Beaches and Bothies – a Hebridean Adventure Speaker: Jo Crotty
This is the story of the most amazing trip to more than 30 beaches, miles of unspoilt sand and crystal clear water, plus a few other sites thrown in.
Caminos less travelled Speaker: Christine Stockton
Discover prehistoric paintings, dolmens, medieval towns, Jewish quarters, castles, churches and palaces, all less visited than the monumental cities of Spain.
Join Laura for on a mythical journey through the real world. Together we will travel through tiny archipelagos and explore mystical Mediterranean islands thought to be the setting of Odysseus’s epic journey.
We will encounter sea monsters and sex goddesses, fragile masculinity, toxic gods, polyamory and plenty of narcissism as we look again at this old text with fresh eyes. Together, we will explore what myths are, the importance of the stories we tell ourselves, and the magical task of mapping imaginary worlds.
Laura Coffey is not a classics scholar, she cannot read Ancient Greek, often finds herself utterly lost, and so is an unlikely author of a book on mapping The Odyssey.
Stephen Fry said it’s “a magical and hugely captivating journey – a simply marvellous read, hugely recommended”.
Laura’s book Enchanted Islands: A Mediterranean Odyssey, has also been selected by Wanderlust and Citizen Femme as a top travel book for 2024, and by Blackwells as recommended summer reading. It has been long listed for the Anglo Hellenic League Runciman Award
2nd: Nick Fielding – Crossing from Almaty to the Aral Sea basin.
In May 2025 Nick Fielding took part in an expedition with a group of Kazakhs for more than 2000 miles across southern Kazakhstan, from Almaty to the Aral Sea basin in the west of the country.
For at least the last 50 years the Aral has been drying out as water has been extracted from its two feeder rivers, the Syr Darya and Amu Darya, for agriculture. Fielding travelled to the north of the sea, where there are signs that at least part of the Aral Sea is being regenerated, due to the construction of a new dam.
Further south, there is only sand and scrub where there was once an inland sea. He visited the former island nature reserve of Barsa Kelemes, which is now surrounded by an ocean of sand.
He was also able to visit some of the many impressive archaeological sites along the route.
Date & Time: Saturday 7th February 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
Speaking on Saturday, September 5, 2026, we have :
1st: Tharik Hussain – Muslim Europe
Award-winning author and journalist Tharik Hussain invites audiences on a revelatory journey through Europe’s hidden Muslim past. Drawing on his groundbreaking book Muslim Europe, Hussain uncovers over 1,400 years of history often left out of mainstream narratives—from early Muslim arrivals in 647 AD to the vibrant, multicultural societies of Al-Andalus, Sicily, and beyond.
Blending travel, storytelling, and scholarship, he explores a Europe where Muslim, Christian, and Jewish communities lived, learned, and thrived together—giving rise to advances in science, philosophy, medicine, and culture that shaped the modern world. Along the way, he challenges deeply rooted assumptions about Europe’s identity, exposing how historical narratives have erased this shared heritage.
This engaging and perspective-shifting talk repositions Islam as an integral part of Europe’s story, not a footnote. Rich in insight and vivid detail, Hussain’s work invites us to rethink what we know about the past—and how it shapes our understanding of the present.
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2nd: Sahir Permall – Somaliland: Travelling in The World’s Most Successful Unrecognised State
Each May, Somaliland celebrates its Independence Day with parades, music and national pride – despite remaining unrecognised by the vast majority of the international community. More than three decades after declaring independence from Somalia, it has built a functioning democracy, maintained relative stability and forged a distinct national identity. How did one of Africa’s most peaceful and resilient societies become one of the world’s least understood places?
Traveller and writer Sahir Permall is drawn to the spaces between the obvious destinations – the places that rarely make bucket lists or headlines. Often she explores them by bicycle, travelling slowly enough to notice the details and conversations that others miss. This time, however, she set out across Somaliland through more conventional travel, discovering a country that challenged almost every assumption she had brought with her.
From the lively streets of Hargeisa and the ancient rock art of Laas Geel to camel markets, desert landscapes and unforgettable encounters with local people, she found a place defined not by conflict, but by extraordinary hospitality, gentleness and determination. Blending personal stories with history, culture and geopolitics, Sahir explores the paradox of building a successful state that much of the world still refuses to recognise.
Rich in insight, warmth and unexpected moments, this is an invitation to discover one of the world’s most fascinating – and most overlooked – destinations.
Date & Time: Saturday 5th September 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
1st: Helen Spencer – Expedition to ski to the South Pole – a physical, mental and emotional challenge!
At the lowest point of her life, Helen decided to pivot and aim HIGH.
From zero fitness or experience; she learned how to ski, pull a pulk, and just about survive on an expedition to ski the last degree to the South Pole in the footsteps of her polar heroes.
2nd: Daniel Stables – Fiesta: A Journey Through Festivity.
Daniel Stables’ talk, Fiesta: A Journey Through Festivity, invites audiences into the vivid, surprising world of global celebration. Drawing on his work as a travel writer for National Geographic, the BBC, and major newspapers, as well as his acclaimed debut book of the same title, he traces how festivals illuminate the ways humans express identity, belief, and belonging. Through richly observed narratives, he guides listeners from the masked elegance of Venice Carnival to the spinning mysticism of Konya’s whirling dervishes, and from the ritual funerals of Sulawesi to the intense devotion of Spain’s Romería de El Rocío.
Stables shows that festivals are more than spectacles: they suspend ordinary life, dissolve hierarchies, and create liminal spaces where people connect to culture, community, and the sacred. His talk reveals festivity as one of humanity’s most vibrant forms of expression—dazzling on the surface, yet deeply revealing of the shared motivations and emotional truths that unite societies around the world.
Date & Time: Saturday 6th June 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
Admission is at the Club’s sole discretion. The Club may refuse entry to, or require any person to leave, at any time where the Club reasonably considers it appropriate for safety, security, capacity, compliance with law, or orderly conduct.
1st: Tony Wheeler and Richard I’Anson: Across the World in Stories and Photographs
A rare double‑header brings together two long‑time collaborators whose work has shaped how the world travels. Tony Wheeler, co‑founder of Lonely Planet and author of numerous books, joins acclaimed travel photographer Richard I’Anson, whose images have filled shelves and inspired journeys across the globe.
Tony and Richard have roamed the world side by side—from documenting Chasing Rickshaws and Rice Trails, to trekking the Wainwright Way across England and hiking to Everest Base Camp. They’ve even led expeditions together, most recently guiding a World Expeditions journey through Lo Manthang and Mustang in Gandaki Province of western Nepal.
2nd: Mary Fogarty: From mountains and men to Speedos and souks
Mary will recall decades’ worth of independence, travelling and living in many countries. She describes how she has always been the odd one out, the outsider. Growing up in Kenya, she is considered an African savage back at her British convent school; in Italy, she is the only foreigner in her boyfriend’s village; in Australia, she is the lone ‘Pom’ amidst a mass of Macedonians; in Mozambique, the only white face walking home in the dark; in Marrakech, her frequent entries a source of suspicion to border police.
Adventures include an Egyptian doctor on the night train to Cairo; a trip across the desert with a Syrian bus driver to find a hotel with alcohol; sharing a sleeping bag with a Sherpa to cure her headaches in the Himalayas; and meeting a Macedonian in Perth who is sleeping in his office and growing marijuana in the office flower bed. In the final chapter, she is nearly murdered by the new girlfriend of her Berber ex-lover in Marrakech.
Mary’s memoir, ‘In Spite of Myself‘, which recounts all these adventures – and many more! – will be published on June 12 and is available to order online on Amazon, Waterstones and many independents. You can also buy it in many shops!
Date & Time: Saturday 4th July 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
Admission is at the Club’s sole discretion. The Club may refuse entry to, or require any person to leave, at any time where the Club reasonably considers it appropriate for safety, security, capacity, compliance with law, or orderly conduct.
1st: Duncan J. D. Smith – Only in Tangier: A Stroll through the Moroccan Port City.
Join independent travel writer and self-styled Urban Explorer Duncan JD Smith on an illustrated journey through the streets of Tangier. Duncan’s recently published guidebook “Only in Tangier” is the result of a one-year-long exploration of the storied Moroccan port city.
He will reveal Tangier’s ancient walled medina, bustling New Town, and little-known suburbs. Including the Petit Socco and the Teatro Cervantes, the Street of the Beats and the Cave of Hercules, the tomb of Ibn Battuta and the Cinéma Rif, an abandoned Spanish bullring and Africa’s first pet cemetery.
Duncan is the sole author and publisher of the ‘Only In Guides’, a growing series of idiosyncratic city guides aimed specifically at independent cultural travellers.
2nd: James Merriman – Scrums, Mountains and Tracer Fire – Ten Days in Afghanistan
James Merriman is a travel writer based in North Devon, who has travelled to over 160 countries, a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and was recently longlisted for the Bradt Guides New Travel Writer of the Year 2026.
In this illustrated talk, James shares the story of a ten-day journey earlier this year through Afghanistan, travelling from Kabul to Herat, Bamyan and Mazar-e-Sharif during a period of heightened regional tension.
Describing himself as an “Anxious Explorer”, James reflects on travelling through a country that is so often viewed through the lens of conflict. From securing a visa in Dubai and passing through Taliban checkpoints to witnessing the spectacle of Buzkashi, exploring the empty location of Buddha statues of Bamyan, and experiencing the generous hospitality of ordinary Afghans, the talk offers a personal account of a country that continues to surprise visitors.
Illustrated throughout with James’s own photography, the presentation combines practical travel experiences with stories of the people, landscapes and moments that stayed with him long after he returned home.
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
Join acclaimed polar historian Michael Smith as he brings to life the extraordinary 2,000‑year quest to reach the end of the Earth. Based on his forthcoming book Towards the Coldest Place, this talk uncovers the surprising origins of Antarctic exploration—from an ancient Greek obelisk to the accidental discovery of the continent itself.
Smith introduces the colourful cast who shaped this frozen frontier: the Norwegian opportunist who claimed a dubious first landing, the kilted piper serenading a baffled penguin, and the French captain who met the ice with champagne in hand. At its heart lies the gripping, fateful duel between Amundsen and Scott, whose contrasting choices still echo a century later.
This is a dramatic, human story of courage, obsession and endurance in the world’s most unforgiving landscape—and of the explorers whose feats continue to define our fascination with Antarctica.
British Antarctic Expedition 1910-13 Four of the Pole party stand by tent with Norwegian flag. A pair of skis lie on the snow with ski poles standing next to them (variation made by Ponting from original photograph taken by Henry Bowers).no-nb_sml_ 1790
2nd: Speaker to be confirmed.
The talk by Louis D Hall – Into the Mouth of the Wolf has been postponed until February 2027
Date & Time: Saturday 7th November 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
1st: Tiffany Coates – Tiffany’s Travels – How It All Started
he story of how Tiffany Coates went from being a non-rider to setting off heading to India two-up on a BMW just two months later. A journey that was to lead to two and a half years of motorbike adventures before Tiffany eventually made it home having crossed Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa.
Since that initial journey, Tiffany has gone on to become the world’s foremost female motorbike adventurer, covering over 300,000 miles. She was the first motorcyclist to have crossed Asia on all three classic routes. As well as trips to Timbuktu, Borneo, Tibet, Madagascar and Outer Mongolia.
When not out on the road Tiffany lives on the cliffs above Lands End and is an international tour guide guide, leading groups across Asia, Africa and Latin America
2nd: Rosemary J Brown – Moving Mountains Intrepid Women Climbers and The Peaks Named in Their Honour
Join Rosemary J Brown to celebrate nine extraordinary women who reached the pinnacles of exploration and are immortalised in mountains named after them. Defying altitude, expectations and convention, they reached some of the highest places on Earth, achieving an honour long reserved for men and monarchs. Though their names endure on soaring summits, their remarkable stories have largely gone untold…until now. From her recently published book Moving Mountains: Intrepid Women Climbers and the Peaks Named in their Honour Rosemary will share with us the daring adventures of forgotten woman mountaineers from the 18th century until present day including the first woman to stand on the roof of the world (Junko Tabei) , the only woman among the thirty-three members of the legendary
Lewis and Clark Expedition of the American West (Sacajawea) and the first climber to scale Mont Blanc in the depths of winter (Isabella Straton).
Rosemary is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Churchill Fellow and a member of the Alpine Club, not to mention a long-time member of the Globetrotters Club.
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Date & Time: Saturday 5th December 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
Traditionally, we follow this meeting with a New Year’s Party post-meeting.
Everyone is invited to bring food, wine1, or soft drinks (we are not allowed beer or spirits) and participate!
We have now received permission for wine at the post-meeting New Year’s party, everyone is invited to bring food and wine or soft drinks.
(We will not have access to the kitchen to heat food, so please bring food that is ready to eat.)
Date & Time: Saturday 3rd January 2026
Doors open at 14:15 in London and on Zoom with the talks starting around 14:45 (London see Event Time Announcer for local times), please arrive before 14:45 and switch your phone to “do not disturb” or silent.
We would ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms participate via Zoom.
Admission costs:
£7 for members. (Members can access a ticket code below (Log in))
