A weekend break to hear some of Britain's best historians and broadcasters.
A winter weekend bringing together a unique collection of the very best historians, broadcasters and authors to entertain you in bringing history alive.
Stay in a beautiful country house hotel near Stratford upon Avon and be hosted by Peter Furtado, former Editor of History Today magazine and history publisher Tony Morris, who together will chair the event.
Day 1
Arrive at the hotel by own arrangement. The hotel has ample free parking or
Stratford Station is about 5 miles away (taxis cost about £10-12).
Friday night - an evening with Sir Barry Cunliffe
Welcome reception and private dinner with wine. Your after-dinner speaker is Sir Barry Cunliffe who is the world’s leading archaeologist of Celtic and Roman Britain. Sir Barry recently retired as Professor of European Archaeology at Oxford, and is Chair of English Heritage. His latest book is Europe Between the Oceans: 9000 BC-AD 1000.
Day 2
After a full breakfast, sit back and enjoy your first speaker Marc Morris. His series on Castles was shown on Channel 4. His talk is on A Great and
Terrible King: Edward I and the Forging of Britain which is the title for his book. Talk by Suzannah Lipscomb, research curator at Hampton Court. Her recent book 1536: The Year that Changed Henry VIII has been widely praised as offering new insights into the King’s dramatic mood-shift that occurred at that time. After a coffee break your next talk is by Roy Adkins, an archaeologist and
historian whose Trafalgar: The Biography of a Battle and Jack Tar: Life in Nelson’s Navy has been praised as gripping and full of vivid accounts and
engaging detail. After lunch there is a private visit and guided tour of Broughton Castle, a beautiful Elizabethan masterpiece with medieval origins complete with moat and still inhabited by the founding family, Lord and Lady Saye and Sele.
Saturday Night - An evening with David Reynolds. David Reynolds' ninety-part BBC Radio 4 series America, Empire of Liberty was highly acclaimed. He is Professor of International History at Cambridge, was visiting professor at Harvard and is a former winner of the Wolfson Prize for History.
Day 3
After breakfast your first speaker of the day is Tracy Borman, (English Heritage and Historic Royal Palaces), whose books include: King’s Mistress, Elizabeth’s Women: and many more. Tracy is followed by Helen Rappaport on The Last Days of the Romanovs. Helen has written on many aspects of Russian history and the Crimean War. After lunch David Hendy from the
University of Westminster presents his prizewinning Life on Air: : A History of Radio Four, a cultural history of this unique broadcasting institution. After a tea break Bettany Hughes rounds off your weekend with a panoramic assessment of the ancient world. Bettany has presented many TV series and her book Helen of Troy widely acclaimed.
Charlecote Pheasant Hotel
The 3-star Charlecote Pheasant Hotel enjoys a delightful setting in lovely countryside about 5 miles from Stratford in the village of Charlecote. Facilities here include a cosy bar, atmospheric restaurant and very comfortable rooms set in a complex of buildings within the hotel grounds. All rooms have TV, telephone, private bath/shower room, and tea/coffee-making facilities.