2nd September 2024
The Thomas Sutton Lecture 2024
The Thomas Sutton Lecture 2024: The evolution of the gallery in palace, town and country house with David Adshead
Paintings and sculpture are integral to the decorative schemes of the English country house. They are indicators of taste, connoisseurship and education. In this fascinating lecture renowned historian, David Adshead, will explore how the art gallery has evolved within such historic homes. He will take us on a journey charting how these spaces have transformed and adapted over successive generations – as locations for entertainment, as spaces of leisure and as the embodiment of their owners’ social status.
About the Speaker
David Adshead is the Director of The Georgian Group, and a director of the educational charity The Attingham Trust. He was formerly the Head Curator and Architectural Historian of the National Trust and is a past chairman of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain. He has published widely on British architecture and historic houses and their collections. Books include: Wimpole: Architectural Drawings and Topographical Views (2007), and Hardwick Hall: A Great Old Castle of Romance, co-edited with David Taylor (2016).
4th June 2024
*AT CAPACITY* Bees, Bugs & Butterflies: Pollinating London Together at the Charterhouse
Join us for an afternoon talk and tour to discover work supporting biodiversity in our gardens and green spaces.
Pollinating London Together (PLT) is an initiative that is raising awareness of the importance of biodiversity and pollinators, especially in the City of London and its immediate surroundings. Dr Konstantinos Tsiolis, Pollinator Ecologist at PLT, has been surveying pollinating insects in the Charterhouse gardens and the local area. His work will help shape our efforts to improve biodiversity on our site. Konstantinos will deliver a short talk to share his findings, followed by a walk around our gardens with the Garden team. Hopefully we will spot some pollinators in action!
16th January 2024
*SOLD OUT* – 1611 Society Lecture: The Cathedral Architecture of Europe with Simon Jenkins
This year’s 1611 Society Lecture with Simon Jenkins is now SOLD OUT. Thank you to everyone who has bought tickets, and we look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 13 March.
Renowned public speaker, journalist and author Simon Jenkins is delivering this year’s 1611 Society Lecture on Europe’s cathedrals which are among the most sensational structures anywhere in the world and among humankind’s greatest creations. He will be joining us in the Great Chamber to talk about Europe’s history and the stories behind these wonders, highlighting the cathedral’s central role in the European imagination. Simon travelled across Europe – from Chartres to York, Cologne to Florence, Toledo to Moscow and Stockholm to Seville researching for his new 2021 book on the subject which illuminates old favourites and highlights new discoveries and which forms the inspiration for the lecture.
Simon Jenkins is a regular contributor to both the Guardian and The Sunday Times, as well as broadcasting for the BBC. His career began at Country Life magazine and continued as a writer for the Times Educational Supplement, the Economist (political editor) and the Sunday Times (books editor). He served on the board of British Rail and London Transport in the 1980s and was Deputy Chairman of English Heritage and a Millennium Commissioner. Simon was Journalist of the Year in 1988 and Columnist of the Year in 1993. He has been Chairman of the National Trust since November 2008, and he continues to foster a great enthusiasm for the architectural heritage of Britain and Europe. His books include numerous works on architecture, the press and politics.
29th June 2023
Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Changed History *SOLD OUT*
Thomas Sutton Lecture 2023
Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I. Two of the most famous women in British history. Their stories are as familiar as they are compelling. And yet, they have never been told together. Piecing together evidence from original documents and artefacts uncovered while researching her new book, historian and broadcaster Tracy Borman reveals Anne Boleyn’s relationship with, and influence over her daughter Elizabeth, the celebrated Virgin Queen. In so doing, she sheds new light on an extraordinary mother and daughter who changed the course of British history forever.
Tracy Borman is a best selling author, historian and broadcaster, specialising in the Tudor period. Her books include Elizabeth’s Women, Thomas Cromwell, The Private Lives of the Tudors and Crown & Sceptre: A New History of the British Monarchy from William the Conqueror to Charles III. She has also written a fiction trilogy, The King’s Witch, based in the court of James I. Her latest non-fiction book is Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I: The Mother and Daughter Who Changed History (Hodder & Stoughton, 19 May 2023)
Tracy is also joint Chief Curator of Historic Royal Palaces, Chief Executive of the Heritage Education Trust and Chancellor of Bishop Grosseteste University in her native Lincoln. She has presented a number of history programmes for Channel 5 and the Smithsonian Channel, including The Fall of Anne Boleyn, Inside the Tower of London and Henry VIII and the King’s Men. She is a regular contributor to BBC History Magazine and gives talks on her books across the country and abroad.
The lecture will take place in the Charterhouse’s Great Chamber, where Elizabeth I held her first Privy Council meeting before ascending the Throne. This talk will give an insight into Tracy’s new book and signed copies will be available for purchase on the night.
18th May 2023
Book Conversation with Claire Davies and Brother Tim Epps
Join Claire Davies, former head gardener, and Brother Tim Epps in a discussion of beautiful gardens, Norfolk Coasts, good design, life at the Charterhouse and so much more.
Drawing upon their working partnership on two books together, they’ll explore some of the most enduring aspects of writing and design. These are adventure and magical stories from behind the walls of the Charterhouse. From well-known figures and scenes to the daily realities of life in the Charterhouse, they’ll dive into a complex and compelling past and present.
Claire and Tim will also discuss Claire’s new book: Norfolk’s Fragile Coast, and her previous book: Behind Walls, enchanting hidden Gardens of the Charterhouse. Books by both will be available on sale and for signing.
Claire was head gardener of the Charterhouse from 2009 to 2018 when she created our beautiful gardens. She is also a photographer, illustrator and artist.
Tim is a graphic designer, and a writer and illustrator of children’s books.
Tea, coffee and cakes will be available. Donations to the Charterhouse will be welcome.
