’
A delicious two course lunch followed by coffee
Meet in the bar from 12:30pm
We’re firing up the grill and bringing out the best BBQ flavours for some Summer gatherings you won’t want to miss!
Join us for a terrace lunch of mouth-watering food, refreshing drinks and convivial company (hopefully great weather too!)
Please book online or contact Kim Donellan, the Club Steward, at: steward@strangersclub.co.uk or
Tel: 01603 623814
Please include any queries / comments (dietary requirements, smaller portion size, etc.) at the time of booking.
Trump, Tariffs and Turmoil: Navigating the New Economic Landscape
Mr Ian Harwood is a well known City economist, who will give us a talk on the President Trump’s effect on the economic landscape.
He will try to make sense of what President Trump is trying to do, setting this analysis against the backdrop of the all-important US economy and its markets. We will then consider how his actions are affecting the rest of the world (with a special emphasis upon the U.K.) and then speculate where we will all end up.
Mr. Harwood has worked as a practising macro-economist in the City of London since the late 1970s. He was Chief Economist of SG Warburg (1986-94) and, subsequently, Dresdner Kleinwort (1994-2008). His work was highly regarded by investors worldwide, and Ian took first place in Global Economics in the annual Extel survey of investors each year from 1997 to 2007.
More recently, Ian has devoted his time to serving as an adviser to a wide-ranging clutch of financial, charitable and higher educational institutions. He is currently economic consultant to Redburn and investment adviser to MS-Amlin, the Mineworkers pension schemes and Saranac Partners. He is also a Trustee of the UBS Pension scheme and the Investment Member of the Advisory Board of Greenwich Hospital, the Royal Navy charity.
He contributes to the governance of a number of universities and was a Visiting Professor at Greenwich University from 2010 to 2013.
The talk will be followed by a two course supper and coffee. £30
Please book online or via the Club Steward.
If you have any queries, requests for dishes, smaller portion size, comments or dietary requests, please do not hesitate to contact Kim Donellan, the Club Steward at: steward@strangersclub.co.uk Tel: 01603 623814
Lunchtime Barbecue - Tuesday 12th August
‘Fire up the grill and bring your appetite - it’s BBQ time!’
A delicious two course lunch followed by coffee
Meet in the bar from 12:30pm
We’re firing up the grill and bringing out the best BBQ flavours for some Summer gatherings you won’t want to miss!
Join us for a terrace lunch of mouth-watering food, refreshing drinks and convivial company (hopefully great weather too!)
Please book online or contact Kim Donellan, the Club Steward, at: steward@strangersclub.co.uk or
Tel: 01603 623814
Please include any queries / comments (dietary requirements, smaller portion size, etc.) at the time of booking.
Jenny Lind Speaker Supper
Mr Richard England, Consultant Paediatric Surgeon from the Jenny Lind Children’s Hospital will give us a talk on the life and work of Jenny Lind.
Jenny Lind’s early childhood in Stockholm was harsh, but once her beautiful singing voice was discovered she quickly rose to stardom across Europe as the, ‘Swedish Nightingale’. Her operatic career eventually brought her to England. An invite to perform in Norwich by Bishop Stanley in 1847 was the beginning of a friendship with not only his family but the whole city and helped establish the Jenny Lind Children’s Hospital. This is now one of the oldest such institutions in the country and still provides care to children from across East Anglia today.
Richard England grew up in West Norfolk and escaped to South Yorkshire to study Medicine. He trained in paediatric surgery in Sheffield, Leeds and Cape Town before accepting the lure of a consultant post back here in Norwich. He now specialises in paediatric colorectal surgery and incontinence disorders of childhood. Over the last 5 years he has been fascinated by the treasure trove of documents in the Norfolk archives relating to Jenny Lind’s link with the city, as well as some of the other illustrious characters who walked the wards of the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital. He is honorary secretary of the Norwich Medico-Chirurgical Society and a member of the Swedish Jenny Lind Society.
The talk will be followed by a two course supper and coffee. £30
Please book online and advise of any dietary requirements.
